Oct 24th, 2011 10/24/11 | Community Stories

CCF's Youth Leadership Summit students pass it on

Each year for the past for 4 years, the Anthony Robbins Foundation has generously given numbers of CCF students the opportunity to attend its annual Global Youth Leadership Summit (GYLS) at the University of San Diego. Every CCF participant leaves Cambodia excited but apprehensive, unsure of their own abilities, not knowing what exposure to a foreign culture and attendance at a major international gathering held in a foreign language will actually be like and what, if anything, they can or will learn from it.What good could it do? The answer to that question is: plenty. This year's San Diego returnees made that very clear not long after their recent homecoming when, together with previous attendees and other senior students, they designed, organised - to the most minute detail - and ran a two day workshop for the older CCF students: the CCF Youth Leadership Program. What was the main point? "Confidence, " said Lim Sokhay, one of the lead organisers. "We wanted to make sure everyone knew how good they are, how they can do things and be leaders. We learned that and we want to share it." With over 100 students taking part, divided into 8 self-naming groups (in alphabetic order, Avatar, Diamond, Dolphin, Dynamite, Peacemakers, Rocks, Vampire and Wild Things - sponsors will have heard of some of them )the workshop got off to an active start and stayed that way. From early morning till well into the evening there were discussions and group work, competitions, presentations and challenges, individual input and collective output. There weretimes for reflection, for cheers and even for tears. Every group wrote and presented a drama to illustrate the key points they wanted to make: We can all help each other. Everyone has a talent. Putting yourself First all the time doesn't really get you anywhere. All who took part trod the stage and addressed either their group or the entire gathering. Everyone was a do-er. There were no spectators. Was it a success? "Yes", declares Sokhay, without a hint of hesitation "Why?" "Because everybody cooperated all the time and at the end everybody was doing more than they could at the beginning." And when the event drew at the end of the days, what was his biggest surprise?"Love," he said. "When it finished, we knew we love each other." 24.10.2011.Story2.Photo1 (1)24.10.2011.Story2.Photo2 24.10.2011.Story2.Photo3
Written by

CCF Media Team

More Stories & News

See all