Change Makers - Do what inspires your heart

 

Change Makers - Do what inspires your heart

By Sunyata Choyce

According to Lao Tzu, “A leader is best …when people barely know he exists, when the work is done, the aim fulfilled, and people will say: We did it ourselves.”  

That is the goal, maybe of many well-intentioned leaders trying to bring some good into the world.

When asked about my leadership style for a changemakers - women in philanthropy presentation, I realised how greatly I had to adapt my leadership style with the ever changing restrictions and the international logistics of aid work.

My true leadership style is at its best when working directly one on one or with small groups of youth. Helping them discover how they can be positive agents of change themselves in their own way. 

I have seen the best results when this is done through volunteering together on projects, talking about community issues and setting the youth up to job shadow other leaders.

 

I see my role as a leader as a co-operative one -- helping youth discover their passions and talents by together being actively engaged in different types of practical community work.

To give you an example … A few years ago myself and a volunteer had the privilege of being invited to run our Project COLORS Agents of Change program in Sri Lanka at an orphanage for teen girls. 

New management took over, making sure the girls were no longer being married off early or destined to become domestic servants. They wanted the girls to know they could have a future they chose.

After personally getting to know the older girls, learning about who they were, their dreams and what they loved…we went together to volunteer with the kids of an alternative school. 

In the evenings at the orphanage we would talk with the youth about what skills they would like to teach the kids...what their passions were…what made them happy and what they thought the kids would enjoy learning.

They helped design lesson plans and activities for the students based on all their different abilities.

The girls took it a step further by creating a community project leading the students in a beach and school yard trash clean up day.

Everyone was blown away by the mounds of bottles and cans we found. It was unreal.

We asked the kids what different ideas they had on solutions to do with some of the trash besides just the community’s norm of burning and burying it.

Together they created a workshop using the collection to create bird feeders and jewellery from pop bottles. Drums & shakers were made from buckets and cans. The students had so much fun with their new toys and music makers which were no longer trash.…these items were now a pride and joy.

Not only did the youth feel empowered by their projects with the students but the students were also engaged in helping clean up their community. Many of these girls are now sponsored to go on to college and trainings to be teachers, scientists and nurses. 

This is an ongoing educational fund for them which always needs extra help so we can add more girls, while keeping the ones in school until they graduate.  

👉  (If you want to donate to help the girls please email me at info@projectcolors.com)

 In South Africa, it was a similar story.

I worked daily at a children's home and noticed the youth greatly lacked drive and ambition.

The kids were only ever recipients of hand-outs, but were never allowed to actively do anything productive. Many had low self-esteem and never thought they could be a help to anyone.

Luckily, they also had a new director who was open to our ideas to bring the youth to volunteer in the township. We took several of the youth back into the villages to help the informal child care centres.
 
Alongside local teachers, they helped teach basic skills to the kids like hand washing and brushing teeth, reading and writing. The youth and kids loved it so much and felt pride in working.

Again, the youth were guided how to make their own plans based on their skills, passions and the community's needs.

I’m always pleasantly surprised with some of the projects the youth will choose when asked to make their own projects!

They decided to take on helping the community dogs because they saw how badly the animals were each time we went to the community.  They also designed mural paintings to brighten up the centres.

We extended this opportunity to more youth on a larger scale who received certificates. 

Here is a quote from Thembecca Goal in South Africa: 

“ I have learned a lot in a short period of time and also fell in love with volunteering. Once again I thank you for the opportunities, I really appreciate your concern for young stars like me who will make a difference in other people's lives including our disadvantaged backgrounds.“

By leading the youth to be agents of change through these experiences, it not only helps them build credibility to gain future employment but also gives back to the community. 

Now it’s more important than ever to pull our communities back together again.

As you all know, we are NOT all in the same boat.

Some communities and countries have more resources 

…..while others have more challenges.

 

We need to step up and see our journey more as one journey together, rather than trying to survive separately.

  

Now is the time for all of us to help creating opportunities for as many agents of change as possible.

We can’t become invisible and drift into the background quite yet as Lao Tzu suggests.

The work is not finished and the aim is not yet fulfilled.

Now is the time …to do all we can.

How to help: 

If you would like to donate to continue this work, I run these children's aid projects through 

Project COLORS International.

www.projectcolors.com