Young South Africans Creating A Better World

Young South Africans gathering to be inspired, change their perspective and take action to improve their communities.

Sometimes a shift in perspective is all that’s need to change the world. Across the world there are shifts in perspective generated by people who just decide to do something differently.

These shifts in perspective have happened in Ivory Coast when their national team, instead of calling for play bonuses, called for peace and assisted in securing a truce in a long civil war. It happened on June 16^th 1976 when young people decided to take a stand against oppression.  And it happened in 2010, when the FIFA World Cup in South Africa showed that an African country could successfully host a world class event.

Today, when we are hearing such dire statistics and message around youth unemployment and apathy in South Africa, there are a few young people who are taking a stand and working towards shifting perspectives and opinions on youth.

In Johannesburg, on 24 June, and Cape Town, 8 July, almost 200 young people from across the nation will gather to challenge their prejudices and assumptions, to discuss the problems they see in their community and, most importantly, to learn from each other and create solutions.

They are gathering for the enke: Forum a week-long residential youth conference bringing together young people from all walks of life anduniting them around a shared vision for a brighter future for South Africa. The event, run by enke: Make Your Mark, is an opportunity for young people to receive training in leadership and entrepreneurship, and to build a network of other young South Africans who care.

“The enke: Forum can break down social and economic barriers and create bridges between children from different backgrounds. Most importantly, it can mobilise them to be agents for positive social change. Our purpose as young people was to breakdown the shackles of apartheid. Theirs is to break down the shackles of poverty, the most pervasive and intransigent of all kinds being the poverty of mind and soul,” said Andile Nconsta, Former Head of CSI, Old Mutual Foundation, after attending enke: Make Your Mark’s inaugural Forum in 2009.

There are many programs and initiatives that bring young people together to discuss the social issues they are facing, but the enke: Make Your Mark program takes it a step further, not just with inspiration but with concrete action. Program participants are challenged to design and implement a Community Action Project, a social initiative based on the self-identified community needs and the interest and passions of the participants.

Since 2009, enke has seen 3 cohorts of learners go through the program, working with over 400 young leaders from across South Africa. In 2011 alone, the 145 participants engaged in this program had an impact on over 4,600 individuals across South Africa through their Community Action Projects – proof positive that young people can be agents for positive social change. Projects ranged from building computer labs, renovating school libraries, awareness programs on teen pregnancy, entertainment clubs to provide a safe haven for youth in their communities, and programs of teaching and mentorship to improve their peers’ grades.

The projects show that young people care about their communities and are capable of driving change, and that, once equipped with skills and support, they can accomplish great things. Most importantly, these learners realize that they are not alone, that they are part of a network of young South Africans who care as much as they do, and that there are people who are rooting for them.

So, this year, in Johannesburg (24-30 June) and Cape Town (8-14 July), a new cohort of learners have signed up for this program and committed themselves to be part of the movement of young South Africans creating better communities. As they shift their perspective and realize their capabilities, the future of South Africa may be just a bit brighter.