Global Citizen's Challenge (Powered by SYTA & Your Big Year)
~ Fatima Zahra EL HAFA, Morocco
Why should any young aspiring changemaker take part in the Your Big Year Global Citizens Challenge?
One of the essential things I have learned from my experiences so far is that human connection and meeting new people from different backgrounds is a big life-changer.It is a key player for any aspiring changemaker. When people meet and exchange in an open environment, they can achieve great things for the greater good. This is true for any group of people, and it is even more accurate for people from different backgrounds.
Hence, whenever I get a chance to foster new connections, I jump at it! And the YBY Global Citizens Challenge was my most recent experience.
We were a group of 100 young aspiring changemakers from over 50 countries across all continents (Just this fact speaks for the diversity of this group!). During around three days, we went on different calls and chats with leaders in different sectors, who shared their experiences on how they are making an impact in both their respective communities and on a global scale. We exchanged, discussed, and reflected on pressing issues, like cultural stereotypes, climate change, sustainability, and eco-travel.
As a result, here are some of the things I have learned, and which you can expect when joining the YBY Global Citizen’s Challenge :
1) Be ready to master-in a fun way- different time zones:
No kidding! During our chats, sessions and calls, we would all go on a fun game of guessing what time it is where each one of us is, and we would try to convert that to our timezone.I can now tell you what time it is in, say New Zealand or the Philippines, in a flash! And I don’t even need a time converter to do that!
2) Get ready to do some digging to find out more about yourself and your own culture:
Most of the questions you will have to go through during the challenge require a lot of reflection on who you are, both as an individual and as a global citizen. You will need to take a closer look at how your actions have an impact on your community and the world as a whole. This will allow you to not only know more about the other participants' respective cultures, but yours too. As you will have to structure and put into words many aspects of your own culture. A true display of reflective learning!
3) Get your teamwork skills going:
As part of the challenge, each participant is assigned to a group of teammates who are from all over the world. And each team will need to work together and take part in a contest. So there is a lot of communication and collaboration involved, and a tight deadline!
4) Brush up on your creative artistic skills:
Besides the calls and chats that happen on Zoom, the rest of the challenge is all on Miro, an online collaborative whiteboard platform. So you will get to use shapes, pictures, videos, and much more to come up with amazing designs and collages.
5) Prepare your face muscles, as you will have some laughing to do:
You read that right! In between deep serious reflection sessions, we also laughed our hearts out during some great moments. You should have seen us trying to learn to say “how are you” or“good night” in our fellows’respective languages. Quite the fun challenge!
6) You may have figured this one out by yourself right now, but just in case you haven’t, brace yourself for making more friends:
I can now confidently visit many countries without worrying about encountering any cultural shocks. Because I know my friends in the host country have got my back!
Last but not least, here are a few quotes from the YBY team and fellow participants which might convince you -more-to join the next challenge:
“We’re in such a globally connected world, that understanding other cultures, and having those experiences where you’re out of your comfort zone, really does stay with you and transforms you in a very positive way, regardless of what happens.”- Marti, USA.
“The most important part of a leadership journey is just taking some concrete action to go forward, and then building from there and learning and increasing your impact over time.”- Patrick, USA.
“All it just takes is that one first step, and deciding you want to. Having the agency and feeling empowered to do your part and make an impact in your life and your world.”- Veronica, Canada.
“Regardless of your ‘position’, it’s all about that confidence and building yourself to find your purpose for the greater world.”- Ryan, Scotland.
“Always strive to know more about other people's culture. Be culturally aware of those around you and beyond.”- Molk, Tunisia.
“It was a journey not through the destinations we dream of in person, but through the culture, values, and lifestyles of people.”- Samel, Ghana.
So, what are you waiting for? Bring your open mind and enthusiasm, and you’re all set to go!