The idea of poverty alleviation is a difficult one. So many different experts from governments, inter-governmental organisations (i.e. World Bank, UN), businesses, non-profits and advocacy groups have been stumbled by this problem that has existed since the dawn of Mankind. Of course, there are vast disagreements on what is the "best" approach to solving this problem.
For those of you who wish to understand the extent of such differences in opinion, do check out the transcript of the POL 2008 Poverty Forum for a start. I remember a friend who told me after the forum,"You know, I have always been interested in poverty issues but after hearing today's forum and how mind-boggling the issue is, I think this is just not my cup of tea."
True, no one said that it is a problem that can be solved easily. Anyone who thinks that poverty can be alleviated in a single generation is probably dreaming. But then, we make the best of such solutions with what we have.
In hindsight, I realised that we have omitted an important perspective in the mentioned forum - the social entrepreneur. He is one who is dedicated to introducing a business model which places the needs of the poor above profits, and devotes the entire aim of the business to solving the problem of poverty in his community. There are so many examples of social enterprises or businesses that have benefitted the poor, and survived to this day against all odds. The Grameen group of companies, founded by Nobel-prize-winner Professor Muhammad Yunus, is the poster boy of all such social businesses.
This semester, I am glad to befriend people - including students - who have a passion for social entrepreneurship and understand its potential to benefit communities and change the world we live in. Their passion is 'contagious', reaching out to others who believe that they should do something to tackle social issues around them, and are frustrated by the failure of mainstream 'solutions' to these problems.
Hence, I am very excited about what we can achieve in the next few years, by constantly learning about issues from each other and discovering our potential in introducing sustainable initiatives, or starting social businesses that can grow to become engines of change.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Are we youth as powerless as we think we are?
Lately, I've been thinking about the role of the youth in society, about how we can play a part to change the way the world around us works, and how we can make our voices heard. Obviously, this is not a new topic. In every decent project that focuses on solving a social issue in society or even in the realm of public policy, there inevitably will arise the question of how the youth can be involved in solving such issues.
But take a look around at how we youth have been treated. Society has mostly paid lip service to the role of the youth apart from acknowledging that we generally have the idealism, energy and time to devote to such social issues. Many stakeholders in society downplay the role of the youth. We are mostly seen as a motley mass of young consumers, or students who have yet to be moulded by corporate life, or even potential trouble-makers. Many NGOs see the youth as merely "volunteers" who will provide the manpower who will unquestioningly carry out tasks assigned to us. Yes and yes, all these descriptions do apply to the youth in many ways.
But what about the youth as potential change makers? Can society honestly accept the youth as a potential body of individuals capable of initiating change in the world today?
We may lack the experience or the maturity to make such change possible. But take a look at all the successful projects that the youth have done that has made an impact on society. I will document some of these successful projects from time to time.
In many ways, we have made our mark on society. We have filled the gap between several stakeholders in society, and used our vast pool of idealism and determination to initiate everlasting change. We have done what many people have said we couldn't - by refusing to succumb to the "adult" mentality of fear of failure that has deterred "adults" from achieving the impossible.
But then, from my personal experience, the number of real youth change makers I know or heard of is small. They remain a minority against the vast majority of youth who actually believe that they can't make a difference in society.
As globalisation and the powers of the Internet bring social issues to the attention of youth today, it has come to a stage when we are bombarded with too much information and we have become desensitized to such issues. I see many of my peers who grow up thinking about life is just about finding a good career and making lots of money, before settling down and having a good family.
Yes, they have seen the painful pictures of people suffering on television but they shrug their shoulders and say,"What can I do? The problem is too huge and my efforts will be too small." This is true but only because majority of the youth are thinking and acting this way.
When I started the AIESEC-led Poverty Through Our Lenses (POL) project as my first foray into the world of cause-driven youth efforts, I have people telling me that it can't be done or that it is pointless to do so.
When I tell some of my friends about my idea of a social business that will one day provide employment to thousands of poor people and lift them out of poverty, people immediately question me,"Is this business viable? Will it make more loss than profit? How are you going to get the money for this?"
Yes, I understand that it is important to be practical as well. Every idea needs to have a sound plan of execution. But let's not hide behind the screen of practicality when we are afraid of failure in the first place. I have seen how good ideas are relegated to history just because people do not believe in them for fear of failure.
You see, it all points to one thing: many youth today reject the idea that they can be agents of change. They are rejecting dreams and questioning ideas that they "feel" have a good chance of failure. They have grown up believing that they lack the power to do anything of substantial value to society, and they bring such values with them as they enter the corporate world.
But imagine just for once if we can start on a new plane, and have a fresh attitude to all these social issues, believing for once that we can make a difference by emulating many of these successful youth-driven projects and initiatives. Imagine a whole generation of youth growing up with such a mentality, and bringing such values to the corporate world. And they passing on such values to their sons and daughters. What a different world we will be living in!
Ladies and gentlemen, it's now time for a paradigm shift in the way we think about the role of the youth. But first, unless we youth start to think differently about ourselves, we will never achieve the ideals that we espouse, nor will society take us seriously.
But take a look around at how we youth have been treated. Society has mostly paid lip service to the role of the youth apart from acknowledging that we generally have the idealism, energy and time to devote to such social issues. Many stakeholders in society downplay the role of the youth. We are mostly seen as a motley mass of young consumers, or students who have yet to be moulded by corporate life, or even potential trouble-makers. Many NGOs see the youth as merely "volunteers" who will provide the manpower who will unquestioningly carry out tasks assigned to us. Yes and yes, all these descriptions do apply to the youth in many ways.
But what about the youth as potential change makers? Can society honestly accept the youth as a potential body of individuals capable of initiating change in the world today?
We may lack the experience or the maturity to make such change possible. But take a look at all the successful projects that the youth have done that has made an impact on society. I will document some of these successful projects from time to time.
In many ways, we have made our mark on society. We have filled the gap between several stakeholders in society, and used our vast pool of idealism and determination to initiate everlasting change. We have done what many people have said we couldn't - by refusing to succumb to the "adult" mentality of fear of failure that has deterred "adults" from achieving the impossible.
But then, from my personal experience, the number of real youth change makers I know or heard of is small. They remain a minority against the vast majority of youth who actually believe that they can't make a difference in society.
As globalisation and the powers of the Internet bring social issues to the attention of youth today, it has come to a stage when we are bombarded with too much information and we have become desensitized to such issues. I see many of my peers who grow up thinking about life is just about finding a good career and making lots of money, before settling down and having a good family.
Yes, they have seen the painful pictures of people suffering on television but they shrug their shoulders and say,"What can I do? The problem is too huge and my efforts will be too small." This is true but only because majority of the youth are thinking and acting this way.
When I started the AIESEC-led Poverty Through Our Lenses (POL) project as my first foray into the world of cause-driven youth efforts, I have people telling me that it can't be done or that it is pointless to do so.
When I tell some of my friends about my idea of a social business that will one day provide employment to thousands of poor people and lift them out of poverty, people immediately question me,"Is this business viable? Will it make more loss than profit? How are you going to get the money for this?"
Yes, I understand that it is important to be practical as well. Every idea needs to have a sound plan of execution. But let's not hide behind the screen of practicality when we are afraid of failure in the first place. I have seen how good ideas are relegated to history just because people do not believe in them for fear of failure.
You see, it all points to one thing: many youth today reject the idea that they can be agents of change. They are rejecting dreams and questioning ideas that they "feel" have a good chance of failure. They have grown up believing that they lack the power to do anything of substantial value to society, and they bring such values with them as they enter the corporate world.
But imagine just for once if we can start on a new plane, and have a fresh attitude to all these social issues, believing for once that we can make a difference by emulating many of these successful youth-driven projects and initiatives. Imagine a whole generation of youth growing up with such a mentality, and bringing such values to the corporate world. And they passing on such values to their sons and daughters. What a different world we will be living in!
Ladies and gentlemen, it's now time for a paradigm shift in the way we think about the role of the youth. But first, unless we youth start to think differently about ourselves, we will never achieve the ideals that we espouse, nor will society take us seriously.
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