Issue 5 – Thursday 3 August
Where next?
In the Youth Parliament the call goes out: ‘action stations’. Modelled on the Earth Summit held at 2001 International Camp, these are debating stations where ideas are melted down and nuggets of gold emerge from the whole parliament. Everyone becomes involved in the decision making process but in a way that encourages open discussion.
Starting with a look at what democracy is about, the Youth Parliament moves on to look at different forms of action. Selecting a few issues to concentrate on, the emphasis shifts to how to change things. ‘What can young people do to close Guantanamo Bay?’ for example. Action is most sustainable if people get a buzz out of doing it and where it can be seen to make a change.
Across the camp there is a wealth of experience of resistance, protest, and ideas about making the world a better place for everyone. Young people want to do a better job at changing it than previous generations have. What were they doing taking us into the 21st century with fireworks and spectaculars all over the world only to plunge us into war upon war? Governments cannot be trusted. The United Nations repeatedly fails to resolve conflicts.
The Youth Parliament motto could be “Motivate: make change; keep on carrying on.” It hopes to end camp with a Global Village Declaration on Youth Empowerment that will take Global Village forwards into new directions and new and effective actions to make change.