Kabilan Suntharamoorthy, a young lecturer at University of Jaffna was one of the two Sri Lankan young leaders to represent the country at the ECOSOC Youth Forum 2018.
Kabilan is a passionate volunteer and the founder of ‘Aathmaa Centre for Goodness’ – an organization that enables young people to find opportunities for volunteerism around the island.
“In the Northern Province itself, there are so many young people who are eager to volunteer for social change but they have no platform to get information”.
Growing up in a country affected by war - ‘religion’ and ‘culture’ have played an integral part in his passion for volunteerism. “I grew up in an environment where everyone worked together and shared whatever they had with each other, even during difficult times”, says Kabilan.
“In 2010, I got an opportunity to participate in a workshop called ‘Training for Trusteeship’. This workshop helped me understand the importance of learning languages. It also gave me perspective to think broader and to partner with other organizations and expand our volunteer services across Sri Lanka – because prior to this, our organization only operated in the Northern Province”, says Kabilan speaking about his experiences in volunteerism.
“It is a very positive thing for a developing country to climb the ladders of development when people share their expertise with a good heart. This will not only empower young people but will also contribute towards sustainable peace.”
Kabilan’s journey to represent Sri Lanka at the ECOSOC Youth Forum 2018
“When applications were being called for the conference, I was working closely with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Sri Lanka for the provincial youth policy consultations. Last year, UNFPA nominated me for the conference and I was delighted to hear that my application was successful.”
“This was my first proper trip abroad, apart from the time I went to India when I was really small, which I barely remember. I was very excited about my first trip to the US and that too for a UN Conference!”
“I am not from Colombo or from any other urban city. I come from a rural village. Getting an opportunity to represent my country at the UN was a very proud moment in my life. I felt like I achieved something big and that my 17 years of volunteer work was recognized”.
“I was excited to meet people from different parts of the world, to share our ideas and experiences working for the development sector and most importantly to learn from them. I met many officials from UN organizations and connected with so many young people who are engaged in similar areas of work”.
At the ECOSOC Youth Forum with UN Youth Envoy, Jayathma Wickramanayake and Ms. Prarthana Liyanage who represented Sri Lanka at the conference
How can young people from rural areas be empowered to drive social change in their communities?
“Youth empowerment and participation in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) was a key theme of the conference. We had the opportunity to learn how these global targets were taken forward by other countries and shared our experiences in regional breakout sessions".
“During these sessions, we had discussions about the ways in which young people can play a role in achieving the SDGs. One question that was repeatedly asked by many was on ‘how young people can be connected globally, regionally and nationally’. This gave me the opportunity to speak about UNFPA’s programme on Youth4Youth which connects young people from around the island; through a common platform to find innovative solutions to address social issues - through youth led community projects.”
Kabilan at the Youth4Youth Eastern Province symposium in Batticaloa, Sri Lanka
What do you take back from the conference and how will you apply this in your future work?
“If we want to work towards becoming a developed country, we cannot ignore the importance of SDGs. They are the global goals that call for action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity. As an ordinary citizen, I must say, we have to communicate better - these goals to the general public – because they are the people that will take steps to achieve these goals.”
“As for my future plans, I am determined to set up a mechanism to share my knowledge and communicate the SDGs to rural communities in Sri Lanka”.
Meeting with UNFPA Sri Lanka Representative, Ms. Ritsu Nacken; Assistant Representative, Madhu Dissanayake and the Youth team at UNFPA
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iVoice Idea Competition
iVoice is an online platform that encourages youth to discuss social issues and to drive innovative solutions. The platform features stories relating to social issues in Sri Lanka, which are submitted by iVoice contributors and the general public.
The objective of the iVoice Idea Competition is to encourage youth to play a participatory role in solving social issues. After reading a story featured on iVoice, youth can submit their ‘idea’ to help to address the social issue that is highlighted in the story. The ten best ideas will receive seed capital of Rs. 100,000/- each, and mentoring, to support in implementing their ideas.
The majority of articles featured on iVoice relate to a social issue. These stories have a ‘Submit Your Idea’ button at the end of the article, inviting youth to share their innovative ideas on how to address these social issues.
Submitted ideas must be innovative and unique. The ideas must also be practical and implementable by 31 December 2017.
The deadline for submitting an idea is 3 September 2017.
To submit an idea, the following details must be provided through the online form:
Note: Participants can submit any number of ideas; however, only one idea per article is permitted.
Ideas will be evaluated through a competitive process.
03 Sept 2017: Closing of submissions at 23:59 on 3 September 2017
06 Sept 2017: Shortlisting of 20 ideas
13 Sept 2017: Shortlisted applicants to present their ideas in further detail to the judging panel
21 Sept 2017: The ten winning ideas will be announced at the Award Ceremony at which Rs. 100,000/- seed capital will be granted to each of the winning applicants
Evaluation criteria includes creativity of the proposed idea to address the given social issue, and feasibility of implementation within the stipulated budget and timeframe.
The number of votes received per idea will not be a deciding factor.
The judging panel’s decision will be final.
iVoice Idea Competition
iVoice is an online platform that encourages youth to discuss social issues and to drive innovative solutions. The platform features stories relating to social issues in Sri Lanka, which are submitted by iVoice contributors and the general public.
The objective of the iVoice Idea Competition is to encourage youth to play a participatory role in solving social issues. After reading a story featured on iVoice, youth can submit their ‘idea’ to help to address the social issue that is highlighted in the story. The ten best ideas will receive seed capital of Rs. 100,000/- each, and mentoring, to support in implementing their ideas.
The majority of articles featured on iVoice relate to a social issue. These stories have a ‘Submit Your Idea’ button at the end of the article, inviting youth to share their innovative ideas on how to address these social issues.
Submitted ideas must be innovative and unique. The ideas must also be practical and implementable by 31 December 2017.
The deadline for submitting an idea is 3 September 2017.
To submit an idea, the following details must be provided through the online form:
Note: Participants can submit any number of ideas; however, only one idea per article is permitted.
Ideas will be evaluated through a competitive process.
03 Sept 2017: Closing of submissions at 23:59 on 3 September 2017
06 Sept 2017: Shortlisting of 20 ideas
13 Sept 2017: Shortlisted applicants to present their ideas in further detail to the judging panel
21 Sept 2017: The ten winning ideas will be announced at the Award Ceremony at which Rs. 100,000/- seed capital will be granted to each of the winning applicants
Evaluation criteria includes creativity of the proposed idea to address the given social issue, and feasibility of implementation within the stipulated budget and timeframe.
The number of votes received per idea will not be a deciding factor.
The judging panel’s decision will be final.
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