International Youth Leaders Conference 2014: Ending Cycles of Social Problems with Leadership Legacies

Wazzup Pilipinas!

“There should be an end to this cycle of corruption, and that end could be you,” Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago told over 500 young delegates in AIESEC’s International Youth Leaders Conference (IYLC) 2014 last March 22, 2014 at the Samsung Hall, SM Aura Premier, Taguig City.

The Senate Committee head on Foreign Relations encouraged the Asia Pacific youth to become leaders with the purpose of serving and adding value to others while upholding the values of trust, respect, determination, and excellence.

“Some leaders are not born but are made. You, in conclusion, can make yourself a leader. Each person has the potential to make a difference and build a legacy” the iconic senator said.

The one-day youth summit focused on fostering self-leadership with engaging activities such as the panel discussion, leadership café, and youth rally where delegates shared their leadership experiences and pledged the creation of individual legacies towards self and social change.

“The youth wants to work independently and are very competitive. But with people who have the same advocacies and beliefs, there is more impact. We have the idealism, we have the energy while we’re young,” Social Entrepreneurship advocate Noreen Bautista said.

Asia Pacific Global Village: A Festival Like No Other

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It was a colorful festivity of more than 24 national cultures in one event.

The Asia Pacific Global Village (AP GV) bridged the Asian region and some countries from Oceania and Latin America to celebrate culture and globalization last March 22, 2014 at the Samsung Hall, SM Aura Premier, Taguig City.

As the world’s largest youth network that provides a leadership platform through exchange programs to over 120 countries, AIESEC hosted AP GV to promote cultural diversity and relativism, as well as individual nationalism and tourism.

“We brought all these young delegates from all over Asia to let the people see how diverse the world really is. But more importantly we wanted to highlight the interesting differences of humanity to discover and emphasize that our core isn’t entirely different at all,” AIESEC President Audrey Elumba said.

Traveling with a Purpose: Indulge in the Culture and Way of Life

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Traveling around the world is undeniably part of each and everyone’s bucketlist. However, it shouldn’t begin and end with hopping on a plane with a destination in mind.

It’s so much better to indulge in the culture and their way of life; being ridiculously open to appreciating a country’s traditions and lifestyle while still being able to cherish your own.

That’s how one can become more than a tourist by gaining experiences that can’t be encapsulated by mere photographs.

Some even let themselves be cloaked with empathy towards a different society that enables them to become young Philippine ambassadors, showcasing Filipino values and talent abroad as they try to help and create positive impact in countries like China, Germany, Czech Republic, Brazil, Romania, India, and many others by involving themselves in social projects and organizations.

It may sound as if it’s too good to be true but international student-run organization AIESEC has been making it possible for the Filipino youth through their Global Citizen and Global Talent Programs.

AIESEC is present in 113 countries and is known for their holistic world-class and global leadership platform and extraordinary socio-cultural exchange programs.