Where else in the world would the presence of young representatives from more than 30 countries not be a boarder but a bridge; where the culmination of more than 25 languages not be considered a barrier but the glue that binds us together? International RYLA 2009 in Rugby, England was at the very least an eye opening experience. Becca Lowder, Sly Majid, Jeff Egger and I attended as representatives for District 5810 and after a long time of anticipation, waiting and preparation embarked on this journey across the pond. International RYLA seemed to be tailored very much to what we RYLArians are used to in our district- lectures in the mornings and group outdoor activities. The speakers were astounding. We had the pleasure of listening to and meeting the then Rotary International President D.K. Lee, he encouraged us as young people to help make dreams real. Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar Dharini Nathwani shared her personal story in helping fight world poverty, with the addition of other speakers throughout the program, the entire dynamics of IRYLA changed and personal, as well as, group empowerment was an emerging theme. The ages of IRYLA ranged from 18-30 and among the 107 participants, there were students, as well as, people involved in RYLAs around the world, Interact, Rotaract and Rotary. All were inspiring people of all professions.
There were two main things that I personally took away from IRYLA: Envision 2030 and the amazing people that I had the privilege of being acquainted with. Envision 2030 was an exercise that we were challenged to envision the world of 2030; what it would look like and how it would get there. It was the group presentations that made it evident that no matter where were came from, what language we spoke, our cultural and spiritual differences, we all wanted the same thing: a world we were happy to live in. A world where the environment was our friend not our foe. A world where people would be more tolerant of each other. A world were people were educated not just by schooling but by international travel. A world where governments worked together for the greater good. If 2030 looked anything close the way we envisioned it at IRYLA, the world will be a much better place. The most spectacular part however was the people. Every year RYLA reminds me that I am surrounded by good people; this year, IRYLA showed me that there are good people everywhere. The cultural marketplace was an opportunity to spark so many conversations and became a catalyst for sharing our life experiences with each other. Learning what people truly care about and the things they spend their time doing to change the world was nothing less than inspiring.
Experiencing the Rotary 100th Convention in Birmingham also allowed for a true revelation of what Rotary does around the world and the projects each district does. After the entire experience in talking to both Becca and Jeff our sentiments were exactly the same, “We always knew we wanted to eventually become a Rotarian but now we KNOW we WILL be.”
By Caresse Bucchan
Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: | International RYLA
