Since its inception in 1996, the Global Youth Network (GYN) has provided students with a variety of opportunities to take part in global communities in an engaging and meaningful way. Since the organizations early beginnings, the GYN has increased the amount of volunteers, international partners, and now includes a variety of projects that tackle global issues in education and social justice. With over 250 volunteers a year, the GYN consistently aims to help volunteers can a stronger understanding of important social issues while meaningfully taking action in various communities and institutions across the globe.
In an interview with The Ontarion, Zoe Gladstone, a representative from the Guelph division of the GYN, spoke about the importance of getting involved and the appeal of making an impact in a hands-on way.
“There are so many things that make Global trips unbelievably rewarding,” said Gladstone in early December. “We strongly encourage team members to keep in contact with the contacts that they meet abroad in order to continue to bridge this gap between ‘us’ and ‘them’. Though I have travelled with many groups before, I find that this experience is very unique to GYN. We really want students to meet and connect with the communities they visit on personal levels. Our trips are not profit-driven and are not meant to promote tourism—we therefore really try to immerse ourselves into the communities we visit.” Not only does the GYN teach you how to properly communicate and live within global communities, but the organization strives to detach developing communities from the stigmas and stereotypes that are often attributed to them. For Gladstone, the GYN has brought to her a crucial new perspective on communities abroad and their development.
“My experience with the GYN has really demystified and clarified so many misconceptions that are often associated with development and communities abroad. I think that many people often assume that societies that exist within ‘underprivileged’ or ‘less developed’ countries are unable to pursue development or pursue their livelihoods in a sustainable way,” said Gladstone. “Contrary to these beliefs, all of our contacts abroad have their own grassroots and bottom-up initiatives that are really inspiring and have been really successful within their own communities. GYN trips are consequently very eye opening and give students the opportunity to explore these countries from a very real and unbiased perspective,” continued Gladstone.
One of the most frequent opportunities available through the GYN is a team-based program, with trips to Kenya, Cambodia, and India—each trip providing a unique experience that is rewarding in a variety of ways. The experiences offered by the GYN aims to give University of Guelph students a way to see the inner-workings of developing communities, work with NGO’s, and engage with global cultures.
“GYN aims to empower youth through our trips abroad. Our programs completely student run and student led, so this is an excellent way for students to explore communities abroad while simultaneously interacting with other students who share similar interests,” explained Gladstone.
“Rather than going abroad with the intention of building something physical (like a school, a house, or a well), we go abroad with the intention of building relationships. We have been visiting our contacts annually for 20 years, consequently enabling these informal relationships to become formal ones. We do not believe in going abroad for superficial reasons, and aim to provide trips that are as sustainable as possible. As such, GYN does not go abroad with any pre-determined itinerary. Instead we live, stay, eat, and learn with our contacts abroad and work on projects that they specifically want our assistance with,” concluded Gladstone.