Featured in this month’s newsletter:
- 2011 Delegates: Exceeding our Expectations
- Welcoming a new team member to the enke family
- Want to hear what the youth of South Africa are thinking?
2011 Delegates: Exceeding our Expectations
Modikeng from Qwaqwa has been very busy. During school holidays a lot of the learners in his area engage in harmful activities because they have nothing productive to do. He developed a community action project (CAP) which aims to come up with games and various activities at the local community centre during the holidays. He has not made this exclusive to the students, but the community at large is also welcome to join, connecting and engaging the community. The project is being launched these holidays, 30 September – 9 October.
However, this is not the only CAP Katleho has been involved with. Upon returning to school, he also realized that there were students having difficulty in economics. Along with a group of his friends, they started a tutoring program and currently have 35 learners.
It’s inspiring to know that the delegates are going above and beyond what they had initially tasked themselves to do.
Welcoming a new team member to the enke family
This month we are happy to announce the arrival of our new Programme Coordinator, Melissa Nefdt, from Cape Town. She has previously worked for the Institute of Security Studies, the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, Community Action towards a Safer Environment and the British Council.
At the tender age of 4, she told her mother she would visit all the countries in the world, learning each of their languages. Unsurprisingly, she is still working on it… “I’m very excited and eager to get started! I’m proud to be joining an organisation committed to such excellent values and goals.”
Want to hear what the Youth of South Africa are thinking?
Over the past months, our participants have been contributing to the enke blog. It is thrilling to hear the thoughts of these young South Africans regarding the issues they care about.
Waiting for Superman – Lauren Rowe
“When thinking about the injustice I thought I had been dealt compared to the injustice millions of children are facing in terms of their education or lack thereof, it seemed insignificant” …
All it requires for evil to triumph is for a good man to do nothing! – Nhlakanipho Mkhize
“I am certain that you are all aware of the corruption that is developing in our body politic – those are our supposed leaders. We are supposed to follow in their footsteps and emulate them. But what is there to emulate? Expedience, selfishness, corruption and all kinds of immoral qualities that they”…
Other News
We would like to offer our sincerest thanks to Bidvest and Ayanda Solutions who generously donated furniture to the enke offices. If you would like to donate prizes for delegates doing work on their CAPs please contact Lebo Mahasa on lebo@enke.co.za or +27 11 027 0678.
Collective Genius
Looking back to Thursday 13 October, the term collective genius (which Pip introduced us to) keeps ringing in my mind. I keep trying to picture the 2011 Youth Leadership Forum without our facilitators and presenters; and I simply can’t. Having time to reflect upon their roles on Thursday made me realize just how privileged we are to know these dedicated and selfless individuals.
Just to give you a very rough idea of the lives our facilitators lead outside enke. These are university students who are faced with pressures of tests, exams, research papers, tutoring, marking, conferences, presentations, working on their own projects and part time jobs to mention a few. And yet in all that hustle and bustle of what I would call their core business, they have found time for enke. Together as a collective genius you aided us in making the 2011 Youth Leadership Forum an unforgettable experience. Sometimes the word thank you doesn’t quite capture just how grateful we are.
Taking a step back to the preparation of the event, I see yet again some more collective genius at work. This was the first event that I had to organize. And as can be expected there were lots of moments of panic, feeling overwhelmed, nervous energy etc. But having the team for support made the difference. There is only so much one man can accomplish but together we are unstoppable. And that’s precisely how I felt after having time to talk to and receive support from the enke ‘backstage’ team.
So after what I believe was a successful event, one feeling stands out for me and that is gratitude. To our facilitators and the backstage team, whose commitment, passion, service has not gone unnoticed (HONK!). Together, as a collective genius, we have made our mark and have contributed to making this year a success.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed. It is the only thing that ever has.” –Margaret Mead