NASSAU, BAHAMAS — After a rigorous selection process, five participants have begun a 10-month journey to enhance their skills in community development and active citizenship thanks to the Organization for Responsible Governance (ORG)’s Me, You, Us Youth Saloon program.
Geared toward people ages 16 to 24, the saloon will allow participants to learn more about gender-based violence and its impact through workshops with ORG’s partners, which will give them an opportunity to design interventions to impact their communities.
“This program focuses on youth voice amplification and sees them as stakeholders and agents of their own development,” said Tiffany A Bain, ORG Education lead. “Our aim is to empower youth as changemakers today to become the policymakers of tomorrow.”
Meet the cohort
Philip Moss, the only young man in the mix, is a graduate of the University of The Bahamas (UB) with a Bachelor of Education in Secondary Certification English Language/Literature. He presented a paper titled “Di Is A Goon: An Examination of the Stigma Surrounding Positive Male Achievement” at the 2019 Critical Caribbean Symposium Series. Moss aspires to examine and write about the connections between education and wider societal issues.
Alexandra Davis hails from Freeport, Grand Bahama, and wears two hats — as a junior accountant and a freelance graphic designer. She received her associate degree in Computer Information Systems in 2018 and a Bachelors’ degree in accounting in 2021 from UB and now aspires to become a CPA and to expand her graphic design services. She is passionate about making individuals aware of gender inequality in society and enjoys blogging and watching post-apocalyptic movies and TV shows in her spare time.
ReSadé Dionne Burrows has a love of education, career development and dance. She was recently certified as an English as a second language teacher and is pursuing her Bachelor’s in psychology at UB while serving as a member of the Royal Bahamas Police Force Police Cadet Corps.
Sara Williams is the youngest of the group at age 16. She is a student at St Augustine’s College and will enter her final year this September. She is a track athlete and Ranger in The Bahamas Girl Guides Association, 9th division. She is also a lector at St Francis Xavier Cathedral and enjoys participating in community-building events.
Twenty-two-year-old Sabrina Sands has always had a desire to make a difference and change our communities for the better one step at a time. She hopes to one day be a public speaker for youth and enjoys hobbies including writing, dancing and exploring.
About the program
The initiative will train and support the youth participants to design and implement four programs aimed at reducing gender-based violence in the country and will include:
- A six-week summit.
- Program launch and monitoring.
- A community-based platform to discuss their designs and impact.
ORG will collaborate with a range of local organizations, stakeholders and community leaders with experience and expertise in the areas of youth development and gender affairs. These partners will serve as mentors, lead training workshops and provide guidance as participants develop their programs.
ORG is set to engage another cohort of participants in the fall using youth organizations.
“We want to ensure the youth participants have a comprehensive learning experience,” said Matthew Aubry, ORG executive director. “One of our goals is to demonstrate the power of public-private partnerships in community and national development. It is vital that we show our youth that partnership is a pathway to success as a country.”
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