COMMENTARY: At the Youth Conference (01/15/06)

COMMENTARY: At the Youth Conference

by Pavlo Grod

CANMORE, Alberta - I was fortunate to spend a weekend among a group of young, dynamic community leaders in Canmore, Alberta, where the Ukrainian Canadian Congress Alberta Provincial Council organized its first annual Alberta Youth Conference on November 11-13, 2005. Fifty Albertans, who ranged in age from 18 to 30, provided thought-provoking commentaries and insights during a vibrant discussion about the future of the Ukrainian Canadian community.

Leading a session on volunteerism, I was pleased to learn the following about these young leaders:

They spend between two and 10 hours per week volunteering, of which 60 to 100 percent is for the Ukrainian community.
Volunteer activities include youth and student organizations, church groups and cultural ensembles.
Reasons for their volunteerism include: personal growth, networking, socializing, giving back to the community, but for the most part because they view the Ukrainian community as integral to their lives.
When asked about the most relevant Ukrainian organizations in Canada, the vast majority listed the UCC, youth organizations (SUM, Plast, SUMK, etc.), church organizations (Orthodox and Catholic) and cultural organizations (in roughly that order).
Each participant believed that today's community organizations are relevant to them but some felt that they were at a stage in their lives where they no longer fit in the youth/student groups and didn't quite feel they were part of the professional groups.
Most felt that they wanted to volunteer for the UCC and viewed the UCC as a focal part of the community.
As for the topics of individual memberships in UCC and the unification of youth organizations - there was a lively debate that generated good topics for another conference.
When asked about the next observer mission to Ukraine for the March 26 parliamentary elections, their hands shot up as each was prepared to volunteer for the next mission.

From the interest expressed by the participants in having another conference next year, it is abundantly clear that there is a need and an interest for similar youth conferences to be held by all UCC provincial councils and branches and by UCC National on an annual basis. However, all should be forewarned: Alberta has set a very high standard.

As someone who is not far off in age from this group, I was enthused to see such a dynamic group of leaders with whom I look forward to working for the advancement of the Ukrainian community. I am pleased to say that these conference participants are not only the future leaders of the Ukrainian Canadian community - they are today's community leaders.

Pavlo Grod, vice-president of the Ukrainian Canadian Committee, was a speaker on the "Youth - Our Future" panel at the UCC Alberta Provincial Council's Youth Conference.

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