United to lead

Ruwini JAYAWARDANA

Every young person has the potential to become a good communicator and leader, but these skills need to be developed. They should be trained on how to weigh their pros and cons, organize and present their ideas logically and convincingly.

Another vital fact in this initiative is the ability to communicate effectively. You need to overcome nervousness when speaking before an audience, lend a careful ear to other’s ideas and participate in and even lead group discussions or meetings.

This is the seed which helped to form ‘Sri Lankan Youth Unite and Lead’, a youth movement of Sri Lankans living abroad. Facilitated by well-known entrepreneurs and marketing and public relations professional Ananda Rajapakse and Nagesha Wickramasuriya, the programme aims to empower the Sri Lankan youth to achieve policy-making or high-ranking positions in Australia and other parts of the world.

“Though Sri Lankan communities have migrated to Australia and are living in the same areas, they were not closely united. This was probably due to the conflict and terrorizing atmosphere they experienced while living in Sri Lanka. Misconceptions have formed a distance between them. They went in search of new pastures, hopes and a means of fulfilling their dreams. We there was a vacuum in linking these people together as citizens of one nation. We discussed this matter among ourselves and Nagesha came up with the concept of ‘Sri Lankan Youth Unite and Lead’,” Rajapakse recalled how the first steps of the mammoth project took shape.

Sri Lankans residing in Australia who are between 16 to 25 years can become members of the programme. The seminars are open to youths from all nationalities and all walks of life. Quite a number of Australian youths too have taken part in the events.

“Uniting alone is not enough. We need to train our youths to spearhead projects. They are studying at some of the top universities in the world. They have so much to offer the world. We challenged these youths to take the highest level of leadership in their chosen careers,” he explained.

The seminars are structured to motivate Sri Lankan youths to become chairpersons, presidents, mayors, deans, managers or even politicians and direct some of the distinguished organizations and institutes in the world. They will be able to prosper individually and bring pride to their motherland.

“For generations a majority of the Sri Lankans who moved to Australia were happy to borrow loans from a bank, take on jobs and continue with their daily chores after graduating from Austrlaian universities. They did not have higher hargets to achieve in life. Later their children followed their footsteps. They formed a part of the lower middle class society in Australia,” Rajapakse said.

He and his team decided to break this cycle with ‘Sri Lankan Youth United and Lead’. They identified some Sri Lankan entrepreneurs who had achieved top notch positions in their fields. They joined hands with these exceptional figures in academics, politics, journalism, business, medical, sports and many other professions to organize a variety of seminars to educate the country’s Sri Lankan youths.

“We planned a mind boggling seminar to challenge these youth and inspire them with the existing role models. The Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Australia Thisara Samarasinghe, Minister of Sri Lankan Embassy in Australia and Acting High Commissioner during that period Sashikala Premawardena and Sri Lanka’s Honourary Consul General in Victoria Bandu Dissanayake have been very supportive towards the venture,” Wickramasuriya said.

The team formed a 10-member committee at the initial stages of organizing a stage for Sri Lankan youths in Australia. They categorized about 10 areas of leadership development skills such as public speaking, networking, diplomacy, etiquette, negotiations etc and took on the mission of training the youth to develop these skills.

“These skills will come in handy for them while seeking jobs. Qualifications alone are not sufficient. We created the platform and show them the ladder. It is up to them to raise the rank of their chosen profession,” he said adding that self confidence increased in the youth as they listened to the speaker’s unfolding their success stories on stage.

Lending an attentive ear

Moments from the seminars

“It is very career focused programme. We had a seminar in September 2011 where Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal was the key note speaker. Melbourne University Civil Engineering Department Dean Prof Priyantha Mendis, Victorian State Parliament member Jude Perera, Slater and Gordon law firm lawyer Nimna Rupasinghe, National Australia Bank Associate Director Varuna Goonethilleke and Victoria Supreme Court Barrister and grandson of the late I. M. R. A. Irriyagolla Dinesh Weerakkody were among the other speakers,” Wickramasuriya noted.

The event unfurled at the Malgrave Country Club in Melbourne with the participation of over 60 Sri Lankan-Australian citizens and permanent resident youth participants.

“Jude Perera is the only Sri Lankan in an Australian local government. He was elected three times to be in the Victorian parliament. He explained why he got into politics and how he is serving the Australian community. Today we have to plead with foreign parliamentarians on behalf of our country but if Sri Lankan parliamentarians are among the board, they will raise their voices on behalf of us,” Rajapakse said.

With the success of their maiden seminar more and more youths were eager to join in the programme.

“We have trained our members to venture into other areas in Australia and spread the message and motivate others. In Sri Lanka parents try to get their children to follow the dreams that they could not fulfill in their lifetime. In countries like Australia these youths are breaking free from that aspect mainly because of the social network. They are becoming more self inspired. That is what we are looking for in helping them reach the pinnacle of their career,” he added.

He said that the youths have become so enthusiastic about the project that they are now planning their own projects.

They conducted a workshop on public speaking and the power of networking last month. Tourism and Business Events international directors Dr Leo Jago and Dr Margaret Deery spoke at the event. Dr Jago is also a Professor of Tourism at the Bournemouth University, UK, while Dr Deery is a Professor of Tourism at the Curtin University, Perth. The event was held at the Glen Waverley campus.

“This was an eye opener to not only to the cross section of people in Australia but we also have members from countries like United Kingdom (UK) and New Zealand joining in on our Facebook page. We are planning to go global in the coming years,” he said.