Last Saturday was a crazy day for me. I drove from Quezon City to Moncada, Tarlac to speak at the Revive UMC! event of the United Methodist Church in the Central Luzon Conference. Right after my talk, I had to drive back to Manila for two hours and 15 minutes just to catch my short speaking stint at the #12hourFamine event organized by World Vision Philippines.
Yeah, it was crazy. I was dead tired after my talk. But it was totally worth it!
It’s awesome to be with hundreds of young Filipinos gathered at the Sky Dome last Saturday. They went hungry for 12 hours just so they can help feed hungry children! Their energy was unmistakable. Their passion for this cause was palpable. And they were willing to spend some money to do it!
I spoke for 20 minutes about the power of Social Media in promoting Social Good. Their advocacy need not end with the event. In fact, it is fodder for online conversations. Here’s a link to my presentation in case you want to check it out: Let’s Get Social for Social Good.
The event got me thinking. It wasn’t so difficult to gather hundreds of young people in that roof. All over the Philippines, thousands, even millions of other young people have the same passion; the same energy; the same desire to do something good for our society.
Indeed, young people can change a country.
We have the time and the energy.
Rappler released an INFOGRAPHIC recently about the power of young Filipinos and why the Philippines can remain as the rising star of Asia in the years to come.
The median age of Filipinos is 23.1 y.o. We can use our youth, our energy, and our passions to bring about lasting change to our country!
We have the tools to make it happen.
In this highly connected world, technology comes second-nature to us. We can easily use our phones, our computers, and other tools around us to support and promote causes that we care about. Heck, we can even start movements just by our connectedness with each other!
Blogs. Social Media. Mobile phones. Creative expression of ideas. Name it, and young people have it. We can use our talents and our creativity for the causes we believe in!
We can overcome the pitfalls we face.
And yet, because of the power that we, as young people possess, we are also the target of consumerism. We can easily succumb to the temptations around us–the easy, comfortable, and convenient life. We sometimes fall prey to the machinations of the system we are in. And if we’re not careful, we can use our gifts, our skills, our time and energy for things that we don’t really care about.
That is the saddest reality we could ever have.
To have the power to change the world, and yet fail to use it for good!
On the other hand, if we let unbridled idealism have its way, we may become cynical and jaded long before we should!
This is our generation. This is our country. This is our chance to change the world!
What are you doing to help transform the world?
Can Young People Really Change a Country? is a post from: Mighty Rasing