The ‘Karibuil’ is a pushcart-shaped building that houses the Kalingain Batang Mahirap Foundational Center.

MANILA, Philippines — Just when some people accuse today’s youth of apathy, of hardly participating in social actions and issues, some outstanding young people stood up to make themselves heard.

Their voice reverberating on issues on education, gender equality, reproductive health, environment, these organizations are proving to the world, that they too can create change in their own little way.

In this year-end report, Students and Campuses Bulletin lists down the most inspiring youth groups of 2011.

 A Society Where Everyone Is Equal 

Youth and Students for the Advancement of Gender Equality (YSAGE) – This group is composed of young men who campaign against patriarchal values towards more equal gender-responsive environment in school and society.

The group envisions a society where men and women enjoy genuine equality, free from all forms of abuse and discrimination especially prostitution, and a world where everyone can work together and take responsibility towards their full humanity and empowerment.

A first of its kind, YSAGE was founded in 2009 as a product of a series of a young men’s camps on “Gender Issues, Sexuality and Prostitution” organized by the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women — Asia Pacific (CATW-AP) from 2004 to 2008.

YSAGE holds regular young men’s camps with workshops on issues of human rights, gender issues focused on trafficking and other pressing issues such as domestic violence, globalization, and other issues.

More Little Heroes 

Dynamic Teen Company (DTC) – This group became famous for being the group that CNN 2009 Hero of the Year Efren Peñaflorida heads. DTC volunteers go around Cavite City with their pushcarts equipped with learning materials and teach streetchildren and out-of-school youth.

Last year, using part of the money Peñaflorida won in CNN and money from sponsors, DTC built the Kalingain Batang Mahirap Foundational Center (KBMFC), a venue that will carry out the very mission of the organization — to teach unschooled, labor-exploited, and neglected street children.

The group’s system was also tapped by the Department of Education to help the government agency in delivering alternative modes of education to underprivileged Filipino youth.

Immersion Like No Other 

Lasallian Volunteer Program (LSVP) – Unlike other immersion programs that require students to engage in outreach activities for a grade, the De La Salle University’s LSVP enjoins professionals, mostly fresh graduates of La Salle schools, to engage in the ministry of education in needy provinces for at least one year.

The program was established by the La Salle Philippines district in 1994 to recognize the initiatives of teacher volunteers who had been teaching the less fortunate.

Today, LSVP is addressing the most pressing need of the communities in Iligan and Bataan, particularly providing preschool education in these areas.

In LSVP, volunteers who are mostly Education graduates, are trained for two to three months before being deployed to the mission area. Those who do not have a background in education are given a crash course on everything they need to know about teaching, lesson planning, and classroom management.

Bulakeños Go Back To School

Education Revolution Movement (EdRev) – One of the winners of the 2010 Ten Accomplished Youth Organizations (TAYO), EdRev encourages out-of-school youths to study. Through its Education Crave Project, volunteers go around their town in Sta. Maria, Bulacan in an effort to bring back the young people’s belief in themselves, that they can achieve their hopes and dreams, despite lacking in resources.

EdRev was conceived in 2009 by a group of college students from Sta. Maria who had a strong desire to provide an alternative learning system (ALS) for the estimated 500 OSYs in their community.

Take The Youth Seriously

Youth Peer Education Network (Y-PEER) – This international group is composed of youth leaders from different countries around the world. Last October, these leaders recently gathered here in Manila to discuss the pressing issues that affect the youth such as Reproductive Health Bill, HIV/AIDS, among others.

They are also taking a stand for people to take the youth seriously, hear them out and give them a chance to participate in the affairs of the state. After all, they will be the ones to benefit from it, being the country’s future leaders.

Styrofoamfree College

Nursing Central Board of Students (NCBS) – The NCBS of the University of Santo Tomas (UST) started Nursing for Nature in 2006, an umbrella project of NCBS on environmental awareness, protection, and preservation.

The first year of the Nursing Nature project was action-driven, implementing the usual environmental programs such as waste segregation, and paper drive. The awareness part was subtle, mainly relying on posters and environmental clips. But its pio-neering activity in 2008, to make the college styrofoam-free, made all the difference for Nursing Nature.

In 2010, the USTyro-free campaign was formally established by NCBS in coordination with the Students Organizations Coordinating Council, and the Office for Community Development. By this time, the campaign had become a university-wide advocacy that aimed to reduce the use of styro-containers. NCBS also branched out to the UST multi-deck car park that houses various fast food chains. At the beginning of the year, only 15 out of 60 food establishments in that area shunned the use of styro-containers. By yearend, 40 had supported the advocacy.

Stop The Flood

Pag-asa Youth Association (PYA) – PYA of Talisay, Cebu is another winner of the 2010 TAYO awards. This time, this youth organization helped improve flooding by constructing special structures that help reduce flooding in flood prone areas in different barangays in Talisay.

The structure, called the Ground Permeability Enhancer (GPE), is actually made of special hollow blocks put on top of one another to form a pyramid and installed underground to increase the ground’s ability to absorb water. Youth volunteers help build these structures that were designed by the city engineer.

Head, Heart, Hands, Health

Pagaypay 4H Club – The community-based organization called Pagaypay 4H Club Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow was established to help alleviate the economic situation of the people in barangay Pagaypay, in Passi, Iloilo through livelihood activities such as pineapple wine processing, swine raising and chicken dispersal.

The 4H means Head for thinking, Heart for greater loyalty, Hands for larger service, and Health for better living. With a start-up capital of only R1,000, they were able to produce 25 bottles. Sold at R180 per bottle, the wine became a hit among locals and tourists. From there, their pineapple wine processing project expanded, allowing them to sell their product in agricultural fairs and exhibits.

Their project also got them a spot in the 2010 TAYO awards.

Tech Power To The Youth

LINK.exe – It is a student organization based at the Institute of Information and Communications Technology of the West Visayas State University (WVSU), which brings ICT education to less fortunate students in their region through their project, BYTE (Bringing Youth Technology Empowerment)

Through BYTE, LINK.exe members teach advanced software training and content development students from rural areas. The program has continuously extended to various underserved schools not only in Iloilo but also in the whole Panay. BYTE has already served a number of high schools and has already accommodated over 800 students and some of them are already taking up IT related courses.

Maroon Changemakers

UB&G – A group of Business and Engineering majors from the University of the Philippines in Diliman wanted to be motivators and inspirers to other young people who in turn can create change in their communities. Calling themselves UB&G, these students want their roles to be changemakers. The group is one of the runners-up in the 2010 Unilab Ideas Positive: The Unilab Youth Camp for Change. They started a social enterprise in Sitio Veterans in Quezon City to bring livelihood to its residents and at the same time help the area’s solid waste management. The idea for paper charcoal came about.