Global Education and International Development Reflection

On Wednesday, April 3, 2013, Allowance for Good began its newest program, Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy: A Student Seminar Series. Chicago-area youth are invited to participate in a weekly seminar to learn more about the global philanthropic sector and how they have the power to be philanthropists and agents for change.

Fiona reflects on our fifth session, focused on Global Education and International Development.

“Don’t be afraid to fail, because you will.” This quote was introduced last week and really stood out to me because it explains that if you really LOVE what you do and have a burning passion for it, you shouldn’t be afraid to try new things to bring your passion to life. That is one huge lesion that I learned last week and during this whole week, I have been trying new things in my life because I told myself that I would never know until I tried. I’m really passionate about making change and peace and when I get older, I would love to incorporate philanthropy in helping to make the change I wish to see.

During our lesson, my cousin Karin Scott came in and talked to us about the Global Engagement Summit. The Global Engagement Summit is a three-day program ran by 60 undergrad Northwestern students who meet during the year together and plan the capacity of the next generation of global change makers. It was extremely interesting for me.  Not only is Karin one of my role models in my life, but she inspired me to travel out of the country and help kids in poverty-stricken communities in need. We learned about goals last week. There were three parts to it, learn, connect and act. Learn: engaging in critical discussions in thinking how to do well. Connect: networking with other passionate individuals from around the world and innovate through leaders, and lastly, Act: building capacity and skills on how to carry these things out. Karin left us with some questions that really stuck with my throughout the week. What are you passionate about? In what ways have you volunteered around your community and outside the country? What kind of problems have you seen in these communities? Last summer, I traveled to Haiti on a ten-day service trip. I saw so many things that still stay in my mind to this very day, but one thing I will never forget is that even though Haiti is extremely poor, they are rich in spirit. I’m going back in two years and I hope that the service work we did there last summer really made an impact on their lives and showed them that you don’t know until you try. I know that I was scared that we were going to fail and we didn’t, and I’m blessed that we finished our work there because now kids have a place to learn. So this week, I encourage you all to try something new and don’t be afraid of failure. Trust me, you will feel empowered.