Ayala Foundation launches leadership communities

MANILA, Philippines - Ayala Foundation Inc. (AFI), in partnership with Denmark-based Active Aid Partnerships (AAP), will launch a new youth leadership program tomorrow at the Asian Institute of Management Corporate Center in Makati City.

Inspired by the impact of the annual Ayala Young Leaders Congress (AYLC), which for the past 13 years has been bringing together the country’s most promising student leaders, AFI has developed the Leadership Communities (LeadCom) program to inspire and develop an even greater number of servant leaders all over the Philippines.

The new program aims to develop the capacity of colleges and universities to nurture the leadership skills of their students and the youth in their localities.

Working with 5 to 10 partner colleges and universities in a chosen province, the program’s goal over a 12-month period is to form a community and network among these schools to champion youth leadership development and to equip them with the skills and competencies to develop servant leaders on a regular and sustained basis.

The program begins by putting together a core group of school representatives who would build synergy and cooperation among their schools and other local partners. Under AFI’s guidance, the partner schools jointly organize a three-day student leadership camp for 100 college students.

Following the AYLC model, this leadership camp becomes a venue for student leaders to interact with each other, learn leadership values, and hone their skills to help them become positive agents of change in their schools, communities and society.

What makes the program unique is that the participants are then asked to implement a LeadCom-inspired leadership program in their schools, thus multiplying its impact and reach.

Two LeadCom areas have been piloted in the provinces of Catanduanes and Oriental Mindoro this year and both areas have seen much progress and success. 

In Catanduanes, seven partner schools have already begun leadership training in their respective schools using a unified leadership development module they themselves created.

In Oriental Mindoro, using seed funds provided by AAP, student-delegates have been implementing entrepreneurial and service programs in their communities.

After having taken keen interest in the Philippines and developing young Filipino leaders, AAP’s support to the program will make it possible to bring LeadCom to 12 areas in the country over the next two years.

At the event tomorrow, the LeadCom program will be officially launched in four provinces: Benguet, Capiz, Isabela, and Samar. It will be launched in two more areas, Cagayan de Oro and Davao in Mindanao, in early 2012, while the remaining six areas will be underway in 2013.

Now on its 50th year, Ayala Foundation remains inspired by a vision to see a nation that is led by servant leaders from all over the country. With the LeadCom program at the helm of developing young leaders, that vision may soon become a reality.