33 young global leaders complete Magsaysay mentorship program

MANILA, Philippines — Thirty-three outstanding young leaders from all over Asia recently participated in the first NextGen Leadership Program organized by the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation through its Transformative Leadership Institute.

The NextGen Leadership Program provides mentorship for budding young leaders.

The mentors during the online leadership training held from June 14 to 25 included Ramon Magsaysay awardees Conchita Carpio-Morales, Antonio Oposa Jr. and Ryan Cayabyab from the Philippines; Mechai Viravaidya from Thailand; Saur Marlina Manurung from Indonesia; Youk Chhang from Cambodia; Sonam Wangchuk from India; Kim Jong-ki from South Korea; Yoshiaki Ishizawa from Japan; Mahabir Pun from Nepal and Chung To from China.

The participants included students, young entrepreneurs and protégés of awardees from the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia, Bangladesh, India and Hong Kong.

Cayabyab, a 2019 Ramon Magsaysay awardee, urged the young leaders “not to think global, not to imitate, but to look within.”

“We want to not sound like everybody else. Write in your own language, not just English or Tagalog; learn to love your own culture, to generate more creative songs. Express your own feelings and stories. When the regional gets into the mainstream, we will be on the way to being global,” he said.

Carpio-Morales, a 2016 Magsaysay awardee, exhorted the participants to “never succumb to pressure, be beyond the reach of influencers.”

Oposa, who received the Magsaysay award in 2009, encouraged the young crowd to engage tourists to help clean, restore and conserve the environment.

“Change their mindset – they should not be tourists but visitors. Make it a transformative experience. This is Restorative Visitourism and Voluntourism,” he said.

Indonesia’s Manurung, a 2014 Magsaysay laureate, said educators must use contextual education based on local customs and challenges.

“Use their mother tongue,” urged Manurung, who teaches indigenous children in her country.

“Learning from the communities is important. Learn their ways, discard colonial perspectives, understand their native knowledge,” she said.