AYS 2015: Empowering youth towards a greater ASEAN community

MANILA, Philippines - The ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) is a political and economic organization of ten countries located in Southeast Asia, which was formed on August 8, 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Since then, membership has expanded to include Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar (Burma) and Vietnam. The ASEAN Youth Summit 2015 is a 3-day international conference by De Lasalle University for student leaders hailing from the different ASEAN universities. Its aims include accelerating economic growth, social progress, sociocultural evolution among its members, protection of regional peace and stability, and opportunities for member countries to discuss differences peacefully. The ASEAN Youth Summit 2015 is primarily focused on reinforcing the ASEAN identity by a series of lectures from profound speakers, a platform for congregational discussions and a field trip to Nayong Pilipino.

The lecture series is comprised of seven local and international speakers from various fields of the ASEAN community. There are seven sectors to be covered in this year’s ASEAN Youth Summit, which are community development, trade & commerce, science & education, diplomacy, labor & employment, culture & society, and youth welfare. Each sector will have a corresponding speaker who has experiences and expertise related to one of the topics to be discussed in the conference. To fully realize the goal of this event, the program is envisioned to create an avenue of information and a channel for discussion for the delegates through thematic talks of different issues in the ASEAN community.

The conference will also cover a field trip to Nayong Pilipino. Nayong Pilipino Foundation was created under Presidential Decree No. 37 to visualize the diversity and beauty of the country's rich cultural heritage. Nayong Pilipino is a cultural theme park situated on a 5.9-hectare land inside the Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga. The delegates will have an opportunity to know the culture and community of the Philippines in this field trip. They will be familiarized with the Philippine’s historical background and become better decision makers by learning from the experiences of our own country.

The AYS (ASEAN Youth Summit) 2015 will also be heavy on collaborative activities and congregational dialogues designed to inform and empower the delegates to face the issues of the modern day ASEAN community. The delegates will experience substantial focused group discussions, open forums, group dynamics, and interactive real life applications to mold the students to become more consultative, proactive and responsive to the call of the times. This will cover all of the topics that will be discussed on both the field trip and the lecture series to make the insights relevant and practical in application.

The AYS 2015 will generally be an event that will surely compel student leaders to become pertinent change makers starting as young as they are in their own respective countries and universities with regards to the ASEAN integration initiative. This will boost ties between ASEAN countries with the goal of improving the region’s global competitiveness and integrate different ASEAN communities into one diversified entity. The lecture series, the field trip and the congregational discussions will all be made to cover all of the affected sectors and fields with respect to changes, issues and effects brought about the ASEAN integration. This summit challenges the ASEAN youth to take a stand and act on the challenges faced by the ASEAN community.

For more details, check AYS 2015 on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/aseanyouthsummitDLSU