A forum to give voice to young people

Los Negrales, Madrid. SPAIN

The 1st Teresian Association Youth Forum in Spain was held in Madrid in mid-December 2019. The gathering for reflection and joint creation concluded with a Manifesto that conveys the wishes of authenticity and the searches of the participants.

Almost a hundred young people between 16 and 26 years old met in Santa María de Los Negrales, representing the different Spanish cities where the Teresian Association works with youngsters either from the Acit Joven movement, the educational centres and university colleges, the NGO InteRed, or other teams and projects.

The initiative was launched with the aim of listening to contributions, vision, sensitivity and languages, of younsters to take them into account in the development of the youth program of the Spanish TA sector.

During the meeting, with creativity and participation through small groups, young people had the opportunity to meet, exchange and propose their ideas.

Through workshops they were able to delve into four vital axes:

Interiority - experience of faith - openness to God.
Volunteering and citizenship.
Social leadership.
Professional skills.

From the Forum, social media remained very active throughout the weekend sharing the experience with other young people who had not been able to attend.

As a result of this exchange, reflection and inner search, a Manifesto was drafted and launched in which they declare their concern “for the social problems of our world: climate change, consumerism, violence and the lack of values that we find in our environments where competitiveness counts more than cooperation ”.

They also pointed out that they want to create spaces of encounter with other young people, to learn, to generate social impact and touch the reality of those who suffer and fight, like the migrants. A commitment to the dignity of each person because, they say, they want to be authentic and live with social responsibility and critical sense.