Apye 2015 Report by Zahin

GREETINGS

> from the Managing Director

It gives me great pleasure to extend a very warm welcome to all of you who have made it to this momentous occasion, the Asia Pacific Youth Exchange Program (APYE). Most of you have literally flown all the way from your home countries, or in this context, headquarters, to join one of the largest youth gatherings of the region in support of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We hope you are just as excited about this program as we are. Allow me to extend my warmest gratitude first and foremost to the Asian Development Bank through its NGO Civil Society Center’s Youth Initiative for opening its doors to us and for hosting us over the next few days. I would also like to thank UN-HABITAT as well as our friends from the U.S. Government’s Young Southeast Asian Leaders’ Initiative (YSEALI), AIESEC and OurGeneration17+. If not for your willingness to partner with us, seeing all you heroes here would not have been possible. Thank you for standing with us through nearly a whole year’s work in the making to bring all these young heroes together. Last but certainly not least, allow me to thank and congratulate every single one of you young and passionate leaders who have made it to the event. There is a famous adage that says “heroes are not born, but are made”. I would extend this by saying that heroes are made and make other people heroes. We are gathered here today because we believe in our capacity to make heroes of other people and the communities we will be in through a greater awareness of their role in the SDGs. Our goal is to start the year with a momentum of change that we hope would resonate to others, making new heroes out of extraordinary people. Through the Asia Pacific Youth Exchange (APYE), we will explore ways together to help make the world a better place, one goal at a time. Thank you for starting the year with us along with 200 young leaders from around the region. We hope for this event to be both a meaningful and heroic experience for all of us.

Hyoungmin Kim Managing Director Urban Youth Academy

SUMMARY of APYE

The Urban Youth Academy (UYA) and Asian Development Bank (ADB), in partnership with UN Habitat, Laguna Lake Development Authority, AIESEC International, FindTech, and Ourgeneration17plus jointly organized and launched the Asia-Pacific Youth Exchange Program (APYE) under the theme “Empowering Youth to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”. From January 3 to 17, the Asia-Pacific Youth Exchange Program trained and mobilized over 200 young leaders as well as representatives of youth-led civil society organizations and universities across Asia and the Pacific. APYE featured three main parts to improve the understanding and capacity of young people to contribute to the achievement of the SDGs: (i) Leadership Development Training, (ii) Local Immersion, and (iii) International Youth Conference. The Leadership Development Training will provide knowledge on sustainable development and equip the participants with skills on project management, research, and community mobilization.

The local immersion in Sta. Rosa gave the participants the opportunity to engage with communities to develop a deeper understanding of existing development challenges on the ground in relation to the SDGs. Each local engagement helped inform tangible outputs in the form of research and policy recommendations. During the International Youth Conference, APYE’s culminating activity at the end of the program; the participants showcased their outputs gleaned from the local immersion. The conference also featured presentations and workshops lead by key development partners and international development organizations.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

PROGRAM CONTENTS

TRAINING

Leadership Development Training - Program orientation - Understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - Breakout sessions

Local Immersion - Meeting with local government - Survey and data gathering - International sports day - Local conference

RESEARCH

Youth Conference - Job fair - Project presentation - Advisory feedback session - Award of program certification

PROPOSAL

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

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Asia Pacific Youth Exchange (APYE)

OBJECTIVES

IMPROVE young peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s understanding of SDGs and their roles in achieving them INCREASE understanding and cooperation between young people across Asia and the Pacific BUILD the capacity of youth in implementing projects and activities aligned to the SDGs STRENGTHEN global and regional partnership for the SDGs and youth development in Asia and the Pacific IDENTIFY opportunities for inclusion of young people in decision making and implementation of the SDGs

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT TRAINING (LDT)

JANUARY

LDT Day 1 The first day of the leadership development program began with an opening plenary in which all participants were oriented and introduced to what to expect throughout the next two weeks. Mr. Christopher Morris, Head of the ADB’s NGO and Civil Society Center, welcomed all 150 youth participants and oriented the plenary with an overview of ADB’s critical role in the region’s development while introducing as well the Bank’s efforts to engage the youth through the ADB Youth Initiative.

Mr. Hyoungmin Kim, Managing Director of Urban Youth Academy, delivered APYE’s opening remarks broadly describing what all participants are to expect in the next two weeks. Mr. Kim encouraged all participants to make the most of each part of the program they were a part of as they embarked on a meaningful and memorable journey towards supporting the SDGs in its first year of implementation.

Mr. Gio Ramon Tingson (National Youth Commission) talked about the Role of Youth in supporting the Sustainable Development. He emphasized how youth participation in the SDGs is becoming a key element in driving inclusive development and shared the importance of harnessing the region’s youth demographic dividend to ensure that their meaningful contribution to development. One of the call to actions pointed out by Gio in his keynote that the youth’s significant demographic size has immense potential for change yet this can only be achieved through “collective action” and collaboration among all key stakeholders.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE Ms. Kallayaphorn Jaruphand (UN Millennium Campaign) shared an overview of the SDGs. She presented how the Millennium Development Goals came about and how it evolved into the current SDGs. Mr. Jaruphand also shared some of the findings from the My World 2015 survey which was a global effort to create awareness about the SDGs through a simple survey asking participants “which issues is most important for you and your family?”. This survey was instrumental in informing the current priorities and activities of the SDGs. She shared as well the newest campaign being launched, the follow up to the MyWorld survey which seeks to measure the respondents’ perception of how well the SDGs are being implemented in their own respective country contexts. At the end of her keynote, Ms. Jaruphand led an interactive activity with the participants that aimed to further reinforce their awareness and understanding of the SDGs. Most of the participants engaged proactively with Ms. Jaruphand through a series of question and answer.

JANUARY

The afternoon segment featured a workshop on the SDGs lead by Mr. Ponce Samaniego (ADB Youth Initiative). Participants were given the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the SDGs through three games which will serve as the framework of their activities during the local immersion. The objective of the games was to ensure that all participants fully understood and remembered each of the 17 SDGs. The first training day ended with a welcoming and cultural dinner that featured two bands from a local university as well as an opportunity for the participants to dress up in their own national costumes.

LDT Day 2 Ms. Antonella Vagliente (World Youth Parliament for Water) shared her international and local experiences in supporting the water sector by implementing water infrastructure in rural communities as well as influencing public policies towards prioritizing the sector. Ms. Vagliente emphasized the importance of getting youth stakeholders involved and interested in key water projects. Some of the examples of youth engagement in this sector that she shared include facilitating youth representation in decision making bodies to better address intergenerational cooperation challenges on

water and climate change as well as building youth capacities around water and climate change issues to enable to raise awareness about the issues surrounding this sector. Ms. Concepcion Lagos (the University of Asia and the Pacific) led an in-depth discussion on research experiences and techniques. In preparation for the local immersion, Ms. Lagos talked about critical data gathering methods and some key lessons learned from her experience on the field. Using her own anecdotal examples and case studies, Ms.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE Lagos gave the participants an overview of some of the challenges and opportunities faced by any researcher. One key piece of advice Ms. Lagos imparted was to â&#x20AC;&#x153;recognize and befriend the gate-keepersâ&#x20AC;? of the community to ensure that strong relationships are established between the researcher and the community members. She also emphasized the importance of building deep connections with the people and key stakeholders of the communities being studied. Ms. Lagos encouraged all the participants that the data they collect can and should be shared and collaborated with other researchers to ensure the continuity for the openness of the practice of research. Ms. Mary Josefti Nito (University of Asia and the Pacific) shared her experiences as both a researcher, academic and grassroots person. She highlighted the importance of being inclusive when engaging with communities while knowing how to identify the groups of people necessary for the researchersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; study. Though the audience and people to be engage always differ and depend on the nature of the study, he said that it is encouraged to be as inclusive and comprehensive in terms of engaging members of a community. Mr. Christopher Morris and Ms. Suzanne Nazal (ADB NGO and Civil Society Center) presented critical tools for the local immersion research. The session focused on creating stakeholder analysis and maps by tackling key questions such as whose interests are served and what positive impacts can be brought about by potential youth-led projects. They also discussed the importance of a thorough understanding of local conditions, encouraging participation and getting valuable feedback especially from the poor and vulnerable groups of the communities. The participants were then given an activity that allowed them to prepare a

stakeholder analysis, applying all the questions and key techniques. The afternoon session gave the participants the opportunity to apply what they have learned during the morning training through several research exercises guided by the framework of the SDGs. The participants were grouped into 17 teams with each team assigned a topic related to the SDGs. All 17 teams had to conduct research on the Laguna Lake area and develop a stakeholder analysis identifying the complex issues related to their assigned SDGs within this locality. Each SDG group was given five minutes to present their findings and analysis based on their discussion and research. Mr. Elco Van Beek of the IWRM and Ms. Ria Cayton of the University of Asian and the Pacific provided feedback at the end of each group presentation.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

JANUARY

LDT Day 3

The third day of the leadership development training held breakout sessions which youth participants signed up for. Each session was facilitated by different speakers from different related backgrounds and fields in youth engagement and development.

Social Entrepreneurship The session was led by Ms. Yah Tyng Ng of Air Asia Foundation. She pointed out challenges of social enterprises with regard to creating a social enterprise which developing investor trust, the ability to protect the idea or proprietorship, and the scalability of the business. Digital Strategies for Development The session was led and facilitated by Mr. Pondet Ananchai of Find Tech, an entrepreneur, softskill trainer and science communicator. He first shared a video about Samsung’s “the Guiding Light” for the visually-impaired. From this example, he discussed social entrepreneurship and how information technology and modern tools can develop new ways of finding sustainable solutions to real problems in society.

Young Leaders Program Mr. Wouter Lincklaen Arriëns of Transformation First Asia and Ms. Judee Quiazon of Natalie in the Light, Inc. were coaches for the session. They have actively engaged participants in dialogue. Through guided discussions among the participants, session participants were able to get to know each other as well as themselves better, and were encouraged to share their thoughts, aspirations and experiences as part of building partnerships in pursuing their goals. Designing Effective Information Campaigns Mr.Thai Hoang Vu and Ms. Jasmine Jaruphand from the UN Millenium Campaign guided on how to produce online and other visual materials that could contribute to more awareness to their advocacies or campaigns. Using visual design, social media, and other creative outputs, the facilitators gave the participants time to brainstorm and create their own information campaign, produce impressive websites, and share it with the other teams.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

LOCAL

IMMERSION JANUARY

JANUARY

From Manila, participants headed out to their local immersion sites. They arrived at Sta. Rosa, Laguna by early afternoon to begin preparations for the busy week ahead. In preparation for the intense data-gathering and research tasks for the week, local representatives met the participants for a debriefing and to discuss the 17 SDG’s.

Participants met the local government of their assigned communities in the Sta. Rosa City Hall and welcomed by local officials, including the city administrator of Sta. Rosa City Government, Atty. Leonardo Ragaza, Jr. Atty. Ragaza encouraged the participants to do their best in their immersion, and highlighted the value of their work. He emphasized that “the SDG’s are cross-cutting issues which require a collaboration of experts in various fields. Involvement of all, including the youth, is necessary. Mobilizing youth will change the outlook of the future with regard to sustainable development.” The Local officials also introduced their current involvement and plan to integrate the SDGs into their local development plans. They also engaged with the participants through a series of questions and answer regarding the city’s efforts to achieve the SDGs.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

JANUARY

The second day of research commenced with each SDG team given the task of completing their questionnaire and finding out what research methods would best suit their assigned SDG. Some challenges mentioned so far with some teams have been the lack of available studies or data from local government and other officials that they got to talk to. While these difficulties were some of the delays experienced by the volunteers, the third day also gave them a better view and understanding of the current situation of the areas they were assigned to.

JANUARY

The immersion began with a sports fest in which the international participants shared various games with the children of the communities, that while local participants taught and played traditional Filipino games such as luksong baka (leapfrog), patintero and piko (hopscotch), the international participants also shared traditional games from their countries with the participants. Sixteen sports fest activities were organized by each SDG group, giving local youth participants and community members the opportunity to participate in various international and local games. After lunch time, the participants continued the pursuit of finding more materials and answers to their assigned topics. The participants shared that they found some unexpected information that gave valuable insight to their research. At the end of the research part of the day, Ms. Iris Caluag, the Urban Youth Academyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Program Consultants, led a session on problem tree mapping and introduced other research tools to help the participants better analyze their findings.

JANUARY

The different SDG groups were given the opportunity to finish having their survey questions completed. All participants meet to analyze their findings in line with the SDGs they were assigned to. The day was dedicated to processing the information that they have been able to gather so far about their assigned communities. But while our heroes wish they could extend their time and make the most of their immersion, they now have to prepare a presentation for tomorrowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s big day: presentation to a panel of experts.

JANUARY

Participants were given the opportunities present their analysis and findings from a whole week of immersion. On the panel of specialists are Mr. Gary Cayton, Mrs. Hidelina Cayton, Engr. Maria Amor Salandanan, Mr. Ariel Marcelino, and Mr. Mark Genesis Las. All the selected panelists were from the private and public sector, and have been part of initiatives or are still currently part of government and contributed valuable time and service in making a difference. The panelists listened to all 16 presentations and their proposed projects for their assigned communities. Mr. Cayton closed the long presentation day by sharing the panelistsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; thoughts and motivations for the youth to continue their projects. He also mentioned how the challenge of the participants is to continue these initiatives and see their goals through even past the project. By the afternoon, the scores for the sixteen presentations were tallied, and in the end, 5 groups were selected based on the panelistsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; cumulative score. The five selected SDG groups to present their findings at the International Youth Conference were: Life Below Water, No Poverty, Education, Clean and Affordable Energy and Sustainable Consumption and Production.

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INTERNATIONAL

YOUTH CONFERENCE

INTERNATIONAL YOUTH CONFERENCE Day 1 The first day of the international conference, the APYE participants took part in the international internship fair organized by the Urban Youth Academy in partnership with AIESEC. The internship fair featured a diverse range of companies including non-government organizations, social enterprises, and academe as well as development and private organizations. Some of the companies that met with the APYE participants include the ADB Youth Initiative, ASSIST NGO, AIESEC the Asian Institute of Management, Natalie in the Light, JG Summit Holdings inc., Global Leadership Institute, YouthHack, John Clements Consultancy, and Urban Youth Academy Korea and Philippines. Over a hundred international and local participants submitted their CVs and Resumes for the companies to review during the morning part of the fair. The afternoon half of the job fair was dedicated to the companies conducting quick interviews for their selected participants.

JANUARY

INTERNATIONAL YOUTH CONFERENCE Day 2 Mr. Christopher Morris opened the first official day of the international youth conference by welcoming participants and providing an overview of the possibilities of collaboration due to this event. After Mr. Morrisâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; opening remarks, Ms. Maureen Tolentino, LLDAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Public Relations Officer shared two videos with the plenary showing the work and progress that has been done in the Laguna Lake area and how much has changed since development projects and initiatives have been undertaken in and around the lake communities.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE Shortly after the session by LLDA, the groups that presented their research outputs for this day were: Water and Sanitation, Clean and Affordable Energy. Having shared their projects with the audience, a panel of experts provided their insights and comments about the selected presentations next. The panelists were Ms. Reena Buena (Division Chief III of the Community Development Division, LLDA), Mr. Gil-Hong Kim (Senior Director, Sector Advisory Service Division, ADB), and Mr. Christopher Morris (Head of NGO and Civil Society Center, ADB). The panel commended the proposed projects of the selected groups, and encouraged them to keep working on finding innovative solutions to real problems. While the SDG’s are diverse in their focus, the need for collaboration to make it effective was also emphasized by the panel.

JANUARY

INTERNATIONAL YOUTH CONFERENCE Day 3 The last day of the International Youth Conference began with a few words from the Keynote speaker, Mr. Ryan Bradeen, (Assistant Cultural Affairs Officer, U.S. Embassy in Manila) of the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative, Mr. Brandeen encouraged the youth participants to be more proactive in seeking out youth opportunities and introduced some of the initiatives currently being undertaken by the Young Southeast Asian Leaders’ Initiative (YSEALI). After Mr. Brandeen’s session, Ms. Amor Maclang (Geiser-Maclang Marketing Communications Inc.) discussed on Marketing and Communications. She emphasized on how to use communication tools to advocate for SDGs and the importance of communication in making any endeavor successful and effective. Three other presentations for the local immersion out and proposal were presented to another panel of youth experts, Julia Safarova (Project Designer, ADB Youth Initiative), Mr. Ryan Febrianto, National Consultant, UNICEF Indonesia), and Ms. Jessica Herrera (Partnership Manager, ADBAIESEC International). The groups that presented on this day were Life below Water, Education and Sustainable Consumption and Production. The afternoon featured another series of breakout sessions with partners who shared their views and insights on how to support the achievements of the SDG’s: United States Embassy, European Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines, WWF Philippines, and Teach for the Philippines. The conference ended with a commitment to specify the goals in line with the two-week activities. With Ms. Jessica Herrera, The representatives from each group read and signed the Youth declaration for the SDG’s. The youth declaration contained each group’s concrete commitments for ensuring that their support for their specific SDGs and to the 17 goals as a whole would not end even as APYE drew to a close.

INSIGHTS FROM

APYE PARTICIPANTS Below are some of the insights and feedback shared by the participants of APYE. These are some of their thoughts overall about how the program has impacted their lives personally and professionally.

Ali Mashraf (Bangladesh)

Through the APYE2016, I was able to share the precious moments and learn many things. We all ended up meeting in the APYE program. It was like an intersection of all different paths of our own, with different home countries and different goals.

Sophia Dedace (Philippines)

I spent the first two weeks of January connecting with young development professionals and students from South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal and Burma to learn how Asian youth can spur action and foster regional collaboration for the 2030 SDGs.

Jin Hyunsun (South Korea)

Kim Jisu (South Korea)

Faraz Ahmed (Pakistan)

I can define that APYE is the bridge that can connects me with my dreams and is the driving force that makes me forward. I will constantly strive to reach a career of international civil servants that I dreamed of having for my future.

APYE 2016 was a transforming experience for me. From conducting research to making presentation to pitching our idea at the headquarters of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Manila, it was a roller-coaster journey, one that I will always be proud and fond of. APYE 2016 gave me a platform where I was able to apply my leadership, teamwork and research skills in the fieldwork that we conducted in different Barangays in the Santa Rosa City.

Yvonne Teo (Malaysia)

I was proud to be involved with 250+ young leaders form the Asia Pacific region. We shared, experienced and had tons of fun throughout the SDG talks, immersion program and the international conferences.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

YOUTH DECLARATION OF THE ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE PROGRAM

We, the participants of the Asia Pacific Youth Exchange Program this January 3 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 16, 2015 at the Asian Development Bank, have collaborated in recognition of our responsibility and privilege toward helping achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Gathered today, this January 16, 2016, we collectively submit our declaration and state our commitments to continued discussion and collaboration with others who want to make the sustainable development goals a reality by 2030. In doing so, we have contributed our commitment to each of the 17 development goals in the following ways:

We commit to achieving ZERO POVERTY by 2030, by continuing initiating and supporting projects that directly help the marginalized youth. In relation to this, one of the seed projects that we continue to support is the seed planting project that contributes to helping marginalized Filipino youth in Laguna, Philippines. We commit to achieving ZERO HUNGER by empowering the workers in the primary industry, especially farmers and fishermen, to form an intermediary association between the government and local farmerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s association with a support from youth-led initiatives to better-mobilize, serve, and advocate the voices and actions of the local workers. In addition, we commit to organize a creation of direct flagship market and a centralized rice milling station in interested barangays to effectively control the monopolizing activities of middlemen, and to sustain a stable price level and quality of food products We commit to achieving GOOD HEALTH AND WELL-BEING by promoting cooperation between health facilities and organizations, with participation of youth to provide quality health services, and also inform youth about general health and awareness and importance in health education.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE We commit to QUALITY EDUCATION through empowering communities towards aiming to provide quality education of the children. This will be achieved by improving different sectors of community, and creating a strong movement for quality education that will be shared by everyone. We commit to GENDER EQUALITY by being more responsible in our demands for a balanced and informative sex education program that can better-inform youth ; through the aid of government, and demand for a school specialist who can provide special sex education class to youth, who will promote safe sex practices. We also commit to demand from government to provide better day care centers that will involve more youth to take part in and contribute to facilities for children. Lastly, we commit to setting up a womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s desk in every barangay and contact line for victims of sexual violence.

We commit to CLEAN WATER AND SANITATION by involving the youth in water-related activities that encourages young people and the local community to participate in solving water-related issues.

We commit to achieving AFFORDABLE AND CLEAN ENERGY through the following steps: to commit to spread awareness about the importance of using clean, affordable, and reliable energy to sustain current and future generations; we commit to make partnerships with the public, private and nonprofit sectors to provide a wide-spread access of solar panels to the citizens ; we commit to create not only environmental but also social, economic and political impact through the use of renewable energy. We commit to DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH by suggesting a solution that can improve the employment rate in Sta. Rosa City; we commit to do proper research, studies and gather useful information that could provide better work opportunities and more innovative ideas for work for people of all demographics.

We commit to INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE by organizing specialized technology education system with youth, government, private sector for higher quality of industrialization; we commit to encourage government and private sector to set up infrastructure for effective and ecological industry management We commit to achieving REDUCED INEQUALITIES to organize a job training program based on individual counselling through promotion of partnerships with governments, private sector, and civil societies to facilitate a network-building of youth and to secure sustainable implementation of youth-led initiatives, not to mention the mutual development of interested parties.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE We commit to SUSTAINABLE CITIES AND COMMUNITIES to encourage local people and youth from abroad to participate in building the sustainable and safe cities and communities by promoting the recycling campaign and the CPTED (Crime Prevention through Environmental Design)

We commit to RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION to involve the youth in informing more about the dangers of resource depletion and recycle; and to reduce the use of disposable products.

We commit to CLIMATE ACTION by informing the risk of climate change and encourage global society to mainstream mitigation of GHG emissions and adaptation to policy measures. We commit to empower youth by supporter organization so that they can effectively contribute to resolving regional issues derived from climate change.

We commit to LIFE BELOW WATER by bringing awareness and to promote action among the communities to engage in creating solutions and tackling the problem of disturbed ecosystem ; we commit to create self-sustaining projects and solutions that are not only applicable at present time but flexible to changes in the situation and will last for generations ; we commit ourselves to reconnect the communities and to promote harmonious lifestyle with nature. We are part of nature. We commit to LIFE ON LAND by abiding with the four laws of nature: a. that everything is interconnected, b. nothing is for free, c. everything has to go somewhere, d. nature has the last say; with this in mind, we commit all our efforts to promote our ecological responsibility to revive the land and make it inhabitable.

We commit to PEACE AND JUSTICE, STRONG INSTITUTIONS to encourage and empower government, residents, and the orgs to unite as one and stand for their peaceful environment and life cohesively.

We commit to PARTNERSHIPS FOR THE GOALS by encouraging dialogue and partnerships between youth groups, partners and stakeholders who envision achieving the sustainable development goals by 2030. We commit to organize more events where collaborative action can be taken and achieved in the process of making new partnerships for the 17 goals.

RESEARCH OUTPUTS January 7 - 13, 2016

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

OVERVIEW

of the Immersion Program The immersion program was focused on communities situated in the Sta. Rosa, Laguna area. Through an intensive 5-day program, the participants were organized into five teams, and each team was further subdivided into smaller groups with an assigned SDG to focus on. There were a total of 16 SDG groups within the Sta. Rosa municipality, each with the task of completing their questionnaires to guide them in finding out the challenges and brainstorm for a project proposal for possible solutions within the community. On the last day of immersion, the groups had to prepare presentations and present their findings and proposed projects to a panel.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

LAGUNA LAKE BOAT PROJECT Doeun Kim, Youngsun Oh, Samuel Parsad, Yubin Im, Gyunghye Shin, Arjun, Htet, Eunji Chung

Project Summary The project starts with the initial investment of the local government unit, Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA), and Laguna de Bay Infrastructure Development Fund (LBIDF) as mentioned above. The investment is used to create a boat, and to provide capital to start a boat operating business. At the same time, unemployed youth and people living under the poverty line are initially selected as the participants of the project. The partner corporation of the Laguna Lake Boat Project (LLBP) provides the youth and the locals with capacity building and training to make the organization operate independently. After creating the independent and self-sufficient boat operating organization, it starts to pay back the initial investments. The ultimate goal of the project is to create a separate and financially-independent organization owned by the locals. LLBP organization will gradually expand their business, which will create more complex and systematic water transportation system.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS 1. Prevalence of Poverty Poverty has always been the severe social problem that needs to be solved, and Philippines is not an exception. 16.6 percent of people living in the Philippines are still suffering from extreme poverty. According to National Statistical Coordination Board, more than 15 percent of the people living in the Laguna de Bay watershed are living less than $1.25 a day. Poverty occurs from many reasons, including low income, hunger, limited access to education and job opportunities. Laguna de Bay Project focuses on reducing the high unemployment rate, by creating self-sufficient, sustainable organization owned and operated by the locals, especially youth. Therefore, this project ultimately aims for no poverty. 2. Laguna de Bay watershed The target area of the Laguna de Bay Boat Project (LLBP) is Laguna de Bay watershed. Normally, the area including the lake and the watershed is called Laguna de Bay Region. This is because people living in this area are directly affected by the resources provided by the lake. Also, people living alongside the lakeshore are actively using boats for water transportation. a. Limited Mobility Laguna de Bay works as a major transportation route between towns and cities lying on its shores. More than 5,000 motorized and non-motorized watercrafts operate as a means of transportation for lakeshore communities.

However, there are no settled systems or routes for transportation use. Moreover, the watercrafts used as water transportation are not enough and unstable, and mainly focused on Metro Manila. Thus, people have no option but migrate to capital region, instead of actively using water transportation. As a result, about 18.3 percent of the total population of Laguna de Bay watershed area resides in the National Capital Region, and population of Manila is growing rapidly due to the migration from other regions, resulting mainly from the perceived economic opportunities in Manila. This proves the needs of efficient transportation, connecting 6million people living in Laguna de Bay watershed area. b. Limited Profitability Currently, people living in Laguna de Bay watershed are mostly relying on the fishery. However, the productivity of lake is sharply declining. This is because of the pollution from industries, fertilizer runoff from agricultural lands, and limited use of the lake. It is apparent that marginal fishermen dependent on the water quality are going to suffer from lower income, which is going to worsen the poverty rate. Moreover, there are many perceived restrictions in using lake for fisheries, due to environmental reasons. Thus, to solve unemployment and low income, non-fishery sectors should be activated. LLBP focuses on creating an organization to operate boats, creating incomes, and using lake in an environment-friendly way. Moreover, there have always been the needs for integrated organization. The lack of cooperation in Lake Region was the main reason of the

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE failure of Laguna de Bay Fisher pen Development Project (DBFDP). The project aimed for organizing small groups of fishermen into cooperatives, but failed to integrate individual fishermen. Thus, LLBP is planning to provide effective training to people by cooperating with private enterprise to create successful and sustainable organization owned by the locals. c. Limits of LLED There is an ongoing project in the Philippines to solve the transportation problems around Laguna de Bay Region, especially to reduce travel time and protect Metro Manila from lake-water floods. The project is called “Laguna Lakeshore Expressway Dike” (LLED) and includes reclamation of huge area and construction of the long expressway from Bicutan

to Los Banos, encompassing the western lakeshore of the lake. However, this project is opposed by many people, especially fishermen living alongside the lakeshore. This is because the expressway only benefits the people who are wealthy enough to afford their own cars. Also, the onesided reclamation would make people living on the eastern side of the lake more vulnerable to the flood. The fishermen will also lose their jobs during construction work. Lastly, the artificial reclamation is not environment-friendly. LLBP is an alternative project, satisfying the transportation needs of the wealthy and the poor, not damaging the nature and water quality, even creating the job opportunity and building the capacity of unemployed youth.

IDENTIFIED STAKEHOLDERS 1. Laguna Lake Development Authority Although the LLDA presently is performing more of a regulatory function than planning and development, its existing Charter contains the development function. In addition, LLDA has been engaged in many important financing projects to assist the fishermen and other stakeholders dependent on the lake's resources. Therefore, LLDA can be the partner or the initial investor of LLBP to support the project financially, supported from its corporate revenues and external sources. Considering that LLBP is an income generating project, based on the lake's natural resources, it fits the LLDA projects’ criterion. 2. Laguna de Bay Infrastructure Development Fund LBIDF was created to support the planning and development of necessary environmental and water-related projects. In addition, it generates incomes by selling the projects to prospective sponsors to develop the projects. 3. Local Government Unit Laguna de Bay Region, which includes the lake and its watershed encompasses a total of 66 local government units consisting of 5 provinces, 12 cities and 49 municipalities. To support millions of people living in the region, especially 3 million people living along the lakeshore, local government unit has an obligation to fund the project if it is beneficial to the locals. 4. Local Community It is estimated that 6 million people are living in Laguna lake region. However, many people are informal settlers

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE who typically cluster alongside the lakeshore, and their numbers are growing. Therefore, over 6 million people are living in the lake region. All of the locals residing in the region are the prospective participants of LLBP, especially people suffering from extreme poverty and unemployed youth on the preferential basis. The locals selected as a participant of the project will go through training, capacity building, and finally become the co-owner of the boat operating organization. 5. Boat operating corporation It is impossible for the locals to operate the business on the first hand. The boat operating corporation already existing in the Philippines will participate in the project as an investor. The expert and the experienced will teach and train the locals until they are self-sufficient. The incomes generated by the organization will be distributed to the corporation, but LLBP ultimately aims for the locals to pay back the training fees and initial investment, and become the separate, local-owned organization. There are few organizations currently providing the water transportation service. The Pasig River Ferry Service only serves Metro Manila, mainly cruising around Pasig River. 2GO Travel operates large overnight Ferris. Moreover, there

are many shipping companies including Super ferry and Negros Navigation. All services are not provided mainly in Laguna de Bay region. The goal of LLBP is to learn the system of currently operating water transportation services, and become a separate organization owned by the locals, mainly serving the transportation needs of 6 million people living around the lake. 6. Young Entrepreneurs Providing the unemployed youth with training and capacity building will not only make LLBP successful, but cause chain reaction in economic growth, creating more and more youth-led corporations. The youth engagement has a huge possibility because most of the youth of low-income family in the Philippines do not work until they get married. According to the interview with the locals in 3 barangays of St. Rosa, young people usually do not try to find their lifetime job. Most of them live from hand to mouth. This is why the training and experience is important to the unemployed youth of low-income families. LLBP will provide the youth with the training and experience as a co-owner of the organization, which will be the basis of their future career.

PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION

LLBP is not a project that can be culminated in a year. The timeline below is about how the project can be started. After the first evaluation done by the investors and several stakeholders of the project, the operating system can be altered and the scale of the business can be expanded. The duration of this project is based on how the locals operate the business.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE 2017 Initial Investment

Sponsor & Boat building

Selecting Participants

Interview

Capacity Building Operating Business

Training LLBP Boat Operating Organization

Evaluation Â

Table : Project Implementation

The goal of LLBP is to create self-sufficient, and sustainable organization owned by the local community members. This project is made firstly, to lower the unemployment rate of the Laguna lake region. To solve the problem, LLBP focuses on the fact that youth of the poor lack the opportunity for education. The project provides young people with capacity building to be part of the organization and, by extension, to create their own business as a youth entrepreneur. This will further improve the economic status of the region, which leads to lower poverty rate. Secondly, LLBP aims for equal and environment-friendly development against LLED project. While LLEP only targets

people living around Metro Manila, LLBP targets millions of people living in Laguna Lake Region, even people living in Capital Region. Moreover, LLBP doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t harm nature compared to LLED project which affects the entire ecosystem and the water quality of the lake. Lastly, LLBP will provide more opportunity to people living in the lake region. Considering that poverty occurs from the limited access to education and job opportunities, the increased mobility will diversify the livelihoods of people living in the region. Moreover, the increased mobility will ease the excessive concentration of the population in Metro Manila.

References Adelina Santos-Borja, Dolora N. Nepomuceno, Laguna Lake Development Authority, 2004. Experience and Lessons Learned Brief for Laguna de Bay Vanessa Vargas, 2015. Laguna de Bay, Philippines: Environmental Literacy Kelvin S. Rodolfo, 2016. The dangerous Laguna Lakeshore Expressway Dike Transportation in the Philippines, Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia

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BREAK AGRICULTURAL FINANCIAL PROBLEM Joo Hee Byun, Tran Thanh Mai, Minyoung Lee, Trang Thu

Project Summary This group has identified multiple reasons that contribute to achieving zero hunger. These include food security, nutrition and the promotion of sustainable agricultural practices as the main problems under this groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s project. Identifying the main sources of problems for the community, this project proposes an inter-linked set of solutions to hopefully contribute to a sustainable solution to achieving zero hunger within the chosen community. The project addresses a number of issues, primarily the lack or weak connection among local associations, the need for more knowledge on the issue, financial problems as well as the off-shoots of urbanizations and industrialization

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS While there is an effort to solve one problem, the source of issues is complex and needs to be individually solved. The group has identified the different areas that need to be addressed that future projects can also build on to. The issues mainly identified include: 1) the financial situation of farmers, 2) Unequal and ineffective food distribution,

3) the negative environmental effects of urbanization and industrialization, the lessened involvement of youth, 4) natural disasters and rapid changes in weather patterns, and 5) the weak connection and coordination of local groups or associations with each other.

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STAKEHOLDERS 1. Youth within the community It would seem that the trend for younger generations is to pursue further studies which are not related to an agricultural background or to learn better agricultural techniques and technologies. As stakeholders in this SDG, it is important for them to identify themselves as key players and to motivate them in improving conditions within their communities. The youth can also participate by volunteering momentarily for the projects and provide them with training outside of their educational attainment, or especially if they are not able to attend school regularly.

training and create tangible projects for the community that they are focused on. 3. Intermediary Groups Aside from NGOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, academicians or professors who have more information about agricultural techniques and practices are possible stakeholders in this area of development. In addition, it would be good to have more intermediary groups that can link local farmers with the government and non-government organizations.

2. Non-Government Organizations One of the issues identified in our research is the lack of communication and correspondence between the youthdriven initiatives and organizations which can provide

PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION The lack of financial support for farmers is the starting point for the project. Farmers suffer from low income, less diversified mode of earning incomes and relatively low quality of the food. The project involves distribution of high quality seeds, and providing training for farmers and fishermen to cultivate better produce. In addition, by reforming the chain of supply can also help redirect how farmers and fishermen earn income, by building a direct channel between suppliers and consumers. In addition, the project aims to involve the youth within the community more by delegating tasks and training them through educational workshops and other community-building activities.

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YOUTH CAMP FOR SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH Fonna Dista Maisa Pusporini, Sujin Kim, Susy Kim, JaeHee Lee, Jayson Lazaga

Project Summary Youth facilitators will be trained for the camp and stand as peer educators, who will play an active role in operation on ‘VYAA(Value Yourself Above All)’ Application. In spite of the cases of teenage pregnancy and the need for practical education for teenagers, there is only limited sexual and reproductive health education in schools and no education provided in barangay health center in Don Jose and Santo Domingo. Therefore, this camp aims to provide practical education on reproductive and sexual health such as how to use condoms and practice themselves to promote sexual health. Also, though ‘VYAA’ application, anyone can get a chance to get relevant information about reproductive and sexual health. The camp will work with local partners, particularly the Barangay health center and high schools in Barangay Don Jose and Santo Domingo. The main beneficiaries of this camp are high school and university school students in barangay Don Jose and Santo Domingo.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS Through interviews and surveys, the group was able to identify some issues with regard to health education. Primarily, the lack of reproductive health education and services is one glaring issue. In addition, within the Calabarzon area it would appear that the percentage of women who have children is relatively young; based on statistics found about the area, 24.2% of women age 15-24 have begun childbearing. In addition, this is supported by the statistics that would point out that a17.2% of women have experienced sexual intercourse before having reached 18 years old. To further substantiate the identification of the problems related to the group’s topic, the group also conducted

random sampling surveys within the areas of Paseo Mall and Santo Domingo High School to gather the inputs and perspectives of youth about reproductive health. Based on a population size of 65 respondents, 95% of respondents have stated that they have taken health education in their schooling before; of this percentage, 92% have taken reproductive health related classes. Within the population surveyed, majority of the group also expressed their discomfort about talking about the topic, as 59% of male respondents indicated that they feel shy talking about the topic, while 72% of female respondents felt the same way.

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STAKEHOLDERS 1. Government-related offices: Within this category, we identified the following offices as stakeholders in this topic: Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA), Dept. of Health, City Health Office, the Barangay Health Center. Civil Society : International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), National Youth Council 2. Private Sector: Companies that could provide assistance through their products or funding educational workshops that can promote reproductive health education 3. Youth: The involvement of youth in this area and within the project is to serve as peer facilitators. They will need initial training and play an active role in operation on the project once it commences. In addition, these volunteers should work closely with local partners such as the barangay health center and educational institutions to make it sustainable for later projects.

Project IMPLEMENTATION The proposed project is a Government-approved health education camp. The target community is Sta. Rosa, Laguna, focusing on residents within the area who are ages 14 to 26 years old. The Value Yourself Above All camp will take place during school breaks such as summer vacation and have a monitoring process that should track the development of the project and its impact within the communityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s young residents. The program itself will involve youth volunteers who go through a training program provided by health centers and other related agency that can provide materials and helpful products related to reproductive health education. Emphasis will be also placed on avoiding sexually-transmitted diseases, and to focus on decreasing the rate of teenage pregnancies. Some of the goals of this project are to address issues related to reproductive health and will need the close cooperation with like-minded organizations and partners in its implementation. Some examples of these include intersectoral partnerships especially between health and education, partnerships with the local community, and the active involvement of youth within the program who can serve as peers.

Proposed Timeline

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NO DROP-OUTS LEFT BEHIND Ranhee Kim, Hyo Young Kwon, Haryung Yang, Lin Kyu

Project Summary This project addresses the current status of the drop-out students and suggests the solutions about it. Through the several research and the interviews, we found 1. Poverty 2. Parentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; gambling addiction 3. Lack of parentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; interest and 4. Bullying as major reasons why the parents cannot keep their eyes on their offspring. This project aims to change the behaviour of the parents and other community stakeholders towards giving more priority towards education of the children by involving in different sectors of community. The project aims to create a venue for bullied students to express their feelings and stories through a Facebook page. The success of this project relies on the strong commitment and the partnership of all the stakeholders. A monitoring scheme will help identify future challenges and improvements towards sustainability The expected results are as follows: 1. Out-of-school youth having access to quality free education through peer mentorship 2. Out-of-school pwd (people with disabilities) youth having access to quality free education also through peer mentorship 3. Change in attitude of Parents towards giving priority to quality education 4. Change in attitude of the community towards quality education. 5. Policy/Ordinance giving support system for free quality education. 6. A Facebook page followed by students, out of school youth, parents, teachers, and other community stakeholders.

STAKEHOLDERS 1. Barangay Officials, City government, Academe, PTA, Parents, ALS, Youth, NGOs, PO(People Organization), Church Our campaign needs enough funding to conduct. Also, this campaign should be worked as co-operatively which means all members of the community will be participated.

2. Youth Local youth will act as a mentor &peer counselor. Youth as a mentor will share and transfer his/ her knowledge regarding basic education to the students who are lack of motivation. Youth as a counselor will give advice and guidance to the primary and secondary students.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE 3. Local partners Technical working group will be formed and will be composed representatives of different sectors. NGOs, Barangay LGU, City councils, Academe, local youths, teachers, parents, ALS, Church. Philippine Association of Supermarkets Inc. (PASI), Toyota, the local traffic department, Police

4. Youth groups The Local Education Youths Group, ASEAN youth summit, Korean-ASEAN center, Barangay youth

Project IMPLEMENTATION On the basis of the current Philippines administration system, we will set the approval time from the municipal councils around 1 to 2months. During that time, researcher would be held and set the budget for the campaign. After conducting the research and when we finally get the approval, we will take 3 months of observation period, get the feedbacks from the local people and the teachers. When 6 months of trial sessions will be finished, we are going to extend the project to next Barangay.

Table: Proposed Timeline

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The pilot Barangay will be Baranagay Caignin. Barangay Caignin has very systematic elementary education curriculum. Also, the teachers and the principals were really cooperative and have exceptional passion toward the drop-out prevention policies. Moreover, the elementary schools in Caignin got funded by Toyota really well so that we could apply the community- based project. Through this project, the following goals will hopefully be achieved: 1. Change the attitude of the parents towards their childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s education 2. Motivate out of school youth to continue their education 3. Change the attitude of the community by putting a system that will raise the communityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s priority for education. 4. Upgrade existing facilities that can be turned into child-friendly and ideal for studying. 5. Create an ordinance/policies giving priority to education in the community. 6. Create a strong partnership within the stakeholders.

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HUMAN EDUCATION OF RIGHTS AND SEX (HERS) Soyeon Bae, Yeonwha Kim, Jae Eun Ko, Da Eun Lee, Seunghee Shin, Hyoungmin Kim, Aaron Paul Lopez

Project Summary Focusing on gender equality as the group’s issue, the proposed project for this group is to provide assistance for women through a help desk, as well as strong support of reproductive health education in schools.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS The following problems have been identified through researching on the topic. For one, the Philippines ranked ninth out of 142 countries in terms of gender gap index. Second, the prevalence of sex tourism and prostitution, and third, the increasing number of cases of STDs (Sexually Transmitted Disease). Based on surveys that were conducted in the area, sex education could be better taught or offered in schools. According to the results of our survey which was based on a population of 100 respondents, 60% didn’t take sex education. In addition, if this topic is taught in classes, the emphasis is on the biological mechanism and importance of life. However, when we had survey to elderly people who live in Barangay Malusak and Market area, they emphasized ‘family planning’ to teach their children. Family planning means responsible parenthood and contraceptive use. In addition, According to interviews with barangay officers in Santa Rosa, working mothers also experience a problem in balancing work and family demands. While they said they have 36 day care centres in Santa Rosa, parents can leave their children who are 3-4 years old, only for 2-3 hours a day. Even though they were satisfied with it, at least 30% of women have to quit their jobs to take care of their children. The limitation on age and hours for leaving children at the day care centre could be better improved, as these limitations eventually contribute to mothers to quit their jobs. Finally, another issue that was identified through the research conducted within the area was that even though barangay office has women’s desk, most of the people that were interviewed did not know about women’s desk and had no idea what it is. Thus, there is a need for greater awareness about this especially for those in need of help and counselling who were victims of sexual abuse.

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STAKEHOLDERS Because of the different phases of this project, the identified stakeholder are local government, public schools (high school) within the area, and private companies that would be interested to fund the project to its completion.

PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION 1. Reproductive Health Education HERS identifies the need for reproductive health education as the first phase of improving on issues related to gender. Thus, one of the project’s parts involves a more effective sex education component that can be offered to youth (15 – 24 years old), and their parents who can guide them in sensitive issues related to reproductive health. By enforcing sex education step by step, through elementary, junior high, senior high school, students can to learn practical sex education such as responsible parenthood, natural birth control methods, as well as options for women who have been victims of sexual abuse, or have pregnancyrelated health complications. In addition, the presence of reproductive health specialists in school can greatly improve a more practical and scientific approach to sex education. Sex education for parents can also be offered through the initiative of the barangay and its health centers. This same project can be carried out by the public school, in order to bridge the responsibility of parents to guide their children in sex education. 2. Welfare for Women: Day Care Center To support single-mothers or mothers who need to work while taking care of young children, there should be a day care centre within the community that can offer this service for working moms. HERS aims to address some areas

which can be improved to provide working mothers with better options for their children. a. Expanding Day care centre hours : day care centre should be available also for different ages of children and for fulltime women workers. b. Company child care system: Government can provide an incentive by lowering taxes on companies that provide child care centre for the workers. It is not only good for the image of the company but also for the workers who have children. In addition, the company child-care facility can hire youth volunteers and the youth get scholarship or chance of internship from the company as a reward. 3. Protection for Sexual Violence Victims: Women’s Desk Focusing on victims of sexual violence, this phase of the project proposes that the women’s desk can provide investigation of the case, and counselling for the victim. While there is a women’s desk already present, it seems that more people could be aware of it. a. Promotion of Women’s desk through WIFI system: Women Indication For Independence (WIFI). This free WIFI system has to be installed in public areas, such as public school, office, or bank, etc. Every time that people try to connect this WIFI system, there is a pop up things that shows women’s desk, such as call centre number.

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NEVERLAND PROJECT Bola Ju, Kyeong MI Roh, Anh Thi Mai Nguyen, Kiwon Kim, James Roen Schroeder

Project Summary The project includes several phase such as designing, managing, feedback, etc. and has a high change to succeed, because of its flexibility to manage. This can provide not only a tight relationship between the people in the community, but it also gives safe and affordable water for local community in a sustainable way, as well as raising the awareness regarding water and environment protection. Also, it is crucially needed, since that the source of water will be changed in a few decades (from well to surface water). We expect this project to be the starting point of the “butterfly effect” that can bring bigger impacts in the near future. The project will initiate through the cooperation between different stakeholders and officially signing MOU’s. Following this, materials will be provided in the different Barangays, and apply the Bio-Haven system which has been applied in other countries in providing a non-chemical water treatment system. By implementing this system, it will also need the involvement of youth groups to maintain the sustainability of the program and monitor its progress within the community.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS The following problems became apparent through the interviews and research conducted by the group regarding accessibility to water: 1. Lack of access to safe water, and not enough infrastructure to improve this 2. Lack of protection of the ecosystem. Running out of well water and decreasing stream water flow were other issues regarding the restoration of water sources 3. Lack of local participation in activities, and support from within the barangay and its nearby communities

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STAKEHOLDERS 1. Citizens : Local community, barangay members, schools and community members who are directly affected by this issue are the primary stakeholders 2. Private and Public Sector: related companies and government agencies that could provide infrastructure development or programs that can educate residents on how water systems can be improved. By also coordinating and signing MOU’s and cooperating on providing technical education, or funding projects that can improve water systems within the area

3. Youth: youth leaders who can be more involved in campaigns and influence the community regarding the importance of safe water. They can also contribute by showing interest by providing research through their university or school background. Also, the youth can be more directly involved in designing and managing process of “BioHaven Floating Island” with local residents and other youth in the community.

PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION The project itself necessitates the cooperation of different groups in making sure that the project can be properly funded, maintained and sustained by the community members. To do this, there are concrete steps that must be taken in order to see the proposed project through: 1. Secure a Memorandum of Understanding between different stakeholders, and get funding. 2. Implement the Bio Haven project in some areas, and look at the result. This can be conducted by different schools in the nearby area.

3. Once executable, provide education to the youth of different Barangays. 4. Each barangay can improve upon their system and make it their own. Moreover, there can also be an NGO that can manage the whole system and maintain that the barangay has the right to manage its own project.

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SAMA-SAMA ENERGY Faraz Ahmed, Kim Suk Yeon, Kim Sung Min, Jun Hyojung, Gwon Jae Seok

Project Summary The targets that we aim to contribute towards this SDG are: 1. “By 2030, ensure access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services for all.” 2. “By 2030, increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix.” 3. “By 2030, expand infrastructure and upgrade technology for supplying and sustainable energy services for all in developing and less developed countries.” Our project comprises of establishing a social enterprise that buys solar panels at a subsidized rates from the solar-providing organizations (through funds from foundations/private sector) and then taking the help of Purok Youth Entrepreneurs to distribute them to the citizens of each Purok. On top of that, our enterprise, through Purok Youth Entrepreneurs, will train the local citizens on how to use the panels and fix them when they are broken. This way, they empower the local citizens to make meaningful decisions concerning energy. The The youth entrepreneurs will get a fixed commission for each solar panel they sell. The pilot project will focus on Barangay Caingin. In addition, the project is an innovative solution because: 1. It makes efficient use of local youth entrepreneurs who are active in their social settings and can easily mobilize the local citizens to use solar energy. 2. It is a grass-roots level solution so there is a feedback mechanism in place where we gather data from all the Puroks regularly. Hence, our policies are dynamic and very responsive to customer’s needs. 3. It acts as an effective and quick middle man between the seller and buyer of renewable energy

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS Approximately 50% households in certain Barangays in Santa Rosa City are devoid of electricity because they cannot afford coal electricity, which is provided only by the private sector. As a result of that, local businesses do not flourish, people cannot get access to digital

information and children could not study at night. We aim to provide clean and affordable renewable solar energy by mobilizing youth to the citizens of Santa Rosa for smooth functioning of their lives and their city’s businesses.

STAKEHOLDERS 1. Purok members of a Barangay (demand-side) 2. Local businesses (demand-side) 3. Solar-providing organizations (supply-side) 4. Local NGO’s working on energy (supply side) 5. Asian Development Bank (supply side) 6. United Nations (supply side) 7. Local and international governments, such as DOE and DENR (supply side)

8. Youth: 1. Youth Entrepreneurs in each Purok will mobilize the citizens of each Purok, and gather their opinions. 2. University students will be involved in volunteering to collect data for demand for solar energy in Barangays. 3. Purok Youth Entrepreneurs and university students will spread awareness about solar energy and train citizens on how to use the solar panels.

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PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION The project will be a year-long pilot project (May 2016 to April 2017)

1. May-August: Make strategic partnerships (ADB, Solar organizations, Government, NGOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and universities) 2. July-August: Select Purok Youth Entrepreneurs and Purok conduct Youth Entrepreneurs Fellowship (training). 3. September-October: Data gathering in Barangays on the feasibility of our project. 4. November-January: Based on the data, we establish a pilot project in one of the Barangays. This will include demonstrations and feedback from the locals. 5. February: Analyze the feedback and place orders for solar panels 6. March: Orders arrive and are distributed to local citizens through volunteers and Youth Entrepreneurs. Citizens are trained. 7. April: Feedback from citizens is taken through the help of Government experts and Youth Entrepreneurs 8. April-on going: Policies are changed to reflect the feedback (if need be) and Step 6 is repeated.

Following this timeline, and monitoring the progress of the project, it is hopeful that the following goals will be achieved:

1. Most of our target population in Caingin Barangay will approve of solar panels, where as about 10 to 20% will be resistant to using solar technology. 2. There will be wide-spread awareness about the benefits of using solar energy instead of energy run by coal or gas. 3. More local businesses will be established because of greater access to electricity. 4. Government will also become proactive in this cause.

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BRIDGE PROGRAM Kim Min-Sung, Kim Sang-Hyun, Song Hye-Rim, Lee Da-Mi, Lee Hyuk-Joo, Jin Hyun-Sun

Project Summary Our program is focused on and supported by youth participation. The aim is to increase youth employment through this program. Firstly, by offering more internship opportunities. Secondly, in terms of implementation, the interns of the program can bring what they learned to their local communities. To be specific, The interns gather and start the ‘supporters’ to promote this program their own. The ‘supporters’ is in charge that local promotion activities such as communication with stakeholders in community and sharing the thoughts with local students.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS According to our survey, Youth in Philippines tends not to have willingness to get a job. Some less- fortunate people do not have enough money to support livelihood expenses, so they can’t graduate their school or college. And it makes them cannot find the job that they want. In effect, this also involves the employment sector as many opt to work abroad to get higher salary. This points out the gap between the job that youth are prepared for, and the kind of job that they end up applying for. In addition, there is the implied pressure on the head of the family to financially provide for all the members.

STAKEHOLDERS 1. Local Government: Ministry of Education, Ministry of Employment (scholarships) 2. Civil Society : Students from highschool and college, families of students, residents, 3. Private Sector : Automobile company, IT Companies, Labor Pool agencies, Private Vocational Institutions. (providing internship programs) 4. International partners : International Labor Office (ILO)

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PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION 1. To get a guaranteed job, senior students of high school and college apply for scholarship This program makes students focus on their studies, by focusing on how beneficiaries of scholarship can be an intern at the company they want. As a result, this addresses the job mismatch problem. 2. This program makes students increase their desire to work because they can get a regular job after graduation and field training for 1 year. Furthermore, after 1 year when they become an employee at that company they can earn extra money from training the following interns. 3. Contract renewal because of company policy: Most of manufacturing companies have policy that workers should contract every 6 months if they want to work more than 6 months at that company.

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SEED OF STA. ROSA Woochan Son, Myeonggi Hong, Byungjin Woo, Nhan Huynh Minh, Eka Menez

Project Summary Identifying the limitations of Information & Communication Technologies, as well as infrastructure to develop industry and innovation, this project proposes adopting the Meister program within the target community. This will be accomplished through focusing on education as a way to train youth on how to address issues related to internet access and the available jobs.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS 1. Vulnerable infrastructure: particularly roads, and ICT systems that are available. 2. Difficulties in accessing internet, accessing quality education and job security due to the 6-month contracts that are usually imposed.

STAKEHOLDERS 1. Government: Sta. Rosa City Council, Department of Finance, Department of Science and Technology, and other related government offices. 2. Civil Society: Philippine science foundation, ACPI (Animation Council of the Philippines), Technology Resource center 3. Private Sector: Int. Technology Philippines, Inc., Telecom, Banks

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PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION

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CHANGE 3R PROJECT Cho Ah Young, Jeon Soyeong, Sohyun Lee, Minakshi Neupane, Leian Gayle Cuenca

Project Summary The project aims to counsel and provide help increase the income of blue collar workers i.e. drivers of public utility vehicles, fisherfolk, construction workers, street vendors and teachers. Major phases in the project are counseling and job training program. Participantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; needs and wants will be identified in the first phase. Counselors will be invited, and deployed companies and universities, via NGOs. The end result-- curricula and programs-- will be disseminated to the participants. The second phase aims to provide job opportunies. Implementation will be through an Alternative Learning System, skills-training and tutorial session from companies/NGos. At the end of the second phase, necessary skills would have been taught and participants will be certified.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS 1. No time other than working 2. Working abroad 3. Limited income channel 4. No job opportunities 5. Lack of education

IDENTIFIED STAKEHOLDERS Local stakeholders , NGOs, Government Organizations/ Offices, Private Companies, Media , Volunteers, Politicians, etc.

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Project IMPLEMENTATION 3R Project: “Change Sta. Rosa Recognition Revenue”

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RE-UP

(Recycling = Effective Urban Project) Choi Yeu Jung, Kwon So Young, Yoo Jieun, Kwon Jongwan, Lee Jonghun, Lim Juhong

Project SUMMARY The project aims to attract voluntary participation from local people to explain the benefit of recycling activities. The group aims to do this through the following activities: a) June to November: To notify the campaign to local people, local government (based on the campaign report) , contact the recycling factory (give them the benefit of tax cut if they participate this campaign). b) December to February: To start and promote the recycling and wall painting campaign. (education of the project to local youth, parents living in Caingin at the same time) c) February to June: To search how much they are satisfied with this campaign. The team will write the report of campaign, educate the importance and benefit of recycling, promote our campaign in Caingin and recruit members to join. To measure the success of the project, the team will a) do a satisfaction survey from local people b) survey the number of households who suffer from the damage of flood and c) find out the index of economic value when they got the necessities which is recycled.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES

IDENTIFIED STAKEHOLDERS

Having researched and interviewed residents from Caingin, we concluded that the following problems need to be addressed: - Flooding - Drug abuse - Garbage - Unemployment - Insufficient infrastructure

LGU of Sta. Rosa, With Painting (Korean NGO of drawing wall painting, UN-HABITAT, APYE, City Budget Officer, City Planning and Development Officer, City Environment and Natural Resources Officer, Sta. Rosa Manpower Training Center

Given the number of problems that need attention, we decided to focus on the problems of

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GREEN BUTTERFLY FESTIVAL Choi Jaekyung, Kim Suyoung, Park Sooyoung, Seo Juhee, Lee Daeseung, Rea Barrio

Project SUMMARY The Green Butterfly Festival is inspired by the “Butterfly Effect”, which means that small change in one area can result in large differences in the nearby places. The designs will be the highlight of this festival which is made by the top designers of different companies, the winner of the contest in design making and top designs that are found in the internet because it can attract more people to buy products and make them remind environment. The project will be once a year for 5 days including World Environmental Day (every 6th to 10th of June)

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES 1. High density : social and economic indicator given burden to environment 2. High growth : increase pollution with economic growth 3. Limited budget : lack of fund to build recycling centers and set up surveillance cameras to monitor illegal trash dumping 4. Limited manpower : lack of officers to implement policies related to sustainable consumption and production 5. Low technology : low level of skill to make productions without destroying environment 6. Lack of regulation : few regulation to protect environment 7. Law awareness on how to recycle : lack of awareness to maintain the environment and to produce and use recycled products 8. Lack of recycling center : no recycling center to control and manage much garbage 9. No exposure to LGU’s campaign: few residents know LGU’s campaign like Basuranihan Basure, Charcoal Briquettes, etc. 10. Few education: need more specific education that is about recycle materials and importance of developing economy without for children and adults.

STAKEHOLDERS Community members, Participants, Local government, Company, College students (Topnotch), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION The Green Butterfly Festival is inspired by the “Butterfly Effect”, which means that small change in one area can result in large differences in the nearby places. The designs will be the highlight of this festival which is made by the top designers of different companies, the winner of the contest in design making and top designs that are found in the internet because it can attract more people to buy products and make them remind environment. The project will be once a year for 5 days including World Environmental Day (every 6th to 10th of June) The success of this project is by producing new designs that are made by of recycled and native materials. The training will take place at the Poytechnic University of the Philippines. The production will take place at the side of the City Plaza so that the residents got to see how the products have been made. The selling will be at the Santa Rosa City Plaza which is the most accessible and proximity place which can attract many people to participate in the festival. Anticipated results are: • Increase of sales figure produced by recycling materials • Increase the growth of awareness of the Importance of

recycling and sustaining the consumption and production of the City • To activate the local economy • Socialization for local community including immigrants Young people will take lead in this project. The youth including international volunteers and college students can lead the festival and organize the program. They will head efforts such as surveying the residents and companies, communications with public and private sector for the festival, logistic needs of the event and promotions for the festival.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

Youth empowerment for SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND RESponse to client change Ji Su Kim, Chae Hoon Lee and Jung Yeon Han

Project SUMMARY The group hopes to create a non-profit youth organization named ‘Youth Against Climate Change And its Proliferation : YACCAP’, affiliated with Sta. Rosa City Environment and Natural Resources Office(CENRO) to respond to Climate Change. This youth NGO will carry out campaigns to promote climate action and raise social consciousness on climate change through workshops in the community.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES - Lack of awareness on climate change crisis primarily among older generation - Lack of establishing climate action policy in Sta. Rosa - Continuous disruptive scale of flooding

IDENTIFIED STAKEHOLDERS LGU, university and college students, residents in flood-stricken areas

PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION The project has two (2) stages: Stage 1 - Creating Youth Organization(Youth Against Climate Change And its Proliferation: YACCAP) to respond to Climate Change. The group hopes to create a non-profit youth organization named ‘Youth Against Climate Change And its Proliferation : YACCAP’, affiliated with Sta. Rosa City Environment and Natural Resources Office(CENRO) to respond to Climate Change. This youth NGO will carry out campaigns to promote climate action and raise social consciousness on climate change through workshops in the community. Stage 2 – Plant trees to mitigate flooding. The regional government adopts a policy to plant trees along the path on which flooding water flows for the purpose of mitigating the impact of flood. Selecting proper type of trees is important. Some kinds of trees are able to absorb more water and still survive. These can be the right type of trees for the purpose of this project to reduce the amount of flooding water. The second important thing is to prevent land owners from getting rid of planted trees for the purpose of building houses and creating business or market. The group proposes that Sta. Rosa communizes the land where the flood water passes.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

NEW OPPORTUNITY INSIDE A CRISIS Lee Hyein, Lee Yeon Jae, Park Soojin, Park Taejin, Bae Gyutae, Lee Seunghyun, Jethro, Jungco

PROJECT SUMMARY In 2015, the UN Proposed the Sustainable Development Goals. SDG are a set of 17goals that covers a broad range of sustainable development issues. One of the issues it addresses is life below water. Santa Rosa Laguna Lake. Through indepth research, we observed that the invasive species in the Laguna lake are causing a major problem. One of the invasive species are the Knife fish. The knife fish preys on natural habitants of the lake, decreasing the net income for the fishers. The solution to this problem should be environmentally stable, and sustainable. We propose that the local government aids the community to construct a social enterprise. The enterprise would manufacture Knife fish into food products : friend ghost knife fish, fish balls, fish cake, or fish jerkey. These products will be sold on the market for profit. This way the city of Santa Rosa will have a competent market for Knife fish, and solve the environmental toll that those species take. Also, as a social enterprise, the profits will be reinvested to the community. One of the main activities would utilize the youth to raise awareness of environmental pollution in the Laguna bay area that consists of several cities. Through this activity, we hope to bring together the youth of Laguna bay area under the same goal : Saving the environment.

The project aims to create a social enterprise that uses the Knife fish as raw material in fish processing. Identifying marketability in Knife fish and creating a market for them. This will stimulate the consumption of Knife fish in Santa Rosa. It aims to benefit the local people and the government economically and environmentally by consuming the invasive species.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS - Species-invasion in protected areas - Knife fish preys natural habitants of the lake - Decreasing net income of fisherfolk

STAKEHOLDERS - Local Fishermen Community - LLDA - Local Government of Santa Rosa

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION Activities: 1. Launch the campaign participating with the youth which helps to announce the problem that is related to the Laguna Lake. 2. Training the people how to catch the knife fish (concluded by the interview with the head of the fishermen group). 3. Provide the recipe of the knife fish to local residents. 4. Creating processed foods by knife fish We aim to create a social enterprise that uses the Knife fish as raw material in fish processing. Identifying marketability in Knife fish and creating a market for them. This will stimulate the consumption of Knife fish in Santa Rosa. Thus, this project will benefit the local people and the government economically and environmentally by consuming the invasive species. Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources provide market development services. They give marketing assistance through funding and providing post-harvest equipment. Also, they promote value added products by technical assistance and demonstrations. Through thorough investigation of the project we aim to convince the local government to provide funding. This social enterprise and the local government should work hand in hand to alleviate the environmental toll taken by the invasive species. The projected benefits include a) Production of Value Added products b) Mutual beneficial relationship between possible stake holders c) Benefits economy and environment at the same time d) Provide stable, long-term employment for people living in poverty e) Provide a wage for everyone involved in production f)Take the opinion of the local residents and g) Conserve and sustainably use the marine resources for sustainable development.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

GREENATION (Our Generation = Our Mission) Kevin, Kim Hanseo, Lee Jaehyun, Fonna Dista Pusporini, Monique

PROJECT SUMMARY

The project aims to help legislate environmental laws. The team hopes to have certain powers as ‘environmental police’, whereas the members can issue penalties as ‘Green Rangers’. For the schools, the project involves proposing the integration of the 17 SDGs in the National Service Training Program/service-oriented programs of different universities and schools. The project also hopes to have youth volunteers in environment-related corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects of companies and businesses operating in Sta. Rosa.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES

IDENTIFIED STAKEHOLDERS

- Few agricultural areas left (scarcity of land resources) - Synchronization of LGUs efforts - Severe flooding

LGUs, local and international businesses, schools and universities, community

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

PROJECT DESIGN The project has three (3) major parts: a) Environmental drives - monthly activities i.e. tree-planting, creek-cleaning, street-sweeping b) Social Media - for promoting the project and c) Partnerships - LGUs, schools and universities and the private sector. The project aims to help legislate environmental laws. The team hopes to have certain powers as ‘environmental police’, whereas the members can issue penalties as ‘Green Rangers’. For the schools, the project involves proposing the integration of the 17 SDGs in the National Service Training Program/service-oriented programs of different universities and schools. The project also hopes to have youth volunteers in environment-related corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects of companies and businesses operating in Sta. Rosa. The youth will play an integral role in organizing, mobilizing and empowerment. The youth will mobilize youth to do their share for the environment and be the change-makers in their respective communities The project’s success will be measured through the number of active volunteers, monthly evaluation reports, the support of the community and good relationship with the partners and stakeholders.

ASIA PACIFIC YOUTH EXCHANGE

UNITE AS ONE MAKE IT REAL Choi Hyewon, Hyunjin Han, Kang Surim, Benny Wu, Rio Alanis Taganas

PROJECT SUMMARY The project aims to provide a support system to residents through the government. There will be training provided to the Protection Organization (PO), a budget or subsidy will be provided, there will be shared power with the policemen, a network shall be created for companies and an official logo for the union of POs will be created. On the other hand, the PO will serve as the protection system. They will be the residents’ voice. They will train the residents as well. Promotion and recruitment for more POs will be their role as well. From the government’s end, the project aims to deeply influence the families in Sta. Rosa and to give them a voice. For the PO and residents, they will receive a channel for their voice, safety, resources for integration into government efforts and job opportunities as well.

IDENTIFIED PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES - Lack of empowerment of residents - Lack in awareness of peace - Lack of understanding how to take action - Lack of protection of organization(s) - Lack of support system from the government

IDENTIFIED STAKEHOLDERS Residents of Sta. Rosa, Laguna

Government - Training for PO - Sponsor (Budget) - Subsidy - Share power with police officers - Network (e.g. companies) - Union/Logo

Protection Organization - Protection system - Resident’s voice - Training for residents - Promotion - Recruitment