Public Services Bolster Youthful Growth

Inclusive Youth Leadership

Xie Feixun explained that the success of the EGE program depends on sponsorship from the “Starbucks China Youth Leadership Development Program” which gave them their RMB 5,000 initial funding and professional training and guidance.

The senior resident composes a pair of couplets with a volunteer’s name – Ailan – incorporated.

“This program acquaints us with exactly what youth responsibility is. The initial funding provided us with a solid foundation, while lectures help us understand the core value and future goal of our program, as well as the nature of public services. Roadshows show us the importance of a cooperative team, and exchanges among friends in schools nationwide broaden our horizons,” Xie told China Today.

The Youth Leadership Program is jointly sponsored by Starbucks and China’s Soong Ching Ling Foundation. It offers Chinese college students a leadership nurturing plan. The Starbucks Foundation aims to invest a total US $1.5 million (RMB 9.3 million) in three consecutive sessions that will benefit 1,500 students nationwide, including those from impoverished areas and poor families. The program provides students with opportunities to learn about business wisdom, social cognition, and communication skills. It thus bolsters their growth and further development.

The program has so far successfully held two sessions. The second year featured 100 teams, each of 500 students, from 10 colleges in five cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, and Changsha. All participated in investigations, onsite practice, and roadshows. They visited 100-plus communities and schools, so helping more than 10,000 people, and received around 110,000 online comments and 300,000 peer assessments.

The program has generated a good number of pertinent ideas on public services. For instance, the Southwest University for Nationalities team developed a “Youfaner” App which provides a platform for senior citizens and youth to eat together. Young people can order a lunch or dinner on the App and eat in the company of elderly people living alone. It is a win-win idea, since the youth can get a discount for chatting with the aged or helping with their housework, while seniors can earn additional money from the App revenues in their leisure time. It thus warms “both the heart and stomach.” Another program focuses on a facet of China’s intangible cultural heritage – natural dyes. Volunteers raise money for charity through selling organically dyed products. They then train young adults in minority regions to act as guides for visitors by explaining to them the processes of making traditional handicrafts, thus promoting tourism.

“Our advice regarding youth leadership is simple – just do it! A group of young people utilize their creative thinking and take action to do good for others. The youth leadership program focuses on young people’s influence on others and at the same time helps them to realize their innate value,” Xi Feixun said.