KABATAAN NYT TRES

“Himig ko, Tinig Kabataan ‘To!”



THIRD TIME’S A CHARM!



As they say good things come in threes, like trilogies of pop-corn movies, Star Wars Prequels, Matrix, The X-Men and Lord of the Rings or the fantastic trios such as Three Stooges, Bee Gees, APO Hiking Society and Tito, Vic and Joey.



But this time, three’s definitely a crowd… and what a crowd it was!



It’s an understatement to say that we had a blast during Kabataan Night 2006, aptly called KN3: “Himig ko, Tinig Kabataan ‘To!” held December 9 at the Conspiracy, Visayas Avenue Quezon City.



At least 200 gentexters flocked at the bar that usually had capacity of 60 people (thank goodness, no stampede) to witness a celebration of the voice, vision and motion of the Filipino youth.





Voices



Vocalists from the PUP COC (College of Communication) Ensemble, lead by John Vincent (PUP Idol) and Cathy opened the event with their soulful rendition of “The Prayer” and our national anthem.



The rest of the pack, around 20 of them, showcased their chorale power by giving a classical twist to contemporary pop songs like “Kaleidoscope World” and “Taralets”.



Of course, can there ever be songs without poems? And to give a dose of great Filipino literature, we got three fellows of LIRA (Linangan sa Imahen, Retorika at Anyo) – a group formed by National Artist for Literature Virgilio Almario that aims to produce present and future great Filipino poets. They are truly young advocates immortalizing our very own cultural treasures.



Mix poetry and music… sprinkle with inspiring message and definitely cool getups… what do you get? EARTHFISHFISH! Ironically, the soothing sound of this band turned the heat up and got the crowd on the edge of their seats. This band is really something else. And if you get to meet their members, you’ll know how awesome they really are.




As awesome, is the sound of another band called LADY BEDSPACERS. Contrary to their moniker, members of the band are all gentlemen from UP Diliman. They performed their original compositions; just like another amazing band we got called EXTERNAL USE. One of this band’s songs, entitled “Stay Forever” is even dedicated to our executive director; Ion. Marco’s vocals really gave that 80s rock groove to the concert.





VISION AND MOTION



The artsy venue of Conspiracy was surrounded by some of the masterpieces of the young artist of UP ARTISTS CIRCLE SOCIETY. With this bunch of modern artists, we are just so sure that the future of Philippine work of art is in good hands. Thank you to Greenpeace volunteer and Fraternity Alumni, Tomas Leonor for bringing his brothers and their creations. Truly, pictures paint a thousand words.





To power up the night a notch more, the energetic PUP COC Movers and Motion gave a show-stopping dance number. Despite some technical bloopers and minimal space, they were able to pull it off and gave the audience an amazing treat. Keep on dancing guys!





EMOTIONS



Like the visual arts exhibit, it is also the first time for Kabataan Night to feature a stirring theatrical presentation. And we got one of the best groups to deliver just that. TEATRO KOMUNIKADO from the College of Communication of PUP gave the crowd a thought-provoking and emotive play entitled “Maskara”. Ten talented thespians personified several awakening social issues encompassing homosexuality, abuse, patriotism, poverty and triumph. The experience was certainly worthy of acting awards!



ACTIONS



Of course, as we celebrated the volunteer month of December, we placed the spotlight on representatives of our guests from cause-oriented and youth lead/serving groups. We got Ms. Abigail Jabines, climate campaigner for Greenpeace and Andy from Ang Bagong Pinoy Movement. Other organizations like Youth on Fire and Red Cross Youth also came to support our cause.



MORE VOICES



Acoustic music shouldn’t fade even as the band – bandwagon rules the local music scene. Especially, when we got one of the favorite acts of the night… JAYCIE AND HONEY. The duo of these talented composers, with DJ Rodriguez (“their little drummer boy”) really proved that simplicity could be world-class. Check out more of them at jaycieandhoney.multiply.com



Third year high school student from Marikina, AIKO, the youngest among the performers showed great potential singing the hit song from Pinoy Dream Academy, “Hawak Kamay”. She was accompanied by GLEN, a talented guitarist and a band leader himself. Glen, our newest VOTY-recruit and also a radio broadcaster, performed on solo, Blessed Union of Soul’s “I Believe”.



Four bands, each of them unique and exciting, rocked the graveyard hours. First is DEVIANT from Mapua. Despite their “pasaway-meaning” name, the 7-member group which is lead by the only girl, Angel, is actually a Gospel – band… giving God all the glory with their music!



Up next is an all-girl band aptly called NYMPHZ, also from Youth For Christ of Mapua. More than just pretty faces, these girls are definitely serious with their music.



But if you want serious rockin’, SOLID CAMP CREW is just unstoppable. Also lead by the only girl, Angel Campo, this family of rockers is so passionate with performing. The energy of the band and that amazing vocals would really bring the house down. With the all out support of their father as a manager, this band would really stick solidly together.



Another act, all members are gentlemen from far-away Cavite City, MALDITA’S GROUND, negated their name. The group is certainly a pro. Lead by Ryan Marquez, this band would definitely give recent pop acts a run for their money before they know it.



SYNTAX, lead again by a female vocalist tore the house down. Daisy’s cover of “I’m Going Under” is arguably better than Amy Lee’s. She definitely got one tough flower-power. Superb!



The night (or dawn) capped with the fun-and-easy song numbers of our very own VOTY idols… Ronald, Chay, Resty, Ryan, and Resh. Great hosting was provided by the masters of ceremony, our founder Choy (we’ll never get tired of your voice impersonations); Rommel, RS, Ronald, Purple, Chay and MC.




A million thanks to Conspiracy Garden and Café, DZME 1530 kHz (www.dzme1530.com), VOTY volunteers Eunice, Christine, and Florence and the rest of the barkada. This is also for you Ionman! Soar High!



KN3 is the most successful, diverse and jampacked Kabataan Night yet.



Oops. we did it again for the third time…. We can’t wait to give you what’s next for the fourth!



See you all again in Kabataan Nyt Kwatro!

sretna nova godina!

what i just said is a fervent wish for a happy new year!

30 more minutes if my computation is right, that in the philippines, my home country, a new year will soon arrive and the old one will become just history. i will celebrate my new year 8 hours late, as such that i am now in a foreign land, thousands of miles away.

what was 2006 for me? and what awaits me this 2007?

i will have to be honest that up to this minute i still feel some goosebumps and disbelief that i am actually here, being present amidst 36,540 young people of Europe and a mixture of other continents (though i say 90% is European).

where the heck am i? is one question you might ponder and what am i doing here so far away from my home? especially when it is new year's eve? am i not supposed to be celebrating it with friends and families?

i am in ćhrnomerećh, a town in the city of zagreb, the capital of croatia. a country broken by war, a country on the road to reconciliation. in this once broken city shone a light so bright it could set fire an entire world. what is that light? what am i saying?

friends, i assure you that i am not under the influence of any drugs, whatsoever, but i am definite that these past few weeks and events, had left me, so mesmerized, so overwhelmed, and so amazed, that i had these feeling of walking in the clouds, in euphoric joy and spiritual ecstasy... but why? what are these events that i am speaking of?

i will try my best to give justice in explaining in brief, simple and understandable terms these phenomenon of events.

a pilgrimage of trust and peace, came to stop by at zagreb, and the people of croatia, made their homes and their arms open wide, to be a home, to this pilgrims. thousands of young people, 15 - 30 years old, from 40 countries, the entire Europe, is well represented, and a minority of Asian, Latin Americans, and other neighboring continents came to join this pilgrims. four days of common prayer, shared by young people from the Orthodox, Protestant, Roman Catholic and Greek Catholics. four days of workshops and learning experiences, to find God, meet God, and speak with God. four days of creating links, friendships, hope and love.

we live in a broken world. not just in our country, the philippines, but all throughout the world, Asia, and even rich Europe! the church is truly a broken body of christ. and we are parts of this broken body and we ourselves are broken.

we fear the future. as 2007 comes, i know we have been asking ourselves, what will be in store for us in this year? or what again the next year? or the next 5 to 10 years? material insecurity is very evident in our country, as much as it is also evident in prosperous Europe. unemployment, poverty, violence, flagrant injustice, ecological imbalances, all of which undermines our confidence in life. immense inequalities foster a fear of the future.

and yet there are many signs of hope.

as such that voice of the youth network has been doing in the past five years... creating positive social change in the midst of obstacles and odds in the political, socio-cultural and economic scene of our country...

now i see another hope.

in the words of Brother Alois, the Prior of the Taize Community...
''so many young people in the world are ready to make the unity of the human family more visible, they are prepared not to remain passive, but to set out in confidence that a future of peace is possible.''

in the midst of distress and miseries, in our lives, in our families, other relations, and our nation, we always casts our blame on God. we find ourselves asking, where have you been God? why dont you just flick a finger and command all these to be gone? why do you allow division, suffering and incomprehension?

but the answer in all of these, requires a commitment on our part.

choose to hope. choose to love.

christ came for no particular religion. christ came for the entire humanity. we should be united in this humanity.

Kabataan Night 3: Join Ka Dito! Himig Ko, Tinig Kabataan To!
November 07 , 2006
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With the goal of promoting positive social change among youth and the pay it forward strategy of the organization, VOICE OF THE YOUTH NETWORK (VOTY) in cooperation with Creativoices Productions, will be celebrating the youth in all of us through a concert for the youth and by the youth. VOTY is once again organizing Kabataan Night Tres (KN3): Himig Ko, Tinig Kabataan To! - a mini-concert-talk show to be held on December 9, 2006 at the Conspiracy Garden and Resto in Visayas Ave. Quezon City.

Now on its 3rd year, Kabataan Night has become a celebration of the voice, vision and motion of the youth's culture. Past performers were volunteer youth organizations, art enthusiasts, poets - students and professionals (and celebrities) – all presented their talents and skills (for free) in the name of volunteerism. The main objective of the event is to provide an alternative venue for the often unheard and unrecognized gifts of the youth in the field of modern-cultural and contemporary arts. KN3 also aims to give young people a sense of pride as they pursue the talents and skills they enjoy.

Whether pro or budding artists, expect talents from traditional to contemporary song numbers, acoustic and wired band performances, dance, poetry recital, drama, comedy, martial arts, and other visual presentations.

The event is open for everyone for free! It is also in time for the celebration of the National Volunteer Month, December, and the National Youth Week - truly a season of sharing!

This will surely give more meaning to a typical night out entertainment of young people - a night to remember. So be there when it happens!

To learn more about the previous Kabataan Night events, you may visit:
KN2 - http://tinigkabataan.multiply.com/reviews/item/2
KN1 - http://tinigkabataan.multiply.com/reviews/item/1

Photo Archives:
KN2 - http://tinigkabataan.multiply.com/photos/album/8
KN1 - http://tinigkabataan.multiply.com/photos/album/40

** We are still open for those who would want to share their talents and be an inspiration to the youth, for inquiries, please email kn3@voty.org

World now has largest ever youth group in history--WB


INQ7.net
Last updated 04:30pm (Mla time) 09/21/2006

THE WORLD now has the largest ever youth group in history--young people between the ages 12 and 24 comprise 1.3 billion of the developing world’s population--and developing countries like the Philippines still has a window of opportunity to invest in the youth to lessen potential economic headaches in the future, the World Bank said on Thursday.

The latest World Bank report, the World Development Report 2007: Development and the Next Generation, says in the Philippines, young people ages 10-14 number nearly nine million and comprise 11.7 percent of the population while youth ages 14-20 number over eight million and comprise 10.5 percent of the population.

"A third of the growth in the countries called the East Asian tigers is attributed to this 'demographic gift'. Most developing countries still have a window of opportunity to get this right before an aging population closes it," says Emmanuel Jimenez, lead author of the report and Director of Human Development in the World Bank’s East Asia Pacific Department.

A World Bank statement urged developing countries to invest in the youth now to benefit from huge payoffs for the future because today's young people will become the next generation of workers.

In the Philippines, this window will remain open for almost another 40 years. And the skills these young people develop as household heads and parents will have profound impacts on their children, the Report said.

The World Bank noted that the constitutional, legal and institutional mandates to invest in the youth is well-established in the Philippines. The country has a constitution that enjoins the State to "ensure the physical, moral, spiritual, and social well-being of the youth," a Local Government Code that mandates youth representation in local bodies through the Sangguniang Kabataan, and institutions like the interagency Council for the Welfare of Children and the National Youth Commission focus on the youth. Several government agencies also carry out programs targeted at the youth.

But the World Bank report said it was necessary to improve coordination and integration of policies.

Three strategic policies seen to enhance investment in young people include expanding opportunities, improving capabilities, and offering second chances for young people who have fallen behind due to difficult circumstances or poor choices.

“These address five fundamental transitions facing young people and affecting their whole economic, social and family life, namely getting an education, finding work, staying healthy, forming families, and exercising citizenship,” it said.

Opportunities

With broadened opportunities for better education and healthcare, the report said young people can acquire skills to navigate adolescence and young adulthood safely, while improved vocational training will help them compete in the workforce.

“These measures should be accompanied by enhanced job opportunities. This is important, not only at home, but also overseas, since young Filipinos, like those in other countries, are more prone to migrate. Youth political participation and involvement in social organizations are also essential for fostering young people's civic life in their own communities and vital for good governance,” it said.

The Report argues that without opportunities for productive civic engagement, young people's frustrations may boil over into economic and social tensions, creating long-simmering disputes.

Capabilities

Providing information to young people and developing their decision-making skills, especially to stay healthy and appreciate continued learning, is important, it said.

“Fewer than half of girls aged 15-24 in the Philippines know of the multiple ways to prevent HIV/AIDs. Also, only half get full care during antenatal visits. Armed with the right information and incentives, these young people can make good decisions. This is why programs such as reproductive health programs need to build in outreach to young people and provide them with accurate, accessible information,” World Bank said.

Second chances

“Countries need targeted programs for young people who have fallen behind due to difficult circumstances or poor choices. These can be dropping out of school, drug addiction, criminal behavior, or prolonged unemployment. Second chances help young people rebuild their future, which has a long-term beneficial effect on society as a whole. Rehabilitation is costly, but the payoffs are highest for young people who still have a lifetime of potential productivity ahead of them,” it said.

The Report cited the potentials of policies and programs in the Philippines, including enriching childcare and pre-school programs; school-based career guidance, among others. The Report also cites that the Philippines has legally codified youth involvement in governance through the Youth in Nation-building Act, an important first step in encouraging youth to vote.

“Through technical assistance, program support and projects, we hope to contribute towards the enhancement of government programs and policies that will enable the country to seize this demographic window of opportunity," said Joachim von Amsberg, World Bank Philippines Country Director.

The Report said that public spending alone would not do the trick. Policies must stimulate young people, their parents, and their communities to invest in themselves.

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