The International Symposium of Young Lasallians (ISYL) had its first phase from the 18th to the 22nd of October 2021. The first phase of ISYL was done throughout the third quarter of the year (July-October), with different online (via ZOOM Conference) and offline activities. Sixty (60) delegates coming from PARC, RELAF, RELAN, RELEM, RELAL, and IALU attended the symposium. For LEAD, the participants were Mr. Louis Kyaw KoKo, Youth Coordinator of Myanmar and I, Neil Juntado, Youth Coordinator of the Philippines.
The agenda of the first phase is putting together proposals for 4 priority areas - Culture of Vocation, Service with the Poor , Communications and Networking, and Sustainable Organization Growth. We, the delegates, conducted focus group discussions within our respective districts inviting active Young Lasallians to participate in the discussion. The International Council then presented a summarized version of the data collected from different focus group discussions as a guide to the next steps of the proposal process. The summary helped us brainstorm possible solutions in addressing the different challenges in each priority area.
The delegates were grouped together according to the priority area assigned to them so in one group we have different delegates coming from different regions. It was a great opportunity for us delegates to meet other Lasallians from different regions and hear their different stories. In my group we were a mix of students, lay partners, and volunteers doing different work with young Lasallians.
Hearing different realities from Lasallians helped me to see the diversity in our Lasallian community; Despite the diversity, we are still able to come together and commune and that is because of our eagerness to help in the mission our Founder started. To be able to join this program helped me to deepen my knowledge and understanding of the work Young Lasallians and Brothers are doing to share more the mission to all Lasallians and also to other communities. I hope that the proposals we passed during the first phase can be considered and applied later in our respective communities.
The first phase ended with a closing reflection activity where we were invited to find a doorway. The organizers then asked us to step towards the doorway and into the other side. It was a symbol for us to move forward to the next phase of our Lasallian Journey bringing with us the lessons and experiences we had over the past months . It was a solemn and new experience and I am looking forward to the 2nd phase of the International Symposium of Young Lasallians. (Text: Mr. Neil Renan Juntado; Photo: ICYL via Mr. Louis Kyaw KoKo)
