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430 results found

  • I want to become an inspiring Catalyst

    Tatianah shares about her mission in Delhi, and reflects on how daring is about believing in your dreams and challenge adversity! Tatianah LARIOL, Alliance Communication Team, Delhi, India 8,505 km away from France and 5,602 km away from India, I was born on the Red Island. My mother had me when she was 16 years old. Coming from a very modest family and facing many obstacles to (over)live every day, she had to fight to give me a future. After a few years, we were lucky enough to be able to settle in France. For several months we were homeless, our beginnings were paved with obstacles, but with willpower and determination we built a place for ourselves outside the precariousness. So I will always remember those who helped us to build ourselves. It's quite rare that I share my youth. There is still so much to tell but I'm not ready to share it yet, it's quite hard to put it in writing. After all, in adversity we mature very quickly and we develop a strength that drives us towards the life we aspire to. As a child I had to learn to answer all my questions very quickly so with the intention of ensuring a better future, I shaped my Life Project Plan through 3 axes: Investing 100% in my education. Certifications are not a reflection of a person's worth but in France it is a great security and a passport to employment for people with similar backgrounds to mine, Enrich myself as much as possible with experience. Professional experiences to acquire technical and transversal skills, associative experiences to get involved in causes that are dear to me, and cultural experiences to develop my sense of creativity and self-improvement, GIVE BACK. Giving back the chance I had, humbly sharing my advice and being a Catalyst of change. In 2021, I joined LP4Y to give back. I wanted to be part of the movement and help people of my generation to follow their dreams! Sangam Vihar's centre is located south of the ( big ) city of Delhi. When I started my mission, I had a strange feeling because India reminded me so much of Madagascar. I felt like I was stepping back in time: I felt like I was returning home as a foreigner and sharing the experiences of the young people accompanied by LP4Y. On a daily basis, our centre can welcome about thirty young adults. They are accompanied by their coaches Pauline and Xavier towards a decent and sustainable professional and social integration. In addition to the coaches, the young adults can build projects with the other Catalysts present in their centre. Therefore, we have the opportunity to collaborate throughout our mission with these Entrepreneurs through workshops organised around different themes related to employability and personal development. As a Catalyst I am part of the Communication and Studio team. With my two colleagues Laetitia and Christelle, I am in charge of the website, social media and the creation of communication materials. Our role is to convey a dynamic and professional image of LP4Y to the general public, financial partners, the press and members of the LP4Y Alliance. In different projects designed with the young adults, we were able to put together a communication team. For example, on the occasion of the World Day for Decent Work we organised a job fair with professionals at the centre and a group was in charge of the promotion of the event, as well as the signage. The transfer of knowledge was not an easy task, on the one hand, because teaching is not for everyone and, on the other hand, because most of the young adults in training were new to the subject. In the end, we always reached a compromise and the results were beautiful! (ps: follow @train4changedelhi on Instagram) The young adults of Sangam Vihar slum are very inspiring! They dare to dream outside the contours of the society they grew up in. They do not restrict their dreams to the preconceptions that are dictated to them. They are full of hope and will. They know where they want to go: that is the essence of coaching! Finally, I hope that this LP4Y Story can be useful to those who feel alone in their adversity: you are not. There are many of us. Together by sharing, encouraging and inspiring each other we will build a better future. Are we what our past has made us? Yes. However, we can choose to feel sorry for ourselves or make it a strength. Anything is possible if you give yourself the means to dream and act to make your dreams come true. __ Thank you very much Albane for everything ;) Thank you Asha, Komal & Tejaswini for the pictures! Thank you to my dear Sangam Vihar & PaharGanj co-Catalysts (Delhi team / colleagues / flatmates / friends / new family).

  • Be part of the Action

    Let Soni Magar explain to you how to involve yourself and your team into Solidarities Actions on your Community! With the partner Goyal Group, Youth from the LPC Sinamangal could deliver food to more than 100 families! Soni Magar, 22 yo, Management step Life Project Center Sinamangal, Kathmandu, Nepal My name is Soni Magar. I live in Shantinagar in Kathmandu (Nepal). I arrived in LP4Y in december 2019. After LP4Y I want to join a barista class. There are 10 members in my family : 5 sisters, 2 brothers, my mother, my father and me. Now my family situation is quite complicated. We have trouble regarding food and money, especially to pay the rent of the house. This is my testimony about distributing food to the community. We, LP4Y Team, participated in a food distribution to the people as volunteers and I was part of it. First, we made a list of those who weren’t getting food because we got to know that many people were concerned. Then, I went to the ward (Kathmandu is divided into 32 wards which are administrative sections), and asked for information from the leader of the ward. Then he replied that they had already distributed food so after that I didn’t go back there. While we were making a list again, we met the Urjasil Youth Club (a social club in the community). They asked us “Why are you making a list?” We explained everything. Then, they asked us to get involved in this work. One of our coaches attended a small meeting for everyone and agreed with that decision. Then, together we started to make another list and focus on disabled, pregnant women and widows. Finally we get a list of 110 families. The main leader who invested the money to buy food is Mr. Chirag. On Tuesday, 19th of May 2020 we started to distribute food following this list. While distributing, one little problem happened because the community didn’t know we made a second survey focusing on the disable people. So, during the distribution they keep asking this question : of misunderstanding and people from the community told us bad things about LP4Y and about the Urjasil Youth Club. People didn’t understand the survey and during the distribution time they asked the question “Why don't all people receive food?”. We explained the situation. Some people understood and helped us to explain to others who didn’t. A local political man helped us a lot. At the end 103 families got food. The food distribution was difficult but I liked to conduct this survey and to learn about the situation of the members of the community. l knew how much people were facing those problems.. And distributing the food with coaches and friends made me learn new things about the situation of different people in the community and new experiences like how to do a survey. Our team also became more united, it was a really great time of teamwork ! The difficulty was when we went to distribute food and that community people misunderstood. I like the most participating in team work. I discovered about myself that I am able to solve problems. I felt good and I am proud of my team. Chirag Goyal Executive director of Goyal Group “I was told about LP4Y and their volunteers by a friend of mine so I contacted them to coordinate regarding relief work they have been doing around town. The experience of working with them was amazing, they are a bunch of young and energetic individuals who love to interact with the locals and try to figure out their situation and help them accordingly. They were inquisitive in knowing and were trying to understand the locals to help them out. The experience of working with them was really nice with the research and distribution of food. The Youth identified the real needy ones in the slum areas. Special mention to Jeanne Allard and Valentine Lévy, the volunteers who have been coordinating and documenting all details about the relief work and food distribution done to make sure that it can be coordinated and information can be shared with ward offices around town to avoid duplication and confusion in the future and also helping us with the distribution in different areas. Also, I would like to give a special mention on how they are coaching the youth of Nepal to become the future leaders by letting them take the initiative of local management and data analysis of locals. One of the youth named Soni Magar did an amazing job with filtering the actual families in need from a huge list so that food could be given to the people who require it the most. I am sure these girls will become leaders in their respective areas in the future and work for the development of the society individually. Youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow. Wishing the team all the luck in their future endeavors.” About the Goyal Group : http://www.goyalgroupnepal.com/about.php#whoWeAre The Goyal Group is a Nepali company operating in 4 sectors - banking & finance, construction, real estate and heavy equipment.

  • My Dear Community

    Chloé Hunault, 32 yo, Coach since February 2020 Rangoon, Myanmar “As soon as I arrived here, I felt that Myanmar is a special country. And I notice a little more every day that its population is just as extraordinary. In this country where one person out of four live below the poverty line, many NGOs are present. So when I joined the Mobilization Task Force, I imagined that I would be able to help and promote the influence of LP4Y. But I didn't expect the incredible solidarity of the Burmese people! The slums didn't wait for the arrival of the NGOs to organize themselves to help each other. When the virus arrived, it was therefore natural that they supported each other and I realized that my youths didn't need to join a task force to mobilize.They are already very involved in their community life thanks to an organization called Hlaing Thar Yar Youth Network which sensibilizes them and organizes their volunteering. The Youth, by thinking of helping them, are once again proving to me that together we can... Nwe Ni Win, one of these citizens, wrote a letter to her community, as we could write to our grandmother to give her some news in a complicated period” New Ni Win, 19 years old, Management step My Dear Community, You're going through a crisis you weren't ready to face. I'm scared for you. You're my family, you introduced me to friends, you've given me a good time with my neighbors who know how to be present in bad times. You opened the doors of your university to me, which is now closed. I feel sad for you. You wear a mask, you keep a social distance, I remain strong for you. NGOs are mobilizing for you, I wanted to help you as you help me every day since I was little. I take your temperature, I go to the markets to explain good practices, I make sure you have enough to eat. I had to adapt too, as you I didn't know about this virus, I learned to speak in public, to be more confident, and to become a good and responsible citizen. You told me to stay home and I did. You tell me to keep my hopes up and I believe it. I am exhausted, helping you requires a lot of energy, but I need to keep in touch with you. More than ever, alone I can't, but together we can.

  • Volunteering in Home2Home

    Aarti Nimalkar, 23 yo, Batch 2 Green Village Raipur, India Aarti, a Star of the GV Raipur, shares with us her experience as a volunteer for the Home2Home project, an initiative led by LP4Y GV Raipur in partnership with Integrated Volunteer Network in India (IVN) to implement a volunteering program. 10 Stars are part of it and aim to raise awareness about Covid-19, to be a link to families in their communities and if necessary to facilitate the communication & coordination for emergency support. I am Aarti Nimalkar from Dongargarh. I live in Bhaisra. I have joined the Home2Home project to help the people and neighbours and families in need because I like social work. Home2Home project was doing volunteer work for Covid-19 : to share knowledge about how to be safe and protect others, and more important to help everyone who needs ration, & share knowledge by documents and from explanations from volunteers etc. What I like in the project is helping each needed person however we can. I learned how to help everyone who wants or needs our help in future situations.

  • Welcome to Hossenpur!

    Margaux Mortureux, 28, Coach, Life Project Center Hossenpur, Kolkata, India Even if the period is difficult for everybody, the lockdown allowed to get closer to our neighbors. We discovered great people, helping neighbors and who knows, new friends ? We would like to introduce you to the neighborhood of Hossenpur and the amazing people we met ! Our center is in a quiet area where flowers, yellow taxis and colorful houses mix. We hear birds, vegetables street salers and the buffalos walking. Around us, there are many shop keepers, workers, salers with who we have forged links. Come with us for Hossenpur visit ! When you leave the center, you come across Prabir, our favorite shop keeper ! Always smiling, he took care of us during the lockdown. He helped us to repair a window, to find gas and our turn, we helped him to save his ice creams after a power outage. If we need a translater, we know we can count on him. For Elodie, it’s a pleasure to tell him her few words learning in Bengali and teach him how to say « bonjour, ça va ? » ! Let’s continue in the main road of Hossenpur to meet Ajit ! He sells vegetables everyday and accepted to deliver us some of them one time per week. We just need to send him our list and the next day we receive a fresh delivery of good vegetables ! Lucky we are ! Annelise, who learns Hindi, speaks with him and practices the food vocabulary (now, she knows all the Hindi names of vegetables) ! If we need something, we also know that he can help us. During a crisis period, it is very important to feel good in an area and to have support from neighbors. In front of Ajit, if you want to take a break, you can drink a delicious chaï. Shy, smiling, laughing… she is our ray of sunshine ! For Margaux, it is like a ritual. She does shopping, then she orders « ek chaï ! » and can sit during one hour to watch life come alive on the street. At the beginning, she was too shy to take a picture but when she saw all her friends and all the smiles, she laughed so much and finally accept to do it. Few meters after, you can buy fruits with Pabitra. He looks teasing and he readily responds to our « Namaskar ! » that we scream in the middle of the street. Bananas, papayas, coconut, mango… he wants to sell us everything and is amused to negociate with Rachel thanks to whom he discovered the Lebanese money. Now, when we see him, he proudly shows us the note she gave him ! A little further, our hero : Gitendra ! Why a hero ? Because he searches around the city to find us toilet paper during the lockdown, which is rare in India ! For French volunteers like us, I think it was the thing we were most afraid of missing ! Gitendra is also the only one to sell chocolate in the street, the second thing we need the most in recent months. Just after Gitendra’s shop, always in the main road, there is Nikhil. When we want to eat good papayas and juicy mangoes, we can count on our second favorite fruit seller. He treats the fruits with remarkable sweetness, he takes the time to choose them well and to place them calmly in our bags. His stall is always tidy, we often want to buy everything from him ! Finally, when it’s time to go back at home, few minutes after arriving, we hear the doorbell ring : it’s Sanjay ! « Hello Sanjay, how are you ? we missed you ! » - « Yes, yes… How many empty bottles ? ». Sanjay is our water seller and deliver. During the lockdown, he came 2 or 3 times per week, by bicycle, with many 20 liters water jars. He doesn’t speak a lot but he become more and more relaxed (thanks to Elodie’s jokes !). This is funny because if we didn’t live the lockdown, maybe we would never be so close to them. Now, we really feel integrated into the neighborhood and we can really say that we are at home !

  • My family environment

    The Youth of the GV Kathmandu are answering to the question: How deep are you involved with your family? Menuka Baral, 20yo - Sita Kalikote 25yo - Bina BK 20yo Sabitri Basnet 20yo - Ganita Pariyar 20yo Management Step, Batch 1, Green Village Kathmandu, Nepal Menuka Baral The environment between me and my family is good. We work together. We share news about Covid-19 and anything else. Due to lockdown, I got a chance to spend more time with my family so all of us are happy. When I was in Pokhara we used to get a chance to meet each other once a year but we called and messaged and shared how our days are going on. So my family supports me in taking any decision and gives feedback to my mistakes. My family accepts my bad habits and failure as well as they motivate me to move on. Ganita Pariyar The environment of my family is very good, I live far from my family but I talk to my family every day on the phone. My mom always shares her thoughts with me and I do also. They always motivate me, they care for me a lot and they give me very beautiful moments in life when I meet them once a year...! Sita Kalikote The environment between me and my family is good. They have created the environment in such a way that I can share my feelings, thoughts, ideas, etc. My parents always motivate me when I get a failure or make mistakes. They care for me too. They have given me a very beautiful life. Bina BK The environment between me and my family is very good : we share each other's thoughts and anything at night. We watch the news on tv together. I can't stay without sharing my feelings and my thoughts to my mother. She always motivates us and cares for us. If anyone in our family has an idea for anything we share and make decisions. Sabitri Basnet Speaking on my behalf, the environment between me and my family is very admirable. We have four members in my family, my brother, my sister, my mother and me. Usually we communicate, share information about news, Covid-19, funny jokes etc and we listen to each other. My mother always gives us advice about career and life. She shares her struggle stories which helps us to be more responsible and to bring socialism into society.

  • Family reunion

    Abrar Hassan, 25 yo, Star, Life Project Center PaharGanj, New Delhi Hello, my name is Abrar Hassan. I grew up in a village called Ahmedabad which is at the west of India in the state of Gujarat, with all my family. When I turned 7, my grandmother took me with her to Mumbai to live with some relatives and we stayed there for 2 years. After this period we came back to the village and I had to live with my uncle and aunty. I stayed there 2 years being tortured by my uncle. In 2007 I decided to leave and go to Rajasthan, I traveled there for some time but I needed to find a job so I came back to my family in the village. When I returned there I felt that there was a lot of tension… At this time my way to escape was to start drinking alcohol and smoking drugs in secret. I got arrested in 2010 and the police sent me back to Gujarat near my uncle, I went there for a short time just before leaving for Bihar and finally got into a train for Delhi. I lived in New Delhi Railway Station for quite some time. To earn some money during the day I was a waste worker. During this period I started again to use drugs and to drink alcohol. After 5 years, when I was 20 years old, I heard about LP4Y. At first I was nervous because I never went to school and I didn’t have any educational background. I followed the LP4Y program for 2 or 3 months but after I had a big accident that put me into a coma and paralized the right half side of my body. I stayed in the hospital for one and a half years. After my recovery I decided to join LP4Y again and finish my PTE, because I knew that it was a good opportunity for me. In LP4Y I learned English, a little bit of computer and business class and, the most important thing, I learned how to control my emotions and many other things. At the end of the program I found a job as a salesman. It had been more than 13 years that I didn’t meet with my family because I couldn’t find any good reasons to go back. But due to the Covid-19, I thought that family is one of the most important things so I took the decision to go back and see them. My sister got married and has 2 beautiful children, so I met for the first time my 2 nephews and my niece. I met again also with my brother and my parents, and we are now all very happy to be back together.

  • Visit my community

    Overview of the life of the Youth, the Community and the Catalysts of Sangam Vihar, Delhi. How do they adapt to the special life conditions of the lockdown. Tarik Toudert, 24, Coach, Laetitia Hra, 26, PL Partnership, Salomé Jacqui, 25, Coach, Clémence Laulan, 30, PL MEI, Sangam Vihar, Delhi, India Sonu, Shopkeeper, Delhi, India Rajesh, Chemist (Pharmacy owner), Delhi, India, Soni Khan, 20, Autonomy step, Khazana 2, Sangam Vihar, Delhi, India Boby Khan, 20, Responsibility step, Khazana 1, Sangam Vihar, Delhi, India

  • Believe that you can and you're halfway there

    Gautam Mishra, 18, Star, Life Project Center Paharganj, Delhi, India My name is Gautam and I joined the LP4Y Center of PaharGanj in December 2016. Before joining this center, I worked in a small shop for my studies that time I was in 10th class, A friend told me about this center and then joined this center and I was very happy to come here and I was very happy that now I can sustain my family and fulfill my dream too and then I quit my job and started coming to the center. At that time, I did not know English at all. For a few weeks the other Youth made fun of me, but I started to understand, “slowly slowly”! And then I started feeling very good. I was making small sentences in my mind every day. And I have learned so much this way. I used to come by walk everyday, it is about 4: 5 kilometers from my house. And now I am working in a private limited company. The name is Decathlon. I have failed in joining one time and then I tried for the second time, during this time a few days ago, my leg was hurt by a motor bike due to which I was unable to walk even on an equal basis . I went to the interview and I had to run during the interview and I also had to play a sports game and during all of these exams I got hurt... I got so full of blood that my blood was filled but I did not feel the pain that day, and even today I would start again because it was worth it. During the interview I was not hesitant because before the interview I did a lot of practice in the center with my coach and some time I was also going to the other center in Delhi (in SangamVihar). Since I started working in Decathlon, I often think about what my coaches taught me, because lots of things in Decathlon are related to LP4Y like always come on time, and work together, respect each other, help each other, trust each other .... etc and all of this I learned in LP4Y center. When I entered the management step at that time I was feeling : “Now I improve a lot” And now I am working in Decathlon since 1.4 year. At the beginning I was an intern only for 4 hours per day and step by step I grow in the Decathlon store like internship step for 4 hours, part timer, permanent part timer, and in a month I was full timer sports leader, and now I am taking care of a project for the whole Delhi NCR stores and I am also a sports leader for cardio bodybuilding, Pilates yoga and gymnastics. Currently, with the coronavirus, I am at home and I am working from home for the store and in this situation I am getting my full salary. My neighbors are aware of this coronavirus and they are also helping the poor people. This is a very good thing and no one is going outside without any reason. I am also a member and the treasurer of the Paharganj Star Club. During the dinner or any other moments I am taking care of the money and in the Star Club I am helping the new Youth as much as I can do from my side.

  • The Healthy Corner recipe of the delicious revel bar

    Eurie Maravilla, 19 years old, former Youth of Healthy Corner, Life Project Center Taguig, Manila, Philippines

  • From the street to a new life

    Rama Rao, 25 yo, Entrepreneur, Life Project Center Chelta, Kolkata, India My name is Rama Rao, I'm 25 years old. Now, I live in Narendrapur with 2 boys from Les Galopins de Calcutta’s home. I would like to tell you about my past story and my present. Before arriving to this NGO home, I was in Howrah Station. I didn't have place to stay or live, no clothes to wear and nothing to eat. I remember I always used to check the train to find some food and I also collected the newspapers and water bottles from the train or from the road to sell it and get some money. In that time, I was so dirty and always in barefoot. Most of the days, I didn't eat and I slept in Howrah station platform, lying on rags. It was really hard to sleep and police used to come to beat me with a big stick. « I remember when I was looking at the people throwing some food to the dustbin » When I didn't have money to eat, I had to beg from the people some food or money to eat and buy clothes. I felt very hungry, I remember when I was looking at the people throwing some food to the dustbin, I picked up it and started to eat to make my stomach full. The situation was constantly repeated and I realize that I had a lot of problems in my life. After few days, I suddenly saw a woman called Mrs. Fabienne in Howrah Station with some boys. She was speaking with them and giving some food. After she left, I asked one boy who was she and he told me that she is from a NGO, twice in a week, she comes to the platform to distribute food to orphans and spend time with them. Every Tuesday and Friday, around 9am and 10am, she came and I was very happy to think that maybe she will help me. « I saw her in front of me, I thought why is she white and I'm black ? » After one week, Mrs. Fabienne came to Howrah Station to meet the boys. I was sitting alone, she called me and finally joined me and gave me some food. When I saw her in front of me, I thought « why is she white and I'm black ? what is the difference between us ? ». She asked my name in Bengali language and she asked me if I had a family. After giving me new clothes, soap to wash myself and eating a good meal in a restaurant, Mrs. Fabienne offered me to come with her at home. « I was thinking that Kolkata is another country like America. » I really didn't know that Kolkata is in India, I was thinking that Kolkata is another country like America. When I accepted to go with her at home, I was thinking that we will go to America. We left Howrah Station by bus and I realized that there was a lot of people with my skin color but nobody like Mrs. Fabienne. Even if I didn't know I was in a bus, I was sure that we were going to America. I finally reached the Boys Home with her in 2001 on 16th June and that was my Born Day for a new life. I joined Bengali medium school where I read up-to class (V) and I started to learn English in another school. At home, I was very naughty and angry but I didn’t know why. After working on my feelings and speaking with Mrs. Fabienne, I decided to take my life in hand, I learnt rules and commitments to have good behaviour. « One day, Mrs. Fabienne told me about LP4Y and explained that it's a professional training where you can learn many things to find a decent job. » Rama and Fabienne Fichet, fondador of the Association "Les Galopins" in Kolkata. After finishing my class from Boarding School, I started to work in some places to pay rent for my new house but it was very difficult to find a good stable job. In 2015, I got a job in a fast food but my salary was Rs 5500. One day, Mrs. Fabienne told me about LP4Y and explained that it's a professional training where you can learn many things to find a decent job. I quitted my job and joined LP4Y on 5th January in 2016. I learnt many things like how to be professional in the world, how to talk with people and to give respect. I acquired English, computer and business skills. I did this training during one year. Louise Phamtran Project Leader Partnership, Rama and Valentine Lesaffre, coordinator India in 2016 « Now, my life is better than before and my salary is Rs. 18000 per month. » Now, I'm working as a Supervisor in a DRICO Logistics Pvt. My tasks are to check the materials quality, quantity, take the photos of materials, print the barcodes, write the reports in Excel etc. Now, my life is better than before and my salary is Rs. 18000 per month. I'm very lucky to have Les Galopins de Calcutta and LP4Y in my life. I am thankful for everything that happens to me now, in my new life.

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Supported by Life Project 4 Youth

Life Project 4 Youth Alliance is a federation of 16 organizations in 13 countries whose mission is the development of innovative solutions for the professional and social inclusion of Young people (17-24 yo) from extreme poverty and victims of exclusion. 

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