Dingo / Burma Link AOC, May 13, 2014

“Be the CHANGE you wish to see in the world.” – Gandhi

During the five-day Agent of Change (AOC) training, there were two questions I asked myself – “Why can’t the people of Burma’s voices be heard?” and “How can we find solution for these matters?”

Of course, encouragement is required for every young generation to be able to help other people and connect their unheard voices and stories with a larger audience. To do so, Burma Link is already leading the AOC network to help people of Burma reach out and have their voices heard throughout the world and in Burma.

This third AOC training has helped me develop the particular skills to be empowered, the values of empowered people, and to support the sharing of stories and the people’s voices, including the feelings of people of Burma inside the country and on the Thailand-Burma border.

The first journey we went through with regard to empowerment is being honest to one another. It is important to follow our courage in order to be honest and to face other aspects and values of empowerment, too.

I cannot disagree with that.

Courage is important in many ways such as to display who we are. When somebody is courageous, it allows them to know values of empowerment like honesty. When we become honest to ourselves, we know how to honour our commitments. In this way, the most relevant follower behind honesty is the importance of commitments.

This is one of the changes that AOC leadership training ignited in me and led me on the right track; being honest to myself. When we learn that, we can take steps to be an AOC leader within our own communities.

During the training, the weather was hot, not surprising for these dog days of summer. But it’s worth a lot to be able to first CHANGE myself – I’ve been empowered! Burma Link, I recognize, is not only the true connection to uphold many unheard voices of people of Burma, but also calls for a new generation of active and ethical leaders through AOC leadership training.

So, be the CHANGE to yourself first, then you can “empower communities and break the silence” from the lessons in 5 days!

Burmese translation

Burma Link note: Last week, Burma Link successfully completed the 3rd AOC (Agents of Change) Leadership Program in Mae La refugee camp with eight promising and motivated young leaders from Mae La. The 5-day training aimed at developing essential life and leadership skills like confidence, honesty and courage, responsible citizenship, and the ability to effectively deal with others. The trainees also learned how to help their community members value their voice and have their voices heard. Above is what one of the training participants, now an AOC, wrote about his experience.

Pictures from the training (Photos by Atun / Burma Link AOC and training assistant) – See more on Facebook

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