May 18, we hosted a live stream interview with Roshanna Trim, Chairperson of the Caribbean Regional Youth Council (CRYC) and the National Youth Development Council of Barbados in @youthrussia Instagram account. During the session our guest talked about youth policy and youth NGOs in the Caribbean, challenges of their young people, women empowerment, coronavirus situation and much more.
Caribbean Regional Youth Council was established in 2013 by young people and for young people within the Third Caribbean Youth Leaders’ Summit. It is an umbrella organization that unites National Youth Councils in the Caribbean region. Right now, it comprises 10 NYCs. Moreover, it works closely with the universities and student organizations in the Caribbean. Among strategic areas of CRYC work are: youth participation, mainstreaming youth rights, youth representation, etc. Officially the headquarters of CRYC is in St. Lucia, but in reality, the board and the executives work from their home countries based on their national youth councils.
Roshanna admitted that COVID-19 pandemic had affected the work of CRYC by cancelling events and making any planning almost impossible. But like many other youth NGOs it gave them an impetus to be more active online. Among one of the most successful projects during COVID-19 times Roshanna brought up “Corona Hacks” initiative (http://coronahacks.com). It is a virtual hackathon aimed at finding innovative solutions to the crisis caused by the pandemic. The project is implemented in cooperation with the Commonwealth Youth Council and other partners.
Roshanna is convinced that the COVID-19 didn’t pose any new challenges, but exacerbated the existing ones. “As the situation escalated, countries started to shut down. We stopped school completely and she had to go to online learning. Most countries in the Caribbean don’t have the facilities for online learning. And all students don’t have devices here,” she said. Moreover, youth unemployment has become an even bigger problem, because a large number of people in the region are working in the tourist sector, which was completely paralyzed due to the coronavirus. Among other important issues Roshanna brought up food security, STDs and youth criminalization.
According to Roshanna, most of those problems stem from poverty. “If you grow up in a marginalized area and you can afford quality educated, you can access a job that doesn’t have to be here, you can move your family out of that space. People who go outside their communities to go to school are the ones that are more likely to stay inside, less inclined to be involved in gang violence. Because they have access to the whole other world. I think if we start to address challenges that poverty brings and we create spaces for young people to thrive, and to learn, and to grow, then young people will feel that they can do other things and they can be better than what they currently are or what their parents are. And that was a big deal for me when I was growing up,” she explained.
Roshanna is proud to call herself a feminist and dedicates a lot of time working to empower young women. In January 2020, at the age of 25 she was elected as a Chairperson of the Caribbean Regional Youth Council. At that time, she was already leading the National Youth Development Council of Barbados. When she realized that she was the first woman Chair of CRYC, she felt the heavy weight of responsibility on her shoulders and high expectations towards her. “It gives me the ability to amplify discussions about women issues and challenges, for example gender-based violence,” commented Roshanna. She is currently running a “Pink Parliament” initiative, which is aimed at girls at the age of 14-20, who are interested in engagement in civic and political life, advocacy and leadership. The project encompasses capacity-building events, leadership and public speaking workshops, meetings with high-level politicians, etc.
“If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair” – this is Roshanna’s favorite quote by Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman elected to the United States Congress. Roshanna believes it is extremely relevant to young people and youth NGOs: “If people are not going to make space for you, then show up anyway and make a space for yourself. But be consistent. “
Watch the full interview to learn more details: https://youtu.be/ZLA9_j9mBqg