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Ten Years of Service: FLEX Alumni Participation in Global Youth Service Day
The 2014 Global Youth Service Day (GYSD) celebrations marked the tenth anniversary of FLEX alumni organizing service projects in their communities alongside youth worldwide during the annual GYSD weekend of service. On April 11-13, over 180 alumni mobilized nearly a thousand volunteers to organize projects aimed to develop and improve their communities in Eurasia. Alumni organized 52 events that met a community need, including environmental protection and awareness events; health, education, and public safety projects; and opportunities to teach youth the value of community involvement and service learning.
Since first being introduced to GYSD in 2004, FLEX alumni have taken an active part in GYSD events every year since. They have organized hundreds of GYSD projects, involving as many as 100,000 community members in service activities. This year, American Councils for International Education through funding from the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs awarded 16 FLEX alumni GYSD Matching Grants totaling $4,931 in support. Alumni teams secured an additional $10,546 of cost share contributions from local organizations, businesses, and volunteers. Summaries of the FLEX alumni GYSD Matching Grants projects can be found on the American Councils’ GYSD blog.
Many alumni organized projects, which did not require outside funding, furthering the impact of the weekend of service. Alumni organized activities in over 30 cities across Eurasia and it is estimated that 12,000 youth and adults took part in GYSD events in connection with the FLEX Alumni program’s cooperation during the weekend of service.
Pictures from the events can be found on the Eurasia FLEX Alumni program Facebook page.
