3BL Partners in Youth Social Entrepreneurship Program in Bahrain

The first annual Leadership Bridge Program for aspiring Bahraini social entrepreneurs was organized by Young Arab Leaders Bahrain (YAL) in partnership with 3BL 'Triple Bottom Line' Associates Consultancy. The weekend-long program mobilized 52 Bahraini school students from across the community for social entrepreneurship.

The group, which received inspirational guidance from Ms. Rama Chakaki, the Dubai-based CEO of Baraka Ventures, was segregated into five teams of ten students each for the program. Each team, assisted by a cadre of volunteer mentors, devised strategies to address key problems facing the community including Down's syndrome, water pollution, bullying and women's rights.

The teams were judged on various parameters such as team work, presentation skills, use of social media, and creation of socially enterprising and sustainable plans. The winning team came up with an innovative plan to engage youth with preserving their cultural heritage, reviving traditional physical activities and games to complement the era of digital games, and improving interaction with the older generation.

The program focused on developing creating thinking, team building and fostering ethical leadership through positive social endeavors. It also provided the participants an opportunity to make a practical application of their theoretical knowledge through actionable social projects. The participants designed social enterprise models to solve some of the key issues facing the world today.

Ms. Chakaki, who is also a leading GCC social entrepreneur, was the plenary speaker at the program, in addition to several other high caliber speakers. Mr. Suhail Al Gosaibi, a local entrepreneur presented the "7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens". Mr. Andrew Card from EMIC Training and Mr. Mohammed Mattar spoke on "Your Passion and Your Future" and Ms. Elham Abdul Razzaq of Capital Knowledge led a session on ethics.

The program concluded with the presentation of trophies to the winning team and certificates to all participants by Mr. Amin Al Arrayed of YAL Bahrain. The program is expected to become an annual event to serve as a valuable bridge between high school and university through the development of leadership and social entrepreneurial skills. It will promote youth empowerment and inspire young social entrepreneurs to participate actively in the shaping of a better society.

Photo Credit: brokenarts