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  • 1 year ago
Focus on positivity! A word of advice.. from President Christine Kangaloo to young people.., amid what she believes... is a society that now strives on cynicism and criticism.
She was speaking to nominees.. at the 28th Annual National Youth Awards 2024 ..which took place on Thursday.
Alicia Boucher has the details.
Transcript
00:0091 nominations in 19 categories, highlighting excellent contributions made by young people
00:08between the ages of 10 and 35, as well as youth groups and mentors.
00:13This was in focus at the National Youth Awards 2024 under the Ministry of Youth Development
00:19and National Service.
00:21Youth Development Minister Foster Cummings said young people must be supported to contribute
00:26in a way that would ensure nation building and sustainable development, and they should
00:31be acknowledged and celebrated for those contributions.
00:35He said the awards do just that, factoring in both formal and non-formal learning.
00:41Nominees, it is inspiring to see that the efforts you have committed to have brought
00:45you here.
00:47Whether your work involves converting crisis into opportunity, such as the threat of Sargassum
00:53seaweed being researched for use in creating prosthetic legs for diabetic amputees, or
00:59supporting search and rescue efforts that reunite loved ones, or distributing eggs to
01:05those in need, visiting the elderly and senior citizens home to bring them joy and laughter,
01:11your work is truly outstanding in every category of award, and today we recognize your efforts.
01:19In delivering the feature address, President Christine Kangaloo said all nominees embody
01:23youth excellence, as she pointed to the advantage of getting to that point.
01:28Your nomination is a fact that will live on long after this evening's ceremony is over,
01:34and whether you receive an award or not.
01:38Your nomination will give you the advantage of motivation.
01:42It will motivate you to continue doing good work and striving to accomplish great things.
01:49Your nomination will also give you the advantage of being a role model.
01:54The president said the nominations also prove that young people in the country can do anything
01:59they set their minds to, despite the disadvantages, one of which she pointed to as a high level
02:05of criticism.
02:06It is no honorable thing that our criticism and our cynicism have grown into that demeaning
02:13saying, Trinidad is not a real place.
02:17It can certainly sometimes feel as if we live in a society of non-believers and worse, of
02:24disbelievers.
02:26The disadvantage of that kind of mindset is that if we sup for too long on the diet of
02:33negativity that it offers, we can all become jaded and broken.
02:39She said she has had her fair share of fighting negativity, from colorism to those who felt
02:44she wasn't good enough.
02:46President Kangaloo expressed confidence in what she called a high level of talent per
02:50capita in this country, as she voiced a wish that the National Youth Awards would assist
02:56in curbing negative mindsets.
02:59In the Youth of the Year category, the ages 10-17 award went to Brianna Harry-Cheran,
03:06and for ages 18-35, Doreen Jeffery.
03:10Alicia Boucher, TV6 News.
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