A wonderful thing happened last Saturday.

I was the Adult Scouter in charge of the Southern Province's Youth Forum, yet I spent most of the day wandering around, relaxing and talking to people. My main contributions involved moving chairs, counting votes, and delivering printing to the right people. I had little input into programme planning or the delivery of programme on the day, aside from the occasional checking in that everything and everyone was okay. Yet still, the day was extremely well planned and executed, and everyone had a great time.

How did it all come to pass? The young people who were responsible for the event. The Southern Province Youth Forum was planned, prepared and delivered almost exclusively by the youth representatives who had been elected the previous year. Aside from a few logistical bookings, the event was totally their own.

Throughout the day I was telling everyone who would listen how proud I was of the youth representatives who stepped up to the plate for this challenge. I didn't get a chance to tell all of them on the day, but I believe that it was a huge accomplishment to have a youth forum run almost entirely by the young people involved. It may not be a huge international or even national scale project, but it is a simple, effective example of young people learning by doing, sharing their experiences with others, and creating a platform to share and exchange ideas.

A wonderful thing happened last Saturday, and I can’t wait to see what comes next!