Young leaders of organisations that help children met and exchanged ideas at a three-day conference in Woodstock.
Fifty-six delegates from various organisations attended the Young Leaders for Children Conference, from Tuesday October 1 to Thursday October 3.
The Centre for Early Childhood Development (CECD) hosted the event.
The centre’s director, Professor Eric Atmore, said the conference helped the young leaders strengthen their organisations and understand how non-profits functioned.
“We heard about phenomenal projects run by young people and if they can lead us in the future, the country will be in good hands,” he said.
The delegates came from all over Cape Town as well as further afield – Gansbaai, the Eastern Cape, Lesotho and Botswana.
Jessica Ronaasen, a social worker and PhD candidate at Stellenbosch University, presented work she had done through non-profit Sakha Esethu in the Eastern Cape as well as her PhD research on the management of early childhood development centres.
She said it had been “encouraging and empowering” to interact with other organisations about the future of ECD
centres.
Tuli Martins, of Grootbos Foundation in Gansbaai, helps ECD centres in previously disadvantaged areas run sustainably.
“I met all the right people in these sectors who are working with these challenges so I can go back to my community and revisit how I do things in my community,” said Ms Martins.
To find out more about the CECD visit www.cecd.org.za