Seeing the world from the other side can change your perspective. Or in some cases, affirm it and give you the footing and reassurances to boldly move forward with your work.
In early July, the YMCA World Council, the highest governing body of the YMCA World Movement, held its global conference in Aarhus, Denmark. YMCA leaders, staff and volunteers gathered to share, plan, learn and chart the way forward to becoming the world's partner as a youth empowerment organization.
Kinard Barnett, the associate executive director for the Southeast Raleigh YMCA, attended.
Kinard had applied for the Anti-Racist Multicultural Organization International Learning Institute (AMO ILI) through Y USA. Part of this eight-month cohort was the World Council.
"I came across the AMO ILI as a learning experience and a chance for professional development," Kinard said. "So, I applied and was part of the inaugural cohort focused on analyzing systems of oppression through a global lens. And part of this experience was attending the World Council."
The conference was incredibly impactful for Kinard. He participated in engagement panels and Co-Labs with intergenerational people from many other countries. Co-Labs were intensive, co-creative spaces where participants dove into one topic and worked together to come up with solutions to implement at local, national or regional YMCA settings.
His panel work focused on A Just World and Climate Action, two topics Kinard feels passionately about.
"The conversations were very honest," Kinard says. "Denmark has challenges with hidden racism. Conversations we have here in the US help push conversations and action in Denmark."
The panel conversation was eye-opening for Kinard. Many of the participating countries were familiar with recent US events and decisions, and those were influencing their own countries.
"Social equity and racial justice are not American issues - these are issues across the globe," Kinard says.
Kinard's work in Denmark, shared by hundreds of other attendees, is helping shape the future of the YMCA World Movement. Vision 2030 is a long-term vision statement with four areas of activity, Community and Wellbeing, Meaningful Future of Work, a Sustainable Planet and a Just World.
During one of his Co-Labs about a Sustainable Planet, Kinard was struck by the conversations. The group was talking about carbon neutrality and climate change as their Australian colleagues were receiving real-time updates about 100-year floods.
"We're having these conversations, and the stuff is happening in real-time," Kinard says. "Those '100-year floods'? They've had three. It's a real thing that is affecting them right now."
While the sessions and discussions were important and intense, Kinard and his travel group did get out and see parts of the city, speak with locals and immerse in Danish culture.
And upon his return to the Southeast Raleigh YMCA, he is inspired to continue to work on change both environmentally and culturally.
"We have added our Y to the early voting sites here in Southeast Raleigh," Kinard says. "And we'd like to host more racial equity, more advocacy and more educational opportunities along with possible environmental changes. Where do we have an opportunity for change?"
He also has ideas about partnering with local community groups to see what type of environmental improvements the Y and its neighbors can make.
One of the key takeaways for Kinard was perspective.
"At a conference like this, you feel the bigness of the YMCA," he says, "but also the smallness. The collective world - we're all dealing with the same problems. So what can we do differently?"
