Badi Programs
The Junior Youth Empowerment Program
If the progress achieved in one generation is not to be lost with the passage
of time, any efforts in sustainable development need an element of education
for the young people of today and leaders of tomorrow. As a program pursued
through the formal education system in China, but developed through an informal
approach using tutors in Zambia, China, and Colombia, the Junior Youth Empowerment
Program actually bridges both types of education.
In a world increasingly afflicted by violent forces of war, catastrophe, economic
disparities, oppression, and rampant materialism, it is of particular importance
to extend moral education to young people at a critical stage in their development.
Junior youth ages 12 to 15 are experiencing a significant transition in their
process of emotional, physical, and spiritual maturation. One in which they
are beginning to understand the forces that surround them and influence their
lives. It is also a time of character molding during which the qualities and
attitudes they develop will become the foundation upon which their future
development depends. Thus a program that equips young people with the powers
of expression needed to describe and understand the forces at play in society
and the world, as well as a moral structure to assist their decision making
skills and foster their commitment to social transformation is essential.
For these reasons the Badí Foundation has already partnered with 7
schools and community centers in Macau, and 24 local organizations in China,
and more than 6,000 youth have participated since 2001.