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Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center
Company type Non-Profit Organization
FoundedJanuary 5, 2009
FounderEjaj Ahmad, President
Websitewww.bylc.org

Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center (BYLC) is the first leadership institution in Bangladesh, founded with the vision of creating a more inclusive, tolerant and just society by locally training the next generation of leaders. Originally developed at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government in 2008, Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center was established in 2009. The Center conducts its signature youth leadership program, Building Bridges through Leadership Training (BBLT) along with executive programs and workshops [1] for university students [2] as well as clients in the private, public, and non-profit sector. BYLC is a strong advocate for active citizenship and many of its program alumni are actively engaged in community service and grassroots leadership.

About BYLC

Formation

The concept of a youth leadership center was originally developed at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government in January 2008. The proposal for a month-long leadership program, Building Bridges through Leadership Training (BBLT)[3], was jointly developed by Ejaj Ahmad, then a graduate student at Harvard University, and Shammi S. Quddus, then an undergraduate student at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The proposal won the 2008 Kathryn Davis Projects for Peace Prize in March 2008.

Ahmad and Quddus ran the pilot phase of BBLT in Chittagong [4] in the summer of 2008, with technical and financial support from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Public Service Center. Building on the success and lessons learned from the pilot, the BBLT program was encapsulated within the framework of a non-profit organization, the Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center (BYLC).

In October 2008, BYLC formed its Governing Board. With Ejaj Ahmad, the Founder of BYLC, as the President, the seven-member Board of Governors (link) of BYLC consists of leading professionals from the educational, legal, corporate and media sectors in Bangladesh. BYLC also has an International Advisory Board comprising of members including renowned Harvard professors and Bangladeshi intellectuals.

In early 2009, BYLC was registered with the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms in Bangladesh as a non-partisan social venture committed to creating an inclusive, tolerant and just society by training the next generation of leaders.

The signature program of BYLC, BBLT, expanded into a four month program for BBLT 4 on July 2010. The first month consists of intensive classroom training in leadership skills after school. In the next three months, students work in teams to implement their leadership training by designing and conducting community projects in local slums.

Vision

BYLC's vision is to create a poverty-free Bangladesh driven by the next generation of home-grown leaders.

Mission

BYLC works to bridge gaps in society by uniting youth from diverse backgrounds, equipping them with leadership, problem solving and teamwork skills, and engaging them in community service and active citizenship.

Values

  • Respect for the individual
  • Patriotism
  • Tolerance
  • Gender equality
  • Transparency

Innovation

BYLC is the first organization in Bangladesh that brings together students from three different educational systems in the country – namely English medium, Bengali medium and Madrassa. In the context of the national curriculum that relies heavily on rote memorization, BYLC’s pioneering multidisciplinary youth leadership program, which uses real-time case analysis and reflection as tools to equip participants with strong leadership diagnostic skills, has already received appreciation from diverse stakeholders [4] in Bangladesh.

Objectives

Building Bridges

The capacity to embrace diversity and to respect diverse viewpoints is pivotal for effective leadership. A root cause of the divisiveness in Bangladesh today is the divided educational system, which has fragmented the young generation and impedes progress in Bangladesh. To this end, BYLC programs are designed to unite youth from the three different educational systems in Bangladesh – English medium, Bengali medium and Madrassa.

Leadership Training

BYLC works with the nation’s bright youth to instill value-driven leadership ideas within them. Participants develop diagnostic skills and discuss the characteristics of a leader through large class discussions and small group case analysis. BYLC’s leadership programs push the students out of their comfort zones, teach them to appreciate diverse viewpoints and establish an open channel of communication.

Community Service

The difference between the wealthy and impoverished is a stark reality in Bangladesh. Therefore, BYLC promotes active citizenship among its young participants so they are prepared to address the developmental challenges of Bangladesh. The program facilitates community service projects, in which they apply their creativity and leadership skills gained in the classroom.

Activities at BYLC

Building Bridges through Leadership Training (BBLT)

Building Bridges through Leadership Training (BBLT) [5] is BYLC's signature leadership training program offered twice a year to college and first year university students from Madrassa, English and Bengali medium schools. The goal of the four-month long program is to train young people and equip them with necessary communication and leadership skills to make a positive impact on society. After undergoing a rigorous admission process, selected applicants are granted a full scholarship. Participants are awarded a certificate from BYLC after successfully completing the program. The BBLT program has two components:

Leadership Training: During the first month, students attend intensive classroom lectures on leadership skills. The curriculum for this component is highly interactive and draws heavily on leadership courses taught at Harvard University’s Center for Public Leadership and modeled after the ‘case-in-point’ teaching methodology of Harvard Professor Heifetz. This approach utilizes program participants’ own experiences and the classroom environment itself as a “learning laboratory” for understanding the different concepts of leadership, such as:
  • Public speaking and presentation skills
  • Self assessment and development
  • Goal setting
  • Group dynamics and teamwork
  • Community service
  • Real world problem solving
  • Creativity
  • Ethics
Community Service: During the next three months, students conduct independent community service projects in the slums. The projects allow participants to apply their skills and knowledge gained through the classroom discussions in a real world setting by serving their local community.

BBLT Junior

The BBLT Junior (BBLT-J) program [6], launched in 2010, has the same vision as the regular BBLT program but is aimed for secondary school students. BBLT graduates work with BYLC mentors to organize a month-long after-school program for grade 6-10 students from diverse educational backgrounds. The BBLT-J training on leadership also instills in students a sense of patriotism, civic duty and an understanding of social justice and tolerance. Upon completion of the program, participants are awarded achievement certificates in a formal graduation ceremony.

Workshops and Executive Programs

BYLC runs customized leadership workshops for university students and leadership executive programs for clients in the private, public and non-profit sectors in Bangladesh. Over the past year and half, BYLC has conducted several workshops and executive programs for capacity building of students, executives, senior managers, civil servants and top-level decision-makers in the following organizations:

Community Service Projects

The BBLT graduates and facilitators conducted several public campaigns along with the youth of the community in an effort to promote active citizenship and patriotism. For example, BYLC has organized a health camp, swine flue campaign [7] and winter clothes distribution campaign.

Several community service projects from the BBLT program have developed into formal, long-term programs.

Young Scholars Program: On February 21, 2010, BYLC formally launched the young scholars program and provided full scholarship to 18 underprivileged students. BBLT 3 graduates decided to launch the Young Scholars Program to enable bright children in the slum to gain access to grade six and beyond, which require tuition. The participants sell innovative materials that they design themselves. The proceeds finance the Young Scholars Program.
BridgeWee: Ovick Alam, a BBLT 3 graduate of BYLC with English medium background, founded a service called BridgeWee, which prepares English medium students for the C-unit BBA admission test in the University of Dhaka. Traditionally, English medium students have faced difficulty with the admission test procedures compared to their Bengali medium counterparts.
Karushilpo: Roxana Akhter Munni, BYLC batch one student, founded Karushilpo, a social enterprise that employs female acid-attack survivors to produce handicrafts.

Financial Support

The first pilot BBLT program received technical and financial support from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Public Service Center. The second BBLT program was supported by the US Embassy and the third BBLT program by the British High Commission in Dhaka. BBLT 4? In 2010, BYLC was awarded the $120,000 Innovation Grant by the US government. [8] The award will be used to run six youth leadership programs in Dhaka and Chittagong. BYLC is working toward a self-sufficient business model.

Awards and Recognition

Ejaj Ahmad was among 20 outstanding young social entrepreneurs recognized by the International Youth Foundation (IYF) for the 2010 YouthActionNet® Fellowship. The 2010 fellows came from 18 different countries across five continents. Ejaj Ahmad was presented the award by Nobel Laureate Martti Ahtisaari of Finland. Assistant secretary Robert O. Blake, Jr. of the Bureau of South and Central Asia Affairs in the US government mentioned the Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center as one of “South Asia’s Unheralded Stories” at the 2010 San Diego World Affairs Council. Ejaj Ahmad was selected as one of the 150 fellows from Asia and the US in the 2010 Asia 21 Young Leaders Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia. Additionally, BYLC has received considerable media attention in Bangladesh via newspapers, radio and press conferences. [9]

Organization

People at BYLC

Governing Board Members
International Advisory Board Members
  • Gowher Rizvi, Honorable Advisor to the Prime Minister of Bangladesh
  • Ronald Heifetz, King Hussein bin Talal Senior Lecturer in Public Leadership, Harvard Kennedy School
  • Barbara Kellerman, James McGregor Burns Lecturer in Public Leadership, Harvard Kennedy School
  • Mijarul Quayes, Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh
  • Max Klau, Director of Leadership Development, City Year
  • Sultana Afroz, Economic Counselor, Bangladesh Embassy in Rome

Location

BYLC has a branch in Chittagong and Dhaka. The organization is working to open branches in all districts of Bangladesh.

Quotes

“I share an assumption with BYLC that the opportunities to exercise leadership on behalf of what you care most deeply about are available to anyone, regardless of age or position.”

Marty Linsky , Faculty Chair, Leadership for the 21st Century, Harvard Kennedy School

“Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center’s program is clearly a highly imaginative initiative and one that could be, if rightly implemented, an important and effective attempt to change things in a very positive direction.”

Amartya Sen, 1998 Nobel Laureate in Economics and Professor at Harvard University

References

  1. ^ Public lecture on “Leadership for the 21st Century” at BRAC University
  2. ^ Exploring real leadership at IBA
  3. ^ BBLT 1 in Chittagong
  4. ^ BBLT-Integrating three different strands
  5. ^ BBLT Brochures
  6. ^ Daily Star article on BBLT-J 1
  7. ^ http://www.thedailystar.net/rising/2010/05/03/special.htm Swine Flu Campaign (BYLC)
  8. ^ BYLC Builds Bridges
  9. ^ BYLC in the Media
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