World Council delegates meet online for 2nd information webinar: Canada, travel logistics and deadlines the focus

With 50 days to go until the 21st YMCA World Council in Toronto, Canada on 19-25 July, and 1,300 delegates registered, World YMCA ran a second information webinar on 28 May.

Watch back the recording of the 2nd World Council information webinar (28 May) here.

Carlos Sanvee (recording: 00:03:50) underlined the different functions of World Council – in supporting the Governance foundations which underpin the global YMCA Movement; in engaging not just participants but the entire Movement in animated debate about what YMCAs are doing and why; and in sending the YMCA out into a fast-transforming world to make real impact on the lives of young people and communities.

Jessica Nkongolo (recording: 00:10:21) introduced the ‘Greater Together’ vision of World Council hosts YMCA Canada, across 37 associations, 33,000 staff, 12,000 volunteers and 1,700 locations in Canada.

Alexandria Samson (recording: 00:10:24) shared how YMCA Canada will welcome the global Movement to Toronto, with details about travel, visas, logistics and more.

Jessica Nkongolo (recording: 00:41:14) introduced some of the cultural norms to be expected in Canada.

Adriana Stanovici (recording: 00:55:37) introduced the outline World Council programme, with nearly 50 individual sessions and 150 different speakers.

Kerry Reilly (recording: 01:02:56) presented arrangements for translation of World Council into 10 languages, as well as important protocols (Code of Conduct, safeguarding etc) for the event.

She also set out important deadlines for delegates (recording: 01:12:47), including:

• by 7 June 23:59 Eastern Time (Toronto) – delegates must have made their preferred selections for Excursions (21 July)

• by 9 June – all details of those seeking Visas to travel to Canada must be uploaded onto registrants’ personal pages on the event platform

• by 14 June – delegates must have confirmed their requested hotel nights

• by 19 June – delegates must have uploaded their flight details to the event platform

• by 19 June – all requests for cancellations must be submitted by this date: note that a waiting list is currently in place for new registrants.

Throughout the event – and specifically at the end (recording: 01:16:32) – the team fielded questions shared by the audience.

‘It will certainly be a very intense week’, said Alexandria. ‘We have tried to think of everything that our delegates will want - and feel. And if any of them just need ‘time out’, there will even be a waterfall garden for people to relax in their own space, with an indigenous sacred fire burning. We want people to have the best possible experience at World Council.’

Watch back the recording of the 1st World Council information webinar (26 March) here, with a summary here. The 1st webinar set out more of the context and framework for World Council.