Highlights and Weak Points Encountered at Lambakan Jam

First, the concept of the Lambakan youth Jam was shared.  They appreciated the concept and method.  They learned new knowledge and skills as a result.  Friendship was built, skills were acquired, knowledge was enhanced and importantly, understanding, tolerance and their commitment to serve their indigenous communities were manifested.

The sole limitation of the Lambakan was the language barrier. While Ilocano is the lingua franca in Northern Luzon, some of the ethno-linguistic groups and migrants, especially indigenous young people who grew up in cities, cannot converse fluently in Ilocano. This is also a reflection of the problem of indigenous young people who grew away from their communities.  Everyone striving to understand each other, and demonstrated willingness to listen patiently augmented with translation made it easy to confront the problem.  At the end of the week, the non-Ilocano speaking participants were able to speak phrases and some sentences of the dialect.  They were so happy with it.

We were also faced with a resource/financial dilemma especially during the preparation period.  We were actually considering postponing the event so that we can raise enough resources but the generous support of YES!, the local host and local establishment and individuals enabled us to push through.  A substantial number of participants (10) paid for their own transportation expenses too.  Also, as a measure, we decreased the number of participants from 40 to 35.  A smaller number of participants actually turned out easier to facilitate.youth Jam was shared.  They appreciated the concept and method.  They learned new knowledge and skills as a result.  Friendship was built, skills were acquired, knowledge was enhanced and importantly, understanding, tolerance and their commitment to serve their indigenous communities were manifested.

The sole limitation of the Lambakan was the language barrier. While Ilocano is the lingua franca in Northern Luzon, some of the ethno-linguistic groups and migrants, especially indigenous young people who grew up in cities, cannot converse fluently in Ilocano. This is also a reflection of the problem of indigenous young people who grew away from their communities.  Everyone striving to understand each other, and demonstrated willingness to listen patiently augmented with translation made it easy to confront the problem.  At the end of the week, the non-Ilocano speaking participants were able to speak phrases and some sentences of the dialect.  They were so happy with it.

We were also faced with a resource/financial dilemma especially during the preparation period.  We were actually considering postponing the event so that we can raise enough resources but the generous support of YES!, the local host and local establishment and individuals enabled us to push through.  A substantial number of participants (10) paid for their own transportation expenses too.  Also, as a measure, we decreased the number of participants from 40 to 35.  A smaller number of participants actually turned out easier to facilitate.