Envision was set up by four young dynamic individuals in 2001 to inspire and empower people to be positive agents for sustainable change. The Young Envisionaries Award (YEVA) encourages 16–18 year olds to take responsibility for environmental and social issues at school and within their local community.

YEVA has been set up by young people and provides the creative space for students to actively go MaD (Making a Difference). They have been pro actively engaged in striving to make a difference’ in their local environment throughout the academic year. Activities include setting up school recycling and composting schemes, introducing healthy food to the school canteen, raising awareness of ethical consumer issues, greening their wildlife area; establishing recycling schemes, holding a recycled fashion show; teaching PSHE classes. This serves to illustrate their commitment and reflects their capacity to affect change. A Wilderness Experience

Envision have now launched a new initiative, The Wilderness Experience to enable young leaders to contribute to the Children’s Earth Summit. The wilderness experience will build on the values, determination and future leadership potential that have been developed through the YEVA scheme.

Fourteen remarkable young people (age 16–17) — seven from the heart of London and seven from the townships of Johannesburg — have been selected for their energy and commitment to building a fairer and more just world. They are being brought together in South Africa at the time of the Earth Summit for a unique and innovative cross cultural experience, organised by Envision. They will spend the first part of the experience within the inspirational surroundings of the Umfolozi Game Reserve in Kwazulu, Natal, where they will walk into the wilderness with guides from the Wilderness Leadership School. Wilderness trails provide a unique opportunity for individuals to get close to nature. By walking on foot and exploring the African bush each person goes on a journey of discovery, experiencing the calls and conversation of the bush perhaps the roar of a lion or the cough of a leopard, at night sitting around the flames of the camp fire before falling asleep under the stars. Trailists discover a sense of wonder and re examine their own priorities. It is an opportunity to experience life from a new perspective, a chance to listen and learn from the wild — to really be a part of their natural environment.

During the second stage the two groups will live side by side in a traditional Zulu camp. Workshops and activities will be run by the guides’group educators and Zulu elders. This will provide the basis for generating a deeper understanding and a sense of our common humanity. Together the group will also develop their thoughts, feelings and actions to determine what it is to be a global citizen and how together we can learn to live more sustainably on the planet.

The next part of their journey is to Johannesburg where the students will participate in the Earth Summit in a variety of ways. They will have the opportunity to attend the official hearings at the United Nations Earth Summit, participate in community projects taking place as part of the Peoples Earth Summit and play an intrinsic role in the Childrens Earth Summit, which will bring together young people from around the world for workshops and joint activities that explore and develop further their common and personal perceptions of the environment, development and sustainable living.

“People focus too much on national characteristics as opposed to our global citizenshipÖwe need a global network to break down the barriers between countries and that’s why I want to go,” said Rowena Davis of Hampstead School’s ENTWINE greenteam.
The UK students are from sixth forms in London and are all graduates of the Young Envisionaries Award ((YEVA). They have been self selected on the basis of energy and the crucial aspects of leadership such as creativity capability and determination.
The South African students are from Soweto from the Bonani Young Development Programme ((BYDP), a South African based non govern-mental organisation with a mission to effectively communicate at primary and high school levels the principles of sustainable living and raising awareness of environmental issues.

Established in 2000, BNYP is run by a dynamic group of qualified young educators living in the townships of Johannesburg. With a grounding in environmental education they are able to effectively facilitate work-shops with teachers and senior school learners in the principles of sus-tainable living and environmental awareness. An additional objective is the encouragement of endorsement for the protection of SouthAfrica ‘s wilderness areas and biodiversity.
The Bonani are positive and committted individuals who are inspired to work for change, utilising the environment as a context in which to frame the problems of priority: AIDS, crime, living conditions and social concerns. Setting up Eco-clubs in schools and working with potential leaders, Bonani are building a new generation of leaders for sustainability to ensure that an environmental consciousness grows in the minds and imaginations of communities so that they too will see it fit to protect and secure South Africa ‘s wilderness areas well into the next millennium.

Thewilderness experience will provide these young people in the formative years of their life with an awareness of the interdependence of all things. This profound shift in consciousness is a life changing experience inspiring future commit-ment to help build a fair and more balanced world. This pioneering project will run for the first time in August. Envision are still looking to raise three scholarships of £2,300 . Each scholarship will pay for one UK and one South African student.
FURTHER INFORMATION : envision, 18 Well Walk, Hampstead, London, NW3 1LD. Tel: 020 7431 5626
EMAIL: vision@​envision.​org.​uk