Our Global Community

The YMCA of Greater Toronto offers exceptional young leaders from our YMCA partner communities the opportunity to participate in a five-week program in Toronto. The program is designed to:

• Develop skills and knowledge for young leaders
• Build relationships between people of different countries
• Create global awareness and understanding among people in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA)

During the program, youth take part in cultural activities, participate in YMCA programs and lead presentations about issues that affect their home countries. When participants return home, they share their experiences with local youth groups and with their local YMCA.

Global awareness is integrated into programs for children, youth and adults at YMCA centres throughout the Greater Toronto Area. Each year, more than 8,000 people participate in global awareness events and activities.

The objectives of our global awareness activities are to:

• Educate and inform about current global issues and trends
• Encourage global responsibility and action towards positive change
• Develop a sense of belonging to the YMCA global family
• Support leadership in global awareness among staff, volunteers, youth and members

Global awareness activities include:

• Peace Week activities, allowing children, youth and adults to explore peace-building from personal, community and international perspectives
• “Lunch and learns” which explore global themes such as human rights, HIV/AIDS, environmental sustainability and fair trade
• Sharing and exchanging stories, blogs, videos, pictures and postcards from YMCAs in communities around the world