By Frerieke van Bree

Iran Masebeni is a 15 year old South African boy who lives in Township Khayelitsha near Cape Town. He is a 10th grade student of COSAT (Center of science and Technology). He is one of our inspiring students of the art and leadership initiative that Anasuya and I started at the school.

With this Love to the World initiative we really want to create a space where anybody can make a difference and inspire others to do so. This site is not about us ( Anasuya and me), but is an invitation for anybody to get involved.

Last week we had a great visitor, Raquel (from New York) who was so inspired back home after seeing the videos of the COSAT students online.. she wanted to get to know those students and offer some of her leadership skills. Leadership through dance. She also gave the students the assignment to write down what really matters to them and have them present this in front of their fellow students. Raquel, you were great, please share your own story with us!

Iran’s story will be the first one that we’ll share with you. The text goes together with the photographs that Iran took of his house. (one of the components that i use in my classes is photography. 6 camera’s go round. Each student gets an opportunity to show the class what matters to them in pictures.)

Please be inspired by this young mans passions:

By Iran Masebeni

What matters to me is the fact that I want South Africa to change for the good. I want blacks to be equal to whites to have same standards of living, no blacks or whites in the street. I lost both my parents when I was so young. This matters to me because I am a black person, a young South African that is growing up. Every day I think how is South Africa going to be in the future, who  is leading. Is it going to be the whites again who are leading our country? If so, why did our ancestors then fight for us, why did they waste their time, ruined their lives, fought till dead. Did they fight so that we will stay in shadows under fear, live in the streets?

I want us black people to be the leaders of tomorrow. I want us to live where ever we choose, drive whatever car we choose to drive. I don’t want us to be like whites lets do our thing. Let’s dance to our rhythm.

I want us to be us. Live up to our ancestors. Why i say this is because if it is raining, we don’t sleep because our houses are flooded.

I say if living in the shacks is the style of South Africa, the SO BE IT , amen. Let us all live in shacks, blacks and whites.

So what I am saying is that i want Equality

I want us to live in an extraordinary country.

The Art and Leadership Academy is providing the fundamentals of leadership to previously (and in most instances, still) disadvantaged youth from across the Cape Flats. The Academy excavates the repressed and undiscovered self-love and pride in being South African in COSAT students as a vehicle of empowerment.

The students learn public speaking, debate, critical analysis, and team-building to identify social problems that are negatively impacting them in their community. Through the integration of the arts: creative writing, theater, music, photography and film, the students analyze alternative and effective ways of expressing emotions and protest while learning from the Masters.

In direct response to the resignation regarding the ongoing social problems in their community, the students then create viable and sustainable solutions through their development of community projects that they will learn how to manage. These projects will involve members of their community who will work in partnership with the students. This awakened and empowered love for their community is the driving force for them becoming the powerful and well-trained leaders of the country in a few years time, as they will have a first-hand experience of making the difference that matters.

The Arts & Leadership Academy was a big hit in it’s limited run with a select group of 11th and 12 th graders from COSAT earlier this year. Love To The World is thrilled to be providing this training and development to the entire 10th grade of COSAT High School.

By Anasuya Isaacs

The Arts and Leadership Academy is off to a rousing start! We have just completed our third session with the COSAT 11th and 12th graders. Yesterday, we were blown away by the remarkable progress they made from week 2 to 3.

In Week 2, We took them deeper into the distinctions of leadership.
What a Leader is NOT
Leader = Boss: someone who “makes people do things”.
Leader = Center of attention; who it’s all about
Leader = “Them”: anyone else responsible

A Leader IS someone who knows
To Lead is to Serve
To Lead is To Follow
To Lead is to Listen
To Lead is To Risk

A Leader is someone who is always arrives first and leaves last. They learned this the hard way by incurring my wrath. Our first Class starts when everyone is present so that no one is left behind. Most were late, but the last three to arrive came 25 minutes late. Not a great way to start the day. I had to make sure that this behavior ended right then and there. So in my calmest, tone I let it be known that a real leader would not be so selfish and self-centered enough to have people waiting for them (since the majority of them who were late had arrived early to the school and were just hanging in the hallway talking to friends). We reminded them that there was a waiting list so that they were all replaceable and that this was the last time we would have this conversation. It was crystal clear what was at stake for them.

The students explored the impact of wanting to be leader so that they can be everything a leader is not. When they thought about those who embodied what a leader is not, they saw for themselves how things don’t improve; there’s more corruption and abuse of power. They were coached on making a presentation, on what the inner and outer state should be to get their message across clearly. They then began to share the essays they wrote addressing a need they saw in their community and how they would solve it using their role model, the thing they loved the most and a cultural tradition. They received feedback on the thought that went into solving the problem and originality as well as on their use of the proper inner and outer qualities. Most were very good and a few put little time in and it showed! All were taught how to give feedback based on the work, and not on the person, so that they could develop their critical minds. The standouts all came from the 12th graders: Zukile (watch his video!), Nobenathi, Zimkhita, and Ntuthuzelo. Bravo!

The focus of yesterday’s class was team: if one fails, they all fail. They are just one group, one being and they were all going to win or nobody was. They created a buddy system so that no one is late or absent unless in an emergency. They don’t know each other well as they come from all of the surrounding townships to this special school devoted to Math and Science, so to get them to take on buddies to support one another is a big thing.

The students left last week determined to go deeper, give it more team and to expand what they think they could do. They came back yesterday, to our session that were held 1) for three and a half hours sessions vs. the regular two hours and 2) on a day school is closed due to the Easter/ Spring Break holiday. These kids were early, ready, and absolutely brilliant! Their work had improved tremendously and there was pride! Yes, PRIDE in the work they had done. The 11th graders were great but the student who raised the bar was Wanele, the older of the twins, who clearly was speaking the United Nations in his address. Please take the time to watch the video of his presentation. This young 16 year old is the next Nelson Mandela!

The twelfth graders were stellar, raising the bar and encouraging one another to do well. They are really starting to be there for one another as if the other were them. There’s a quote that they are beginning to embody: “You are ‘me’ cleverly disguised as ‘you’”. A true leader is one with the team/community/country.

To lead is to serve! Next we will be putting this quote of wisdom into action very soon! All of the students are starting to get very clear that there is no one coming. There isn’t someone else to come fix their community, their city, their country. They are the ones we are waiting for and these bright lights are going to deliver!

Blessings from Khayalitsha!
Anasuya

By Frerieke van Bree 

Saturday the 8th of March: Anasuya and I were both sleepy and in need
for coffee early in the morning on our way to Khayelitsha, trying to find
energy to start our 12 week leadership program with the students of
COSAT (Centre of Science and Technology, a High school for science, IT
and Maths).

Our expectation of sleepy and quit students disappeared the moment we
saw those young enthusiast learners smiling while seeing a American and
Dutch person coming to train them. Those students are so willing to learn!

COSAT, located in township Khayelitsha, selects the best learners of the
regular High schools in the township and prepares them to go to
University.

Khayelitsha (meaning: New Home) is the biggest township (800.000
people) here around Cape Town. Lots of people are living in shacks, some
without running water, electricity or ablutions.

Co-founder of COSAT, Peter Oxenham told us that even those bright
COSAT students, who get an amazing education often drop out of
University. Why? Nobody ever taught them the skills to survive in the big
world outside the township. They often do not have the self-esteem to
speak English, are not used to be in a mixed (white/black/colored)
environment, they do not believe that they are great and are often very
insecure.

When Anasuya and I heard this, we knew it was in our power to help build
self confidence, self love, to help those wonderful individuals to achieve
their dreams, finish University and know who they are.

We arranged with COSAT that we’ll be leading a 12 week Arts and
Leadership Academy for 34 of their students (grade 11 and 12).
Our program involves workshops in creative writing, acting, directing, and
the visual arts as well as in website development, HIV prevention, and
self-esteem building. The students will develop and lead community
projects that they have determined will make their communities great.

Have a look at this video we made. The COSAT students explain why this
12 week program is worth waking up for on their free Saturday morning
and tell us what they’ve learned this first week. Worth watching! These
students are incredibly bright, socially intelligent and worth investing in!

We help them achieve their goals, by working with them here in Africa,
you can help by donating to Love to The World!
We need your help! please make a small donation (5 dollar? 10 dollar?
each dollar helps!)

Thanks!
Frerieke