ULC Dharwad student selected to attend International Youth Leadership Conference Requires funding

Bharat R. Itagi, a student University College of Law, Dharwad has been selected to participate in the 24th International Youth Leadership Conference (IYLC) to be held in Prague, Czech Republic from July 22 to July 27, 2012..This conference is a forum on world politics, international relations, law, media, business and global economy. The IYLC was started in 2000 in Prague as a week-long forum that now draws on average 100 university students from 35+ countries across the globe biannually. Since its inception, the conference has touched the lives of nearly 2200 participants from a total of 133 countries and is considered by them as an unparalleled learning experience. The theme of this year’s conference is “Cross-cultural exchange of young ideas concerning the future of world leadership.”.Bar & Bench spoke to Bharat Itagi about his achievement and below are the excerpts of the conversation with him..How do you feel on getting selected for this conference? .I feel extremely elated and privileged for having not only got an opportunity to participate in a conference held in a global arena but also as it accentuates my sustained interest in the theme of the conference, namely “Youth Empowerment”. Needless to elaborate the importance and lacunae that we as youth face in the ever emerging, double edged competitive and dynamic world that we are placed in. I strongly believe that it is high time that fora of these kinds need to be more in order to allow young minds to express their views and tailor the overall development. The cliché of old wine in a new bottle needs to be “new minds with fresh ideas”..Any challenges you are facing in participating in this conference?.Coming from the remote corner of the country with exposure limited by resources, challenges are bound to be there. However, in this case it was even more challenging as the invitation mandated sponsorship as one of the requisites of participation. I sent a requisition for sponsorship to various organizations that I felt might be interested. One of my friends suggested that the local representative at the legislature (MLA) is one of the youngest MLAs that Karnataka has ever had and he is extremely supportive of causes for the youth. I must confess that on the very call to secure appointment to meet him, he congratulated me and assured me of financial support to aid my one way travel to Prague..But the fee for attending the conference is 33,000 CZK (around Rs. 81,000), however I have been awarded scholarship of 20% discount on the merit of my essays. This is given only to 10 participants out of 100. This means I would need another company/person to sponsor me so as to confirm my participation in the conference. But a constraint before me is time. I have very little time left..Apart from sponsorship, I have already applied for my visa. But as the time is very less, I am a bit concerned on whether the visa will be issued on time. Thus, this conference visit will be subject to my visa. However, I am positive that my visa will be issued within 3 or 4 days from now because I have submitted all the necessary documents..How are you preparing for the conference?.It is a requisite that one who attends the conference must know the proceedings of UNSC, ICC and all other simulations, which will be held. I have also been researching extensively on the theme of the conference in terms of my academic preparation. The reason of my research is every one of us is aware of the puzzle and none of us are able to dissect it threadbare and find solutions at the grassroots level. When the efforts of participation by the youth in civic issues is not acknowledged, when the ideas expressed by youth is looked down upon for want of experience, when youth are typically stereotyped to be “just college students”, lack of interest and hatred by the youth is bound to be noticed. My participation will be on this line of view..Bharat is now trying to raise funds to attend this conference. The letter that is issued by the Conference Director for those who are interested in sponsoring Bharat reads – “IYLC-Prague has identified Bharat as an exceptional young leader committed to academic and professional excellence, through a competitive application process, and is now welcoming him to join a select group of 100 students to attend the IYLC between July 22nd and 27th, 2012. Youth Leadership Europe and its partners are convinced that this is a great opportunity for Bharat, as well as for the rest of your community, and I am therefore writing to you to seek your support for this outstanding student as to make sure that he is able to take full advantage of this unique experience.”If someone is willing to sponsor, he/she can contact Bharat R. Itagi directly by email at bharat_9009@yahoo.com.