On Saturday, 14th September 2019, over 100 youth delegates of The International Model United Nations (TIMUN) volunteered with Habitat for Humanity Sri Lanka to paint the homes of visually impaired persons in Nayanalokagama, Negombo. This special event titled ‘TIMUN Youth Build’ was held in conjunction with The International Model United Nations (TIMUN) Conference attended by over 160 international and local students, held from the 12-15th September at the Hilton Colombo Residencies.
Special Guest of Honour, South African High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Her Excellency Robina P.Marks also graced the occasion and volunteered her time painting homes together with the youth and became acquainted with the visually impaired beneficiaries. Highlighting the importance of youth engagement towards building a more sustainable world, she urged the youth to ‘think Global but to act Local’, thereby encouraging the TIMUN delegates to go beyond drafting resolutions and to become agents of change in their communities.
Official event partner JAT Holdings (Pvt) Ltd. generously donated 100 liters of Permoglaze Weathershield Emulsion paints and paint brushes, enabling the TIMUN youth delegates from Ladies’ College, Lyceum International School, Asian Grammar School and Ilma International School to spend a day painting the homes of ten visually impaired persons who had recently received homes through Habitat for Humanity Sri Lanka’s ‘Homes for Hope’ Project.
The TIMUN Youth Build was the first ‘Activity Day’ of its kind, held mid-way during a Model-UN conference, which provided delegates with an unique opportunity to step away from conference deliberations and to put into practice their learnings and engage in sustainable development at the community level.
Speaking at the event, Mr. Yu Hwa Li, National Director – Habitat for Humanity Sri Lanka commented, “Habitat Sri Lanka is proud to be celebrating its 25th Anniversary in 2019. Throughout the last two decades, Habitat has been committed to fostering volunteerism in Sri Lanka. Unlike any other volunteer experience, Habitat’s volunteers get hands-on construction experience building a home with their teammates and also have the satisfaction of knowing that their generosity and hard work resulted in a family in need being blessed with a place to call home. We invite all youth to come join us in our mission towards building a Sri Lanka where every family will have a decent place to call home”.
