Partners of The Americas - Trinidad Chapter

lasting partnerships. The Trinidad Chapter, is remains abreast of all the work that Partners is undertaking

and partakes in as many initiatives as possible. The Youth Ambassador

Programmme (also referred to as YA), is a US State Department sponsored cultural

exchange programmme bringing together youth from diverse communities across

the Americas and is geared towards students ages 15-18. The aim is to build an

understanding among countries, increasing leadership skills, and preparing them to

be positive agents of change through volunteer service. As part of participation in this programme, thirteen Trinbagonian Youth visited

Washington D.C. and Maine on a three week exchange in 2012. During this

programme, participants were able to engage in several activities inclusive of visiting

several world renowned attractions. Key amongst these was The Capitol, which

looks over D.C., and several monuments including the Thomas Jefferson, Abraham

Lincoln and Martin Luther King memorials. Partners of The Americas also works closely and in cohesion with other local and

regional organisations and NGOs that are geared towards positively impacting and

changing lives. This is inclusive of the United Nations Development Programme’s

Youth-In Initiative, which is a Caribbean Network for Youth Development that

encompasses Project Initiatives for Youth including Volunteerism, Entrepreneurship,

Cultural and Artistic Development, Communications, Governance, Regional

Integration, Monitoring & Evaluation and Programme Management. Another organisation which Partners of the Americas; The Trinidad Chapter works

with closely, is the NGO Vision on Mission, which is also a part of the Partners of

The Americas Network. Vision on Mission is an organisation which is dedicated

to the successful reintegration and resettlement of ex-prisoners, deportees and

juveniles through the philosophy of Restorative Justice. In addition to promoting the

general principles on which Partners of the Americas stands, Vision on Mission’s

Founder, CEO and Executive President, Mr. Wayne Chance is the current President

of the Partners of the Americas Trinidad Chapter and the secretary of the Board

of Partners of the Americas. During his tenure as a member of the Trinidad –

Mississippi Partners, he has helped execute the US Department of State's Youth

Ambassadors program and has worked as the chapters' Director of Public Relations. Directly preceding Mr. Chance’s role as President of the Trinidad Chapter was Mr. William Latchman, who before his untimely death was also the President of the

Board of Directors of Vision on Mission.