The This is Me programme is returning to Trinidad but on a much larger scale than ever before. The brainchild of T&T-born Dr Marielle Barrow, the fifth edition of the programme aims to train 200 at-risk youth, aged 16-32, in fashion, leadership and entrepreneurship and assist them in starting businesses.
Barrow said fashion was chosen because it is a practical skill which can run the gamut from grassroots to high art.
“We’re thinking about how their presentation in what they wear and how they dress says about them and what they want it to say. It helps them in terms of introspection, creating a new vision and shifting their perspective of themselves.”
Barrow also hopes the programme will shift the perception of fashion and those who are involved in it. “It’s not just about what you wear or looking cute, and it’s not just for women. There are many aspects to the fashion industry; for example, one of the streams they can specialise in is event management and visual merchandising, and we take this seriously as it is required for an effective industry.
“We definitely want men interested in the programme, and (…) a lot of the major fashion designers in the world are men.”
Barrow said Caribbean InTransit, the non-profit she started in 1996, would provide support in areas like marketing and accounting because those are some of the most difficult areas for small and young businesses to maintain.
The organisation also plans to seek accreditation through the National Training Agency, so that young people who go through the programme gain a qualification. Previous editions of the programme have been carried out in T&T, Jamaica and Haiti, working with different communities, including University and high school students and people living with HIV/Aids.
The two-year programme involves three six-month cohorts, where young people from Port-of-Spain and environs, including Cocorite, Laventille, Morvant, St James, St Ann’s and Belmont will be trained in three modules: fashion, leadership and entrepreneurship.
Following the training, the programme will partner with different institutions to do incubations and support.
“A big part of this is that they get access to loans to build their businesses and that’s major, because so many young people that can’t do that, because it involves writing a business plan, etc, and they don’t have that training,” Barrow said. Caribbean InTransit will help those youth who are not successful in the program to find employment, as not everyone is cut out to be an entrepreneur.
Barrow said the aim after the initial two years is to expand the programme to different areas of T&T. She said Caribbean InTransit is invested in the growth and development of young people so they can change their communities.
“We don’t want the youth to be singled out and ostracised, rather than recognised as someone who’s doing something with themselves. We’re therefore proud to have involved the communities, in that any individual who comes into the programme has to give us the names of three to five persons—family or community members who will support them and engage with the programme at various junctures.”
Barrow said this ensures accountability and educates the community about what the young person is doing. She hopes it will also lower the rate of people dropping out of the programme. She said that they are looking for support and funding to do a childcare programme, as they realise that some of the young people may have children.
The programme has been developed in conjunction with the Inter-American Development Bank and will be partnering with UTT, the Citizen Security Programme (CSP)—Trinidad, the National Integrated Business Incubator System (IBIS) and the T&T Art Therapy Association.
It is also recruiting qualified instructors, volunteers and partners. “You can become a mentor, a facilitator, you might want to offer a session for the life skills component, etc. We also take on volunteers who would assist in recruiting and different aspects of the programming.”
To business people and others who are interested in volunteering in the programme, Barrow said this was an opportunity for them to tap into some real talent. “We have a society that emphasises seniority and we respect our elders and seek advice from them in every way, but we also recognise that you can learn so much from youth.
“We want it to be an exchange, so this is an opportunity not just for people in the industry but entrepreneurs, business people, etc, to give back to our society, and the change they want to see in our society, that affects their very businesses, it starts here.”
Barrow said she would tell potential applicants that this is an opportunity for them to be respected, not only by others in their community, but by themselves. “This is an opportunity for them to express themselves creatively, and I think there are a lot of creative youth in T&T with not enough outlets for them to really develop themselves in that direction. It's also an opportunity for honest and fulfilling work.”
Young people can fill out the application form online or in person at upcoming roadshows. There will also be pitch training sessions where they will learn how to structure a video to further inform the organisation about who they are.
She said the programme is really about changing the mindsets about fashion and the fashion industry and what it involves, and “how people can really use this as a way to change their communities and their ability to earn a living for themselves. We do know that change can be well represented, documented, understood and experienced through fashion.”
More info: Go to: caribbeanintransit.com or find This Is ME on Facebook.