Who would have thought we’d see the seceretary general of the Norwegian Red Cross while staging a car accident this sunday afternoon. After a good session, where all of the youth delegates were taught basic first aid like CPR and removal of foreign objects from the respiratory system, we went out to the back yard of the Red Cross building to be prepared for the real deal - our instructor staged a car accident. Then all of a sudden, Børge Brende walks past. The SG is very polite and interested in all of us. He takes a photo to publish on his blog, and is hoping that he will be able to visit Ingvild and Anniken in Sudan. Nothing is like getting a little attention from the top of the hierarchy to make us feel important.
But after the last few days of training, I really feel like the work we will be doing is important. The fact that all of us hopefully will be able to make an impact on how the Red Cross Youth movements in our host countries actually work, is quite significant. I can’t wait to use games like Raw War and On the Run when taking part in the dissemination of knowledge about rules of war. The youth delegates all partook in a mini roleplay on friday which is meant to make the participants get an understanding of what it feels like to be a refugee. It was a very powerful experience and I really wish I had been given the oportunity to do the entire 24-hour roleplay when I was younger.
Ingvild and Anniken are going to Sudan, and Camilla is going to Nepal with Emil. Photo: Harald Viken
So that means I just need to start learning kinyarwanda as soon as possible, so I’ll have a chance to communicate with all of the youth in Rwanda, not only those who have had the opportunity to learn french or english. I can’t wait. In a week I will have started the most exciting part.
