The Mandela Gandhi Youth Summit held on 19th July 2014 had a multi prong impact in the Republic of South Africa. The significance of the date ( 19th July 2014 – a 100 years to the day when Mahatma Gandhi left the shores of South Africa) along with the location ( Constitution Hill, the current seat of the constitution of SA and a former prison that held Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela) carried a deep impact on all the stakeholders. The fact that the event was held during the Mandela week (the birthday week of Nelson Mandela) attracted the general public at large and also created a renewed interest in Mahatma Gandhi at the Government agency level. Officials of the Department of Arts and Culture, republic of South Africa and Constitution Hill publicly acknowledged the event. The Director General of the DAC in his opening remarks at the Festival of India made special mention of success of the Youth Festival.
The core target, groups of high school students were very perceptive to the interactive and multimedia format of the Youth Summit. Multiple short films with engagement build around them were a new format and caught the imagination of the youth. The fact that the granddaughter of Nelson Mandela and the Grandson of Walter Sisulu addressed the students further endorsed the engagement and interaction. The spontaneous engagement between students from India and South Africa was the catalyst and multiple views were engaged ensuring a long lasting effect. The culminating collaborative art project of the World citizen passport ensured that the impact of this youth summit would be felt for a long period of time. The secondary influence the summit had on the teachers and parents of the attendees has to be noted.
The local media picked up the story and we have ensured that the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi is engrained in the most important week of South Africa i.e. Mandela Week. This summit can be replicated every year during Mandela Week to further the legacy of the Mahatma.
