CYE-CYL recently launched their Innovation Hub. The initiative aimed to provide participants with the skills to succeed in their personal, academic and/or professional lives through regular events and activities. As part of the launch of CYE-CYL’s Innovation Hub, a 3-day residential was held at the Europa Retreat Centre for 16-20 year old’s, with participants gaining tips on ‘How to adult’ through a series of fun, yet meaningful activities. 

A statement from CYE-CYL’s follows below;

CYE-CYL (pronounced as ‘Cycle’) is an acronym for Change your Energy, Change Your Life. Founded in 2018, CYE-CYL is a charity that was created to provide training and development programmes for young people to live with confidence, drive and ambition.

To date, CYE-CYL has achieved great success in empowering 100 young people in Gibraltar and beyond through their 3-week summer challenge. However, CYE-CYL’s aim has always been to provide support all year long. CYE-CYL’s Innovation Hub is an initiative aimed at doing exactly this, by providing participants with the skills to succeed in their personal, academic and/or professional lives through regular events and activities. As part of the launch of CYE-CYL’s Innovation Hub, a 3-day residential was held at the Europa Retreat Centre for 16-20 year old’s, with participants gaining tips on ‘How to adult’ through a series of fun, yet meaningful activities. Each day of the residential was initiated with physical activity, prompting participants to begin their day actively and energetically, and guiding them towards a healthy lifestyle. In addition, every day was finished off with a ‘Feelgood Space’, a group session inviting participants to reflect on their strengths, and encouraging them to embrace their unique qualities.

On the morning of day one, they were put through their paces with a fun interactive workout led by Absolute Fitness Club, followed by a series of entertaining team-building exercises to develop the bonds amongst participants. After lunch, we were joined by Chief Business Officer Albert De las Heras from Trusted Novus Bank, who delivered an extremely useful workshop on budgeting for beginners. Participants were then divided into small groups, and tasked with budgeting for two meals over the course of the next two days with a small sum of money. Implementing their newly acquired budgeting skills, participants sought to the supermarket to shop for ingredients, before preparing dinner for one another as part of their independent living practice. 

On the morning of day two, participants engaged in a peaceful yoga session, led by Heartspace Yoga with Sammie, who finished by setting a good intention for each participant to reflect upon over the course of the day ahead. Following some further fun games and activities, participants were invited to reflect upon their interests, and translate their passions into future career paths. Joining us from EY Gibraltar, Managing Partner, Angelique Linares, and Audit Manager, Jerwin Escalona, facilitated a great workshop on interview tips, providing participants with valuable advice on how to prepare for job interviews, and how to leave a significant impression on interviewers. After lunch, participants used their newly acquired knowledge to prepare for a job interview of their choice. Operations manager, Christina Cruz, and Content Marketing Executive, Morgan Brown, then formed part of an interview panel, assessing participants through individual interviews and group-based tasks, and providing extensive feedback on their performances. To finish off the day, participants once again used the ingredients they had budgeted for to prepare delicious meals for one another, before thoroughly cleaning up the kitchen and dining hall, further preparing them for the chores and tasks that come with independent living.

On the third and final day, participants kickstarted their morning by venturing up the beautiful Mediterranean steps, supporting one another all the way to the top of the rock. On the way down, they were encouraged to reflect on the past few days, by thinking about how they had benefitted from the residential. To round off the weekend, participants were invited to introspect in a group setting, reflecting not only on the residential as a whole, but also on their worth and potential, whilst also identifying how their newly acquired skills can support them in their future lives.

Here's what one of our participants had to say about their experience:

‘’I feel more confident in my ability to focus on the important things in life, such as family, hobbies and healthy relationships. I also feel more grounded, and humble. Thanks to CYE-CYL, I acknowledge that accepting my mistakes and moving on to be better is just a part of life’’.

As a small charity, CYE-CYL charged participants a small fee of £20, covering the remaining costs through the generous support of their sponsors. This ensures that all young people have equitable access to benefit from CYE-CYL’s activities. We are extremely grateful to our key sponsors, who include EY, Trusted Novus Bank, GBC Open Day, and Kusuma Trust, for providing us with the financial backing to provide invaluable support to the youth of Gibraltar.

If you wish to become part of this amazing initiative or require further information, visit www.cyecyl.org, or email [email protected].