JAMAICA’S youth continue to make significant strides through professional and educational exchanges in the United States.

Esther Pinnock is the most recent returnee from the Atlas Corps programme, having served as a fellow with primary responsibility for communications engagement.

Pinnock, one of 22 participants from various countries, including Tunisia, Pakistan and El Salvador, demonstrated Jamaica’s prowess in leadership and provided invaluable services to the Atlas Corps Team.

Prior to her Atlas Corps participation, Pinnock served as executive director for three-and-a-half years at the Citizens Advice Bureau. As the youngest individual to hold this position, she had primary responsibility for ensuring that Jamaicans had access to information and resources, which empowered and raised awareness on the citizenry’s rights and responsibilities.

“The Atlas Corps Fellowship allowed me to strengthen my leadership skills through numerous training opportunities. Now, I’m more equipped to impact Jamaica and the word,” she said, noting that the exchange afforded her the chance to “represent Jamaica as a citizen ambassador, to share Jamaican culture, and to correct some of the stereotypes about Jamaicans”.

Through the Atlas Corps programme, Pinnock recognised the potency of organised advocacy, having seen first-hand how change can be truly effected within a society through planned, peaceful and knowledge-driven expression of discontent. She now intends to use her sharpened skill sets to engage and encourage Jamaica’s youth to lift their voices in support of positive change within their community and more broadly across the island. This Pinnock is committed to, as she believes that citizens must become more involved in nation-building and be more aware of their government’s roles/responsibilities and their own rights.

“I am now part of strong, global networks such as Atlas Corps and the US State Department Exchange Alumni, which can be leveraged to further local and regional development. I can now execute my vision of empowering more Jamaican youth to become active citizens to contribute to the strengthening of civil society in Jamaica,” Pinnock said.

The St Jago High and Carimac graduate lives by the mantra”Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” and the famous Ernest Hemingway quote, “True nobility is not being greater than your fellow men, but greater than your former self.”

She says she strives continually to improve herself and staunchly believes in people-to-people collaboration, not competition.

Atlas Service Corps, which started in 2006, is an international network of non-profit leaders and organisations that promotes innovation, co-operation, and solutions to address the world’s 21st-century challenges. The programme’s mission is to address critical social issues by, developing leaders, strengthening organisations and promoting innovation through an overseas fellowship of skilled, non-profit professionals.

Currently, Jamaica’s Alicia Maragh and Anna Kim Robinson are participating in the programme and are assigned to Child Fund International and Heartland Alliance International, respectively.