2024 “We Care, We Share” – Mental Health Youth Ambassador Programme and Macau Secondary School Mental Health Speech Contest Kicks Off
Macau, Monday, 14 October 2024: The “We Care, We Share” – Mental Health Youth Ambassador Programme and Macau Secondary School Mental Health Speech Contest grand opening ceremony was held at the Wynn Macau Ballroom. The event was co-organised by the Macau Speaker Association, the Rotary Club of Macau, and the YMCA of Macau, sponsored by the Macau Foundation, and with the support of the Social Welfare Bureau and the Education and Youth Development Bureau.
The program focuses on the very important issue of mental health in our society, aiming to cultivate young people’s interest in public speaking, improve their communication skills, and disseminate positive mental health knowledge. This seeks to enhance their knowledge of mental health and help them face psychological challenges correctly.
The program also spreads positive mental health knowledge to enhance young people’s understanding of mental health, help them face psychological challenges, improve their personal qualities, and promote the building of a harmonious campus. The event attracted nearly 200 students, social organisations and members of the public from all walks of life in Macau.
In his opening ceremony speech, So Io Kuong, President of the Macau Speaker Association, pointed out that last year’s program had enabled many secondary school students to gain a deeper understanding of mental health and to face various psychological challenges, expressing their thoughts and feelings to the public through speeches. This year, the organisers will continue to build on the success of the previous edition and use the power of words to promote the importance of mental health.
This year’s event attracted 20 schools and over 70 students to participate in the Mental Health Youth Ambassador Programme and Speech Contest. Through a series of mental health talks, speech workshops, group coaching and competitions, the organisers hope to enhance the psychological quality, communication and presentation skills of secondary school students, and to promote a positive attitude towards life. The programme also further promoted exchanges among students from different schools to explored their potential and built a good platform for their diversified development.
At the opening ceremony, the highlights of the previous event were reviewed. Afterwards, the Secretary General of the Macau Speaker Association, Man Wa Chan, the President of the Rotary Club of Macau, Calvin Kuang, and the Executive Director of the YMCA of Macau, Vincent Wan, shared their initial ideas for this year’s event and recounted the unforgettable moments of the previous event. Assistant Governor of Rotary International District 3450, Elvo Sou, introduced the programme and training arrangements, highlighting that the champion and the best trainee of the competition will be invited to attend the Asia-Pacific Regional Rotaract Conference (APRRC) to broaden their international horizons. The APRRC will be held in Mongolia in June 2025.
The organisers also invited Dr Benjamin Au Yeung, former Senior Lecturer of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, to share his latest mental health theory “The Mental Refrigerator”, exploring how to fill up the “food storage compartments” through sports, arts and hobbies to enhance stress resistance.
Also attending the opening ceremony Leaders and delegates attending the opening ceremony also included LIN ZHENYU, from the Department of Education and Youth of the Central People’s Government Liaison Office in Macau; CHAN YIU HUNG, Head of the Family Service Division of the Social Welfare Bureau; CHIO POU WAI, Head of the Youth Development Division of the Education and Youth Development Bureau; KUAN SOK LENG, General Secretary of YMCA of Macau; DR. CHOU CHIH-CHIANG, Consultant Psychiatrist of the Health Bureau; RAYMOND LEI, Assistant President for Community & Government Relations of Wynn Macau and Wynn Palace; VICTOR LAI, the founding president of the Macau Speaker Association; LAM IOK HA CHRISTY, the president of the ICBC Macau Youth Association; EUGENIA ALVES, the chairman of Avis Personal Potential Training (Macau) Ltd; NINA SI, the Secretary General of the Federation of Chinese Students in Macau; the President of the Rotary Club of Hou Kuong, Terrance Hoi; the President of the Rotary Club of Macau Central, Cecilia Wong; the President of the Rotary Club Guia, Niki Lao; the President of the Rotary Club of Amizade, Aaron TANG; the past president of the Rotary Club Penha Macao, Viana Wong; the President of the Macau Psychological Association, Lee Seng Hang, and other student counselling service organisations, among many others.
