September 12, 2022

For immediate release

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – The United States Embassy in Malaysia, in partnership with Cultural Vistas successfully implemented the 2022 Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) Regional Workshop: Diversity, Inclusion, and Youth in Kuala Lumpur. 75 young leaders from Southeast Asia came together for a three-day workshop, 18-20 August, to identify ways to engage in open, appropriate, and effective interactions with people from different cultures, and to build their capacity in implementing diversity initiatives within their workplaces.

Programming began in July as participants underwent virtual courses designed to develop tangible global skills essential to live, work, and make a real social impact around the world. Participants who completed the course were awarded the Global Competency Certificate (GCC),  a tool that sharpens participants skills in intercultural communication.

Workshop sessions included exercises that introduced the Global Diversity and Inclusion Benchmark (GDIB), team building, storytelling, deploying human centered design principles, and strategy development. Malaysian organizations joined the conference for day-two, providing examples of organizations championing diversity and inclusion from a Malaysian context.

“During the regional workshop in KL, I am not only learning about diversity, inclusion, and equity in the conference room, but to experience it in real-life conversation in the dining hall, inside of the bus, and everywhere I got the chance to spend time with everyone. Now I have gained a great connection with fellow young leaders, and I am optimistic we will do amazing things together in the future.” -Randiano Tamelan

For more information about the 2022 YSEALI Regional Workshop: Diversity, Inclusion, and Youth, please email yseali@culturalvistas.org.

About YSEALI

What: Launched in 2013, the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) is the U.S. government’s signature program to strengthen leadership development and networking in Southeast Asia. Through a variety of programs and engagements, YSEALI seeks to build the leadership capabilities of youth in the region, strengthen ties between the United States and Southeast Asia, and nurture an ASEAN community of leaders who work across borders to solve common issues.

Why: Approximately 65% of people in the ASEAN region are under the age of 35. YSEALI is an effort to harness the extraordinary potential of youth in the region to address critical challenges and expand opportunities.

Who: The YSEALI community consists of bright young leaders, 18–35 years old, from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Laos, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam who are making a difference in their communities, countries, and the region. Learn more about the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative at yseali.state.gov and join the official YSEALI social media communities on Facebook and Twitter.

The 2022 YSEALI Regional Workshop: Diversity, Inclusion, Youth is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and is funded through a grant from the U.S. Embassy Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Cultural Vistas serves as the implementing partner.

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