My Experience With The Georgia Youth Sustainability Conference
In March of 2023 I chose to volunteer for the Social Media Committee in the upcoming Georgia Youth Sustainability Conference (GYSC). This decision was a shot in the dark, because I am very much an introvert and I wasn’t that active on social media prior to then. I was rethinking that decision, wondering if I should’ve chosen something I had experience in, like marketing or even logistics. Thankfully, that decision led me to over half a year of fun and growth.
During the 7 months I spent advertising the conference, I learned a lot about myself. I discovered that I love procrastinating, but if it’s something I am passionate about, I become a very responsible and proactive person. To be honest, at the beginning I wasn’t very involved, letting other volunteers do the work, but that quickly changed. Social media was all very new to me, but with the other volunteers to bounce ideas off of, I easily grew to enjoy posting on the GYSC account. I found myself checking how many views we got almost every day, a new sort of thrill filling me when a post got more views than usual. My growing passion for the Social Media Committee helped me come out of my comfort zone as an introvert and be talkative in meetings, even as far as taking videos with people outside of GreenCell to post in reels. It helped me gain the confidence to start my own glass recycling project for neighborhoods, and create an active social media page for it as well. I have GYSC to thank for making me realize how rewarding stepping out of my comfort zone can be, and it has certainly made me a better person.
Eventually, the day of the conference came and even though I knew exactly how it was going to be, I was in awe at the success it became. As soon as I stepped into the main hall for the conference, I was met with a plethora of booths, each with something new and enriching; There were many kind and passionate volunteers, each one confident and passionate in our mission. I don’t know what I was envisioning for GYSC, but the outcome was more than I could’ve hoped for. It could have been because I saw the months of hard work, stress and sleepless nights so many volunteers did, but I was truly amazed. I was so glad to be a part of something this big, it felt like I really did make a difference. I know this all may come off as sappy and cringy, but GYSC helped me come out of my shell.
I learnt a lot in this experience, but the biggest takeaway was to try my hardest and take that leap. I would say I’m a careful and reserved person, someone who lives by the saying: ‘better safe than sorry’. However, in taking the risks to sign up for this committee, making posts that were different to me, going out and talking to people, I learned how rewarding stepping out of the barriers I made for myself can be. Overall, I absolutely loved volunteering for GYSC and I would do it again with no hesitation.
