The global team meeting

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Newey is the head of Thailand's Youth Venture program, located in Bangkok.

Youth Venture, a global organization and partner of Ashoka, is dedicated to supporting and encouraging Ventures that benefit society, proposed and run by young people across Thailand. The vision behind the program is that everyone can take initiative and address social needs. Young people form the basis for this.

Newey will be continuing her work with the program to further the impact it is having on Bangkok society. Follow her efforts in her blogs and video diaries.

December 12, 2007
I am writing from Gate 4 of Terminal 4 at JFK airport in New York. I just got back from a Youth Venture Global Team meeting in West Cornwall, Connecticut and I'm on my way to Tampa, Florida where I will spend some time with my friend and my book arts teacher.

I arrived in New York last week and I thought it was autumn, not winter, since the trees in Central Park were so colorful, mostly orange.

On the second day I was so excited to see snow. Everywhere I looked was covered in white, unlike Thailand where it is always sunny. I am grateful for nature for showing us that diversity and difference are natural. I felt so weird that the sun set at 4:30 pm. I just want to stop working and go to bed.

We went on a four hour drive from New York to West Cornwall -- the driver was lost, otherwise it would have taken only two or three hours.

Anyway, the Youth Venture team was busy catching up since we haven't met for 14 months. We had almost 50 people at the meeting, from 12 countries, discussing support for youth to become change-makers in Thailand, India, Brazil, Argentina, U.S., Canada, Germany, Belgium, Germany, South Africa and others.

There are tons of wonderful and inspiring stories about young people from all the countries that our teams work with. They started their projects, learned, created impact and got recognized.

When I heard Adam Aberman talk about collaboration among teenagers in D.C., (Washington), Seattle and India, I realized how small the world can be and how much technology can connect us, and empower us to be able to help each other.

Sometimes I have doubts that I am too idealistic to think that we can change anything. As a small and powerless person, how much can I do? But the more I work, the more I discover that a small group of determined people can actually create positive change -- only those who change themselves, take action on the things that matter to them and are not so busy trying to change others. Just like the real artists will always be busy creating, not talking. In the room full of YV team members all around the world, I really feel a part of something big.

As 2007 comes to an end, it's been 14 months since I joined Youth Venture and five years of working to support young change-makers. I'm so grateful to live this life of my dream. I really am exactly where I want to be. Next year, I promise myself to even have more fun and continue the good work. E-mail to a friend