Faces of Recovery: Leading by example

Wadlet Merant’s house in Pestel was damaged in the earthquake, however as the secretary of the U-Report club (a youth community group) he was committed to helping others survive the worst affects of the catastrophic event.

“I was in total panic. It was a terrible thing. It was like the end of the world. Members of the U-Report club were together on the ground pulling people out of the rubble.

Today, the work of our U-reporters continues. It has been very encouraging to see all the young people supporting each other and the community they live in. I have witnessed change at first hand. People and especially young people started to behave differently after what had happened, helping each other in a more prominent way.

Before the earthquake, U-Reporters led by example, cleaning public spaces. Now, young people help us to clean the streets and to remove the rubble. The entire community in Pestel is helping to make the city cleaner. I did not expect that. This is a really important gesture”.

Read more about the U-Reporters here