LOCAL youth group Nulli Secundus (which translates to ‘second to none’) recently trekked over four mountains and across the savannahs in the North Rupununi to create a positive impact in a number of indigenous communities and within their own selves.

President of the group, Martin Massiah highlighted, “Eleven years ago, we formed Nulli Secundus with a simple purpose- to build tomorrow’s leaders- and now after completing expedition ‘Linkin’ Up’ we’re still on track to doing that.”

The expedition began on August 8 and came to an end 10 days later on August 18. The group took with them their skills and intentions to teach residents of the indigenous villages practical skills, so that they could use the resources they have.

Massiah said, “We were on a campaign in the North Rupununi to teach as many communities as we could. We were able to teach Annai, Wowetta, Rupertee and Surama.”

Essentially, what the group found is that the communities might have had the requisite resources but lacked the relevant skills to exploit these resources and it was their mandate to transform persons.

During the 10 days they spent in the area, they were able to interact with some 150 persons through sharing their skills in cake decorating, Information Technology and playing the Steelpan.

Shevon Moses, a Nulli Secundus youth, led one of the cake decorating sessions and for her it was a pretty uplifting session knowing that she was able to give back to the communities at large.

“I’m really happy doing that- giving back to the community,” Moses said.

As said by Vice President of the group, Tiffany David, the communities really felt the love pouring out from the group. “A lot of the feedback that we got from the villagers was that this [training] was just perfect for them,” she shared. “They are really intelligent people. The only thing is that they don’t have the access and the opportunity like us in Georgetown.”

Added to that, she is just really proud that the group allows the young people to connect with others and effect some positive change.

On the expedition, in addition to taking their skills with them, each participant had their own expectations, reservations and even queer habits. So it really wasn’t all fun and no play, but in fact, it was lots and lots of play!

Martin stressed, “It wasn’t just about teaching the communities either, it was about training our leaders in an interesting and immersive environment.”

The participants were able to climb four mountains, walk cross the Iwokrama canopy and generally explore the pristine beauty of Guyana. And they were your average group of friends going on a trip- staying up late ‘gyaffing’, even when they needed to be up early the next day, pranking each other and making jokes about each other.

One feeling shared by the entire group, however, was pride. They ascertained that they were able to see firsthand just how magnificent Guyana is and how amazing the lifestyles of the Indigenous peoples are.

This expedition was the first for Daniel Baldeo-Thorne and he said it was “pretty unforgettable” and that he is excited for the next one.

“Next year, it’s going to be even better with Expedition Kaieteur,” Martin said and affirmed: “Nulli Secundus is here to serve Guyana and its people and we’re here to push our young people to the next level.”