Program Founders and Visionaries
Ruth and Jerry Chang
History:
From World Vision Youth Ambassadors to Global Peace Ambassadors
From 1995-2000, the World Vision Youth Ambassadors [YAs] were members of a youth leadership program and performing arts ensemble made up of 50+ youth from 50+ different countries. The YAs spent 12 weeks from June-August touring the world as a choir, studying peace and reconciliation, and participating in humanitarian work worldwide.
The group performed internationally in many countries including Austria, Canada, Mexico, Honduras, Ecuador, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Dominican Republic, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Thailand, and the Philippines. Notable venues include the EXPO 2000 in Hannover, the World Vision global conference in Johannesburg 1998, the United Nations and WHO headquarters in Geneva, presidential residences in Taipei, Taiwan, and San Jose, Costa Rica; Yankee Stadium in NYC, and Regina Mundi in Soweto with Rebecca Malope.
The Youth Ambassador program was founded and led by the late Dr. Jerry C.L. Chang, who served as Director of World Vision Taiwan, UNDP representative in Paraguay, Director of the East-West Center in Hawaii, and as a civil engineer in international development in Nigeria, Ecuador, and Thailand. His notable work as a civil engineer includes the St. Louis Gateway Arch, and the Pittsburgh Fort Pitt Bridge. His wife, Ruth, the heart of the program, fondly known to YAs as "Mama Chang," has remained an incredible uniting and inspiring force in our work.
Today, more than 250 Youth Ambassador alumni include a number of former sponsored children, as well as notable diplomats, musicians, medical professionals, academics, and community leaders. During the COVID quarantine, the Youth Ambassador alumni began forming a more formalized entity – the Global Peace Ambassadors. Efforts are underway to create a non-profit with a mission to:
Build bridges over walls of division to create ripples that turn into waves of peace.
Simunye. We are one. Together we stand.