From YMCA Participant to Community Leader: Nazar Levchuk’s Journey at the YMCA-HP Digital Hub in Ternopil, Ukraine
Nazar is a young leader from YMCA Ternopil whose journey reflects how access to learning opportunities, mentorship, and digital tools can empower young people to develop ideas and take initiative in their communities.
Over the past years, Nazar has actively participated in a variety of YMCA programmes, including youth camps and the local Speaking Club, where he began developing his leadership and communication skills. Through these experiences, he demonstrated initiative, creativity, and a strong commitment to personal growth and community engagement.
A significant step in his journey came through his involvement in activities hosted at the YMCA-HP Digital Hub in Ternopil. The hub is part of the wider YMCA digital equity initiative, providing young people with access to digital tools, learning resources, and training opportunities that support skills development and innovation.
At the hub, Nazar was able to work with HP HOPE refurbished laptops, which provide participants with access to technology that enables learning, project development, and collaboration. Through the hub’s activities, he also engaged with the HP LIFE platform, where young people can develop practical digital, entrepreneurial, and business skills through online courses.
During one of the educational initiatives linked to the hub, Nazar took on the role of a project leader and began developing his own idea while strengthening his digital and entrepreneurial competencies.
As part of the programme, he created the concept for an educational platform called Speak Boldly, designed to help school students overcome the fear of public speaking and develop strong communication skills. The idea combines digital tools, practical exercises, and elements of psychological support to create a safe environment where young people can gradually build confidence in expressing their ideas.
Although the platform is currently still at the concept stage, Nazar hopes that with the right support it could eventually grow into a tool that helps many young people develop confidence and communication skills.
“I believe that every young person has ideas worth sharing. Sometimes the only thing that stops us is fear. I wanted to create a space where students could practise speaking, make mistakes, and grow more confident every day,” says Nazar.
With this idea, Nazar participated in a youth entrepreneurship competition where participants presented innovative solutions addressing real social and educational challenges. His project received strong recognition from the jury for its creativity, social relevance, and potential impact on youth development.
As a result, Nazar won the competition and was awarded two years of free education at the Psychology and Entrepreneurship Institute.
“Winning this competition showed me that young people can create solutions that truly matter. This opportunity motivates me to continue learning and developing my project so that it can help many more students in the future,” Nazar explains.
Nazar’s journey demonstrates how YMCA programmes – combined with access to digital learning environments such as the YMCA-HP Digital Hubs, the use of HP HOPE technology, and learning opportunities through HP LIFE courses, can support young people in transforming ideas into meaningful initiatives.
His path from YMCA camp participant and speaking club member to project leader and competition winner is a powerful example of how youth leadership programmes can nurture talent, inspire innovation, and empower the next generation of changemakers.
