In the first week of September, 90 YES alumni from Lebanon congregated for a YES alumni retreat. Alumni from all nine YES cohorts since 2003 were represented! For two days, alumni delved fully into professional development workshops and planning for the up-coming year.

Alumni benefited from a number of skills-development workshops, such as Communication, Time Management, Career Orientation, and Presentation skills. During the career orientation workshop, a professional trainer guided them through essential leadership excercises and shared key tips. Additionally, young YES alumni professional hosted an event similar to the TEDx speaker series, where each highlighted their work experience in specific fields including finance, marketing, computer science, and accounting.

Alumni also spent several hours planning an action agenda for the coming year which included, developing active alumni groups located in diverse geographic areas, organizing community service activities for each region of Lebanon, and making a big impact to mark the upcoming 10th anniversary of the YES program.