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Held in Qu�©bec City from Aug. 10 to 22, the fourth World Youth Congress (WYC) or ReG�©n�©ration 2008 was meant to be a venue for young people to convene and engage in fruitful dialogue about international issues.

But much like official inter-state dialogue between nations, the mostly successful Congress has been marked by moments of tension and conflict between delegates, and between organizers and delegates.

With more than 600 youth representing over 120 countries from around the world gathering at Laval University to participate in skills workshops, debates and discussions with development professionals and a full cultural program, miscommunication and cultural disparities naturally occurred.

The idealistic notion of a United Nations-like showing of solidarity amongst people of diverse backgrounds was debunked by reality - and was in fact, a reflection of reality.

One anonymous delegate who wrote an op-ed to ReG�©n�©ration Press, the official Congress newsletter, complained of the "sexual lewdness of certain participants that have led many female delegates to retreat in groups due to (their discomfort of some male participants' remarks and actions)."

Indeed, this is a reflection of greater society. Many countries possess an embedded culture of machismo, or male power, in which women are second-class citizens, and the concept of women's rights is next to none.

One striking example of this was on the first day of the Congress. While I was searching for a snack at Montr�©al's Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, one male delegate I met simply stated, "In my country, the women serve the men."

Another delegate in my Congress clan (group) vocalized his disappointment when he discovered that our action project, which was meant to contribute to local community development, would be in collaboration with Vid�©o Femmes, a centre that independently produces and distributes films and videos largely directed by women.

Despite the fact that delegates were chosen to participate in the Congress based on their record of community involvement and work to achieve the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), many are still unaware of such prejudices as sexism.

In fact, a form of prejudice may be so entrenched in one culture that it is not perceived as offensive; whereas in another culture, it may be extremely so.

Regardless of such cultural tension, I enjoyed the Congress precisely because of this dose of reality. In real life, promoting positive change is obviously no easy task. Oftentimes, one encounters barriers along the way, many of which include hypocrites who claim to be advocates of human rights and development, but prove to be more of a hindrance than help to the cause.

From this experience at the Congress, I hope that delegates will take away not only practical skills, but also life skills when pursuing both developmental and personal goals.

I know I did.

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Scarborough's Anita Li is currently pursuing a degree in International Relations and Asia-Pacific Studies at the University of Toronto's Trinity College. In addition to her involvement in media and journalism, Anita is actively involved in human rights initiatives as well as issues of global governance.