Where the hell is Llangrannog?

I didn't think places like this existed in the UK: undulating green hills diving into a rugged, rocky coast; a contented, modest and extremely sparse population; and severe physical isolation due to the region's poor transport links. It seemed like a place of the past, or abroad, or both.

And another country is exactly what it is. English is the second tongue of the local people I met, their daily conversation marked by the throaty growls and sing-song tones of the resurgent Welsh language. The Welsh Assembly Members we met, proudly describing themselves and nationalists (and feminists), made it very clear that Wales is now ready to stand alone. Indeed its politics, though heavily restricted by Westminster, is commendably progressive - the WA was the first 'parliament' in the world to achieve gender equality in 2006, when 30 of its 60 members were female.

I was in Wales as part of a British Council programme called 'Intercultural Navigators' (ICN). I've never seen myself as an intercultural navigator, 'young leader', or 'change maker', but according to the British Council that's what I am. Whilst the buzzwords make me gag, I was very impressed by the group of people that had been selected. Aged between 19 and 27, every individual in our group of 24 (which includes just five men) is extremely sharp, pro-active, open and humble. The group is also impressively diverse: everyone has a unique story to tell, and almost every demographic has been ticked.

It was an intense two days - physically, emotionally and intellectually demanding. Everyone has so many interesting things to share that almost every conversation was fascinating, but full on. I've learnt some useful new perspectives. For example, I have eaten communal meals with my hands before, in Tanzania, and India. But I'd never before considered that eating in this way builds trust because of the very physical and immediate form of sharing. At the very least it requires trusting that one's fellow diners have adequate hygiene. I'm very grateful to my Congolese fellow group member for this insight, which will help to change how I think about 'other' cultures.

The British Council has convened groups across Europe, and we are the UK's ICN group. Each national group will meet four times, before joining the other groups in an international conference. The programme aims to equip the next generation of leaders to address the challenges of the dynamic, modern and globalised 21st century.

It's an exciting programme, and I can learn a lot from the rest of the group. I'm lookin forward to the next module, even though the first meeting started with disaster. Following our meeting with the sparky Assembly Members in Cardiff we took a bus to Llangrannog, which should take two hours. Unfortunately our driver had other ideas and took us to the opposite end of the country. We finally arrived after midnight, following a gruelling six and a half hours on the road. How ironic that a group of navigators suffer poor navigation!