Between Oct. 30 and Nov. 4, four student government members represented Waipahu High School at the 14th annual Jeju International Youth Forum in Jeju, South Korea. The forum introduced a variety of topics that allowed for student leaders all over the world a chance to discuss solutions and ways to improve their respective countries. Each student from Waipahu was assigned to a different topic to cover different things, like environmental impacts, terrorism, and education inequality.
A member of The Cane Tassel, Jayce Nakamura, attended this trip and shared her experience, stating how much it has impacted her outlook on life and how she views those around her. Jayce, along with other student government members—Lotus Yasuda, Dylan Takahashi, and Jhazlyn Rosal—met nearly 200 people from over five different countries at this forum.
On Nov. 1, the groups met to discuss their topic to create the presentation that they shared the next day. The meeting started late in the afternoon, and some groups worked late into the night. The dedication each group put into their content was made clear on presentation day.
Then, on Nov. 2, each panel group did a 15 to 20 minute presentation with their group members on their assigned topic and the solutions their groups came up with to solve these worldwide issues. Local high school students from various schools around Jeju Island attended the conference presentation and many special guests. In total, the presentation period took close to five hours for each group to present their topic and presentation.
Over the course of four days and five nights, the students also had the chance to engage in genuine South Korea and Jeju culture through a variety of cultural activities directed by the forum directors. Some of those activities included visiting geographical landmarks on Jeju island, picking oranges (for which Jeju island is well known for), and also visiting a museum!
During these various excursions, the students got to know the other forum attendees on a more personal level and got to know the daily lives of students their age in different countries. Along with physical field trips, the students were also given the opportunity to partake in Korean cuisine and etiquette.
Jayce said, based on the experiences she had, the lessons she learned, and the people she has met, her world was changed in the most positive way imaginable. Seeing people her age live such different lives than what she is used to puts her life into a wider perspective.
By living on such a small island, such as Oahu, Jayce has gotten used to her way of life, and this trip shook everything upside down. Jayce added that she is so grateful to have gotten to experience this to meet and converse with so many different people and says she would jump at the chance to revisit next year!
