UN Day
I believe that one of the best resources Poly has is our UNA Pasadena connection. The Global Scholars have so many opportunities through them, and I think it's important that we use them.
One of these opportunities came last night, when we heard from two UN Youth Observers - Dustin Liu and Cynthia Yue.
Liu and Yue basically talked about what they hope to accomplish in their position. I appreciated their perspective, but I was actually unimpressed. Honestly, it felt like they were reading a script that had been read many times before. Their message was good, but it felt dreary.
While they were good speakers, my favorite piece was the videos. Kids from around California submitted videos to win grants. The kids seemed passionate about the work they were doing, and I loved seeing that.
One young Poly girl, probably in Middle School, established the composting system that I see around campus. She was quite mature, and I think her idea was impressive. That's the kind of change that can actually make a difference - the stuff we see around our community that actively improves the experience.
Overall, UN Day was put together well and definitely worth the evening! Thank you, Ikenna and Kate :)
Thank you for your candor. Yes, Audrey, Steven, Dario and others created wonderful videos- really enjoyed their films' message and then the interviews (moderated by IO) which were quite insightful. How about the one line, "Fighting climate change is the most unselfish act for a very selfish reason." I do think that Dustin and Cynthia have presented "this pitch" several times, but nonetheless I thought Dustin brought a great deal of energy (not to mention cool visual graphics) and that their answers in the Q & A were thought provoking. Liu's point about "burn out" being the #1 issue for youth activists was a sobering thought to consider.
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