I believe engagement in youth leadership summits, especially virtual ones, is crucial to developing close-knit connections with other like-minded, passionate youth. This summer, I, along with fellow youth of Heirs To Our Ocean (H2OO) — Charley (California), Lois (Guam), and Carlos (Palau) — spoke at the Taiwan International Ocean Youth Leadership Camp. Although the deadlines to submit recordings were tight, my team managed to pull through, effectively rehearsing our parts in a short period of time.
During our recorded presentation, it was clear that many attendees were interested in H2OO’s work, values, and accomplishments, as they raised many questions for us to answer. I was glad to meet more Taiwanese youth who had competent knowledge in how organizations work and was excited to imagine them applying this to future endeavors for our futures.
One of the Taiwanese youth joined Heirs to Our Ocean, and we both partook in the organizing committee for H2OO’s Operation Global Sweep!
I can proudly say that H2OO’s values reflected positively onto the attendees, and I hope that we can continue to uphold these principles of empathetic leadership instilled in youth-led initiatives while working toward better policy through our advocacy efforts!
