A Reflection – 2022 International Education Summit for High School Students
Last November, the World Affairs Council hosted our 17th Annual International Education Summit and welcomed over 200 participants from local schools within Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. We are excited to share that the summit was a huge success thanks to the amazing work of the workshop facilitators and the endless dedication from over 50 volunteers. Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval inspired students with his keynote address, and students learned about ways to act locally while thinking globally through hands-on, interactive workshops focused on “glocal” climate action.
Here a few of their insights from the what they learned:
“I used to think that everyone was educated when it came to global competence and now I think that people need to be more informed.”
“I used to think a lot of things environmentally were out of my control but now I believe we can make a change to make our countries better.”
“I used to think climate change was thought about the same around the world, but different cultures think about climate change differently.”
Students also had the opportunity to meet multiple local professionals with an international background through work and/or traveling through our successful Speed Networking experience. Twenty-five local professionals volunteered their time to inspire students to think globally with their future. Here are a few reflections from student participants:
“I used to think that studying abroad was an idea that could never be achieved, and now I know it is much more attainable.”
“I used to think studying abroad was way weirder than it seemed, whereas now after hearing everyone’s experiences my eyes are more open about it.”
“I used to think a lot of the careers here didn’t involve traveling, but now I know better.”
We are looking forward to the 18th Summit this fall.
