“My favorite lecture was Professor Shelly Kagan’s lecture about the Trolly Problem. I was even fortunate enough to have been selected for a Special Meal with him. I found this lecture the most thought-provoking. I was captivated while trying to find a compromise to the unanswerable riddle, and often still question if there is a plausible solution. I especially liked how Professor Kagan made it relevant by updating the trolley with an electric car [scenario].”
“When I was applying, I wanted to challenge myself so I applied for a session topic that I have never really submerged myself into: Frontiers of Science and Technology (FST). By throwing myself into this unknown among hundreds of other bright, young minds, I ended up learning so many new valuable things that I wouldn’t be able to learn anywhere else in a such a unique and warm environment.”
“Before YYGS, I always wanted to help others, but I never believed that my small contributions could seriously alleviate global challenges. Now I know that I have the capacity and desire to incur deep-seated and everlasting impacts on the world that fundamentally improves the lives of others.”
“I loved attending the lectures, as it helped me gain exposure to innovative and groundbreaking research currently being done in a number of disciplines linked to biology. It’s difficult to pick my favorite lecture, but I found the lecture by Professor Duffy about his research on how musical exercises can be used to improve nurse training incredibly interesting. It taught me that we should not view subjects in isolation, as the most meaningful results often come from the interaction of two dissimilar fields of knowledge.”
“The group excursion to the Great Wall of China changed my whole YYGS experience. I met my closest friends and strengthened our friendship during those two weeks.”
In the past few years, I have identified a problem revolving around the increasing number of ethnic minority children coming from underprivileged families in Hong Kong. Due to the lack of sufficient learning resources, these children are often behind in their academic studies. As a response, I have launched two service initiatives targetting ethnic minority children and families.
“As a biology fanatic, my favorite lecture was the “Aging and Cancer: The Telomere Connection” presented by Dr. Sandy Chang. I was fascinated about the prospect of cancer and aging research with telomeres, especially since the enzyme that rebuilds telomeres, telomerase, was discovered at Yale with the Immortal HeLa cells in the 1990s.”
“It was insightful that after you’ve studied a certain [global] problem in a certain country, you get to have an insider’s view of it [at YYGS]. While I’ve previously known the Venezuelan hyperinflation crisis, I had a conversation with my Venezuelan roommate, Kesia, about what’s like to live there under such circumstances. It’s not just the existence of diversity, it’s the exchange of it. Everyone is curious about everyone else’s culture, and no one is afraid to ask. Everyone has got something to say, and at YYGS, every opinion counts.”
“I immersed myself in completely unknown territory. Never in my life had I attended an overnight summer camp, spent two weeks on my own, or I made friends who weren’t Mexican. This program marked many ‘firsts’ in my life and really made me step out of my comfort zone. Before attending, I didn’t think I was capable of carrying out informed conversations with some of the brightest young students of the entire world.
“I got to know a lot of cultures, but most importantly I got to learn about the topics of my interest with people that shared those same interests.”
Since leaving YYGS, I have continued doing my motivational videos on social media. I was self-motivated to do motivational videos for other people, and the people at YYGS helped me continue doing them by requesting specific videos.
“Never before had I experienced an international program such as YYGS that promoted
diversity as a source of pride and connection. Cultural background is not celebrated as a source of strength in my school system, so I have always felt a need to conform myself to be more uniform in American society. YYGS is one of the very few programs in the United States that encourages you to stop trying to fit into a community and to instead allow the community to fit you.
