GLOBAL YOUTH FOR THE ENVIRONMENT FORUM, FEBRUARY 2013

The Global Youth for the Environment Forum in Seoul, South Korea Is indeed an event to be relished. The pictures and souvenirs I have are reminiscent of the whole experience, right from the news of my selection for the GYEF to the last moment at the Incheon Airport, waving goodbye.

I can still feel the chills from when I arrived in Seoul and the first time we met Erika and Christy in the Women?s Plaza and the other participants from Kenya, the UAE and Saudi Arabia at dinner. The next day (13^th Feb) was the first day of the forum.  We arrived at the Seoul National University to attend lectures by renowned people. The first one by Professor Sunjin Yoon on the impact of climate change on our lives, and the second one on Denmark?s strategies for climate change by the Danish Ambassador, Peter Lysholt Hansen were very insightful. Since lectures alone cannot give students everything, we had interactive sessions which actually incorporated the saying, ?learning through fun?. Everyone was divided into different groups, and each group did their own activities. For me, it started with environmental films like Green Ninja, followed by some preparation for the Warm Biz Fashion show, while the others had their PT Party and learnt about environmental crisis the earth suffers from through the Jenga board game. My group had the game and the PT party the next day of the forum, after lectures by the Director of UNSCAP on ?Climate Change: Impacts and Responses? and the famous comedian, Seongho Park, on the human condition. After all this, it was the Fashion Biz in which each representative had to dress fashionably and yet remain warm in the icy weather. And the forum ended with the award ceremony in which three Koreans along with Naylee Nagda from Kenya took home laurels.  Congratulations again!

The next day, all of us were taken to Everland, a theme park, along with a few people from Samsung. The safari there, the amazing fun rides were things I had never experienced before. How pleasant it was in the cool weather and sunshine gleaming on us while we rolled our way through to the end on a rollercoaster!  After this, we went to the Samsung head office too for a small tour, before returning to the plaza.

On our last day in Seoul, we went to Gyeong Bok Gung Place and then to shop. Because of time constraints, we had to make haste and finally bid goodbye to everyone and leave for the airport. As much as I felt like crying, I held myself back. That?s when I realised that time does fly!  But I?ll be back one day to this wonderful place again. Dangsin-eulbogo, Seoul!  ?)