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Apply What You Know

isaac-bernal

Apply What You Know

Although I finished my study abroad program in the middle of June, my trip did not stop there. Because of fortunate circumstances I was to stay in the region for an extra two weeks. Being privileged enough to travel abroad is not something I take very lightly. Rather, it is an opportunity to take advantage of. As such, I decided to backpack through Cambodia and Thailand.

Hong Kong_Isaac Bernal smallEven though the program I went to in Hong Kong was over, continuing to learn about those issues never really stops. I found myself constantly looking at regions I was travelling through and thinking about what policies the various government could implement to help relieve certain sustainability issues. Each country and region is unique and requires a different tactic when trying to address various issues. Sustainability problems don’t stop at a political border; rather, they often cross over and affect the region as a whole. My time studying in Hong Kong left me with a new lens through which to look at the world. And because of this, I am thrilled. It shows that I really did take important lessons away from the program and experience. So as I was traveling around Southeast Asia, I was constantly reminded about various lessons learned in Hong Kong.

As I learned, it is important that we take inventory of the various sustainability problems that are facing the world. If we are to implement policies that target individual problems, it is imperative that we note the effects said policies might have in other regions. For instance, as Thailand and Cambodia are right next to each other, any issues with deforestation or pollution in one area could easily affect the other country.

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Another lesson that I took from the program was that the conversations we were having in Hong Kong can’t just stop in Hong Kong. You need to be able to keep the conversation moving forward and talking to people about it. As I was backpacking through the region afterwards, I was always meeting new people. When I would tell people about what I was studying in Hong Kong, they would become very engaged and start talking about various issues they see affecting their own countries too. People from all over the world are incredibly passionate about the environment. Many are concerned for the changes that are occurring there and abroad. Engaging with the other travelers helped highlight just how globalized the issue of sustainability is.

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An issue that I have seen before with students who study abroad is that people can forget the lessons they learned and the conversations they had when they were in other countries and regions around the world. As a result, many people often just chalk their study abroad up as a memory that they show people pictures about occasionally. However, it is important that we not do that but keep engaging with the issues that were studied and work to fix those problems. It is important that we constantly grow and engage other people in order to continue ASU’s theme of lifelong learning.