Last week, the Osaka YMCA Global Department’s 2018 Global Youth Conference was held at Mt. Rokko Global Learning Centre. The 4th annual event brought together more nations than ever before, with over 20 countries represented this year. The diversity of cultures and countries ensured that participants could truly understand the different mindsets of other communities, and work together to become global citizens.
Our guest speakers during the GYC had a lot of wisdom to share. Photojournalist and film director Travis Beard encouraged participants to step out of their comfort zone, and to take the road less travelled. General Secretary of Osaka YMCA Mr. Ogawa spoke of giving 100%, as the difference between 99% and 100% can be a very large difference.
President of the Youth Committee Miho Higuchi encouraged participants to build bridges during the GYC, which would not break as we travelled back to our home countries, and Facilitator Teng Hao reminded everyone that while we may feel we cannot accomplish many things as individuals, together, we can change the world.
The GYC focused on the workshops, where the participants learned about each topic. This year, our topics were Mental Health in Youth, and Artificial Intelligence. Specifically, the participants looked at mental health in education, and the stigma surrounding mental health, as well as artificial intelligence in the workplace, and artificial intelligence as a companion.
In the Mental Health in Education workshop, participants looked at what is inhibiting students accessing resources needed to improve their mental health, such as lack of councillors, and the fear of bullying from peers if they reached out for support. The participants also considered how to encourage students to ask for support, through anime, and support networks, as well as educating teachers and mentors on how to assist students who seem to be suffering from mental health conditions.
In the Mental Health and Stigma workshop, participants discussed who was responsible for supporting and caring for people with mental health conditions – was it the government’s responsibility, the school’s, a person’s family, or their local religious community’s responsibility? A joint approach for all four sectors to work together in providing education about mental health, and support for those with mental health conditions was decided upon.
In Artficial Intelligence in the Workplace, participants discussed the future balance between increasing efficiency with AI, and maintaining a human connection with each other. In education, while AI will be able to provide customised learning material and teaching styles for students, it was agreed upon that young children still needed human role models as they were very impressionable. Another aspect with AI was the need for cyber-security to be improved, as an increased amount of personal details are being kept in digital format.
Artificial Intelligence and Companionship was an interesting debate about how AI has already integrated into our lives, and the future development for AI. Participants looked at how reliant they already are on AI, using Siri, Google Assistant and Alexa in their everyday lives. Participants also discussed what it meant to be human, and if AI met those requirements, would AI then be given human rights to vote, and get married.
During each of the workshops, the Facilitators were very impressed with how willing the participants were to help each other share their opinions. As English was not everyone’s first language, the Facilitators were proud of the participants’ effort to communicate in English, and excited to see more fluent English speakers encourage other participants to share, and help translate difficult sentences. The consideration for each other’s cultural backgrounds was an amazing aspect of the workshops, and was a true example of participants becoming global citizens.
On the last day of the GYC, participants came together for our General Assembly. Their professional appearance and attitude conveyed the seriousness of young people wanting to be heard.
The General Assembly saw participants debating the chosen topic of Artificial Intelligence and Companionship. The three debate questions were:
AI should be used to help with loneliness
AI should be given the right to vote in elections
AI should be allowed to care for children and the elderly
What followed was constructive debate about each question, with a final agreement on the following:
AI can be used to help with loneliness, but people need to be cautious in using it
Governments should regulate the balance between AI and human interactions
Medical professionals can prescribe AI to help combate loneliness to those who require it – for example people with severe physical or mental disabilities
AI should not be given human rights – stopping them from voting
AI influence could change voting results through hacking
We need to focus on human rights first, as not every human can vote even now
Specific laws should be created to protect the AI community from being exploited
AI can be used to assist in the caring of children and elderly people, but not be given full responsibility for them
In the case of shortages for caregiving roles, AI can assist in filling those roles
The GYC was also about sharing each other’s culture, and closing the gap between nations. Our esteemed World’s Got Talent saw participants from each nation represented sharing an aspect of their culture. From sharing food, learning about popular songs and dances, fun facts, to learning each other’s language, this night was memorable for everyone. Participants were exposed to the Japanese culture as well, with a heart-thumping taiko performance, rakugo performed in English, and an arts session with the famous Japanese painter Mon.
The friendships created and experiences at the GYC have helped create another 100+ global citizens in 2018. The Global Department are so proud of the participants for their bravery in travelling internationally, and courage to speak in front of a large group in English, on topics which are highly relevant to young adults today. We’d also like to thank the Facilitators for all the hard work they put into researching, planning, and running the workshops.