Current World Issues

[Darko]

The only thing we can do is study hard and achieve good grades, get into a good university and finish it. Get a job in some powerful position in the goverment and maybe then you can do something. Not just yapping about "world peace" and "sustainable growth" at some club or with your friends!

[bohemian03]

Like everyone has said, there is not much we can do at our age but definitely get out there start helping out. I mean service is part of our CAS so there are many opportunities for us. Even the little things count.

[littleone]

Age is not an Issue, atleast i don't think it is.

My sister and I share a very big interest in theatre, music and basically the whole performing arts category. And since India is very much deprived of certain things like musicals and other such events, we decided to start and amateur theatre company along with a few friends about the same age as us (we staged our first production last year in august, which was an adaptation of the broadway musical of the Lion King. IT WAS A BIG HIT!!) , aged between 16 and 18. I was the youngest. The proceeds were all given to an NGO which helped develop welfare and education for the tribal people of Andhra Pradesh (south India)(My uncle was posted as an officer for Tribal Welfare, and hence helps us out with the official stuff and regulations). Our second was in december where we did a series of comical plays all in rhyming pros followed by a performance of a medley of songs from different musicals. Again, all the money collected was given to the development of a school for children with special needs.

Our next project is scheduled for August, 2009. The play is going to be On Alexander the Great, and his early life, ie, the making of the great!

This time, the money is going towards an NGO organisation of young doctors who provide medical facilities and care to children and Mothers in rural parts of our state (again, Andhra Pradesh).

Ofcourse, the obstacles we face are collecting money from stingy sponsors, bitchy counterparts, and lazy participants, but in the end, the feeling is so satisfying. What you’ve done. That you’ve made a difference, or atleast have TRIED to make a difference, no matter how small that difference is. Atleast I’ve put my thought into action, and with that, I know i’m not just sitting there and talking about it, i’m actually going out there and doing something about it, in what ever way i can.

We all have pangs of worthlessness, and helplessness. But the important thing is to turn that feeling into something fruitful, and make it your driving force to make a difference. For me, living in a country like India, people and issues that need importance, are nowhere near in short supply. So i have no problem motivating myself to do something.

Look on the internet, join clubs and organisations in and outside school. Maybe you can start a club yourself, like people above me have suggested. Like i said before, the most important thing is to turn your thoughts into action. Think about your special talents, and see if you can somehow use that to do something!

... wow i talk alot.

[Mattias]

first off, i'd like to say to all the "we're young so we cant do anything about it right now" that if you really believe that, nothing will ever get accomplished

I think that as (as far as i know) IB students, we have access to a good education, and not only learn about problems, but also learn about how to go about solving them

at any age, in my opinion, can we do something about these world issues

we can recycle,

volunteer in our community,

donate,

raise awareness,

not litter,

use public transportation

bunch of stuff

I think that the key to solving many of these problems is not by saying i'll do something later because im too young now

but starting now so that the improvement can be exponential, as im sure we will be even more capable in later years

Edited June 5, 2009 by Mahuta
NO TEXT SPEAK-THANKS, Maha

[Vvi]

One thing I've learnt from my IB years is that you have to fight for what you want. My school gives us very few facilities and is always trying to avoid paying for anything by getting parents to pay extra for any sports clubs/school trips. It's ridiculous, because we pay fees of $20,000+ each term and don't get any of that, yet the school buys new plasma screen tv's for each classroom that are never used.

Me and my classmates have complained and gone to the principals' offices so many times over this past year to fight for less strict rules on prom, for school-funding of chaperones on school trips rather than students paying extra for them, etc. Every time we've won because we refused to let the school bully us into submission. Before I came to this school, I used to have a lot of respect for the administration in schools. Now I see that they don't know what they are doing in most cases, and come up with new rules whenever they feel like it. I used to be a lot mroe passive about things like this, leaving it to the PTA or for other students to complain about. But it's my education, and I'm paying a ****load for it. So I deserve to complain as much as I want until acceptable standards are reached.

I know that in university, I'm also going to have to fight against similar things. In England, they want to remove the cap on tuition fees so that universities are allowed to charge however much they want. Teaching standards are falling in many places because of the economic recession. If I don't fight against those kind of things, then the money I'm paying for college tuition (my parents won't be paying it) is gonna go to waste. If you aren't willing to fight for what you need now, then I don't think you will be willing to fight for it in the future either.

Edited June 5, 2009 by Vvi