Flag Raising Ceremony Students’ Sharing 2025-6-5

Marina, Hebe, Sammi, Bella and Natalie joined the Hwa Chong Student Leaders’ Summit in May. They are now back and would like to share what they have experienced and learned in this summit. It was an eye-opening experience for all of them.

Written by Marina Yip (Form 3 Bombax), Hebe Li (Form 3 Jacaranda), Sammi Amelsfoort (Form 3 Bauhinia), Isabella Horgan (Form 3 Jacaranda) and Natalie Chiu (Form 3 Juniper)

Marina: Hello everyone, I am F3BO Marina.

Hebe: I’m F3JaHebe

Sammi: I’m F3BA Sammi

Bella: I’m F3JA Bella

Natalie: And im F3JU Natalie

Marina: Two weeks ago, we went to Singapore for the Hwa Chong student leaders' Summit. So Sammi, what is it about?

Sammi: The first Student Leaders’ Summit, previously known as Student Leaders Convention, brings together student leaders from across the world, such as New Zealand, China, India, Australia and more to explore current social issues and discuss possible solutions for them.

Bella: Natalie, can you tell them what we did during the Summit?

Natalie: During this summit, there were many fun activities to connect the student leaders on top of the model-UN-like discussions. Every day, we had a 4-hour discussion to talk about how different parts of the world have been contributing to, and can contribute to, global issues. For my group, the topic was climate action and the environment.The topics were sent to us prior to the trip for us to prepare ahead and do research. Through unmoderated and moderated caucuses, I shared Hong Kong’s efforts in sustainability, from urban green initiatives to youth-led environmental campaigns. At the end, we figured that we should turn awareness into actions. Therefore, we suggested having a garden at school or giving pots of plants to each person for more of a commitment. What about you, Marina?

Marina: During the summit, I discussed the topic of culture and identity and how it affected specific stakeholders. My group came up with the solution to implement a cultural week where we will set up a booth every day for different countries and let students learn more about different cultures.

Hebe: Wow, that's smart Marina. I think having a cultural week will be fun. Our group talked about the topic of equitable education and after discussions within the team, the solution we thought is using campaigns to raise awareness, such as the blue ribbon activity to raise awareness about those who have disabilities.

Natalie: Did you girls meet any challenges in this summit, and how did you overcome them? Personally, the challenge I encountered is time management. During these 5 days, we had to manage our time in the tight schedule and organise ourselves independently, which was very difficult. I need to make sure I am always on time for all the events to secure our school’s reputation, since we are representing CSS, and to showcase my student leader skills. Sadly, I didn’t plan my time effectively, I was late to breakfast for 2 days, which was quite concerning. I overcame this challenge by setting the alarm earlier and allocating the time more efficiently like not doing the laundry in the early morning.

Sammi: I agree. I also faced challenges such as understanding how differently the other students express their ideas. Some people use terms that I wasn’t familiar with. For example some people use the word digital legacy instead of online safety. I was surprised by how intelligent and knowledgeable some students of our age were! What are some things that surprised you in the Summit?

Bella: That's a good question. Personally, I found it surprising that continuously discussing the same social issue for a week really helped broaden my perspectives and knowledge on the matter through rigorous discussions with my group mates and made me more aware of the effects that social issues have on certain stakeholders. Deep discussions with people from different backgrounds supported by good preparations are very meaningful. I learned a lot from my group mates.

Hebe: There are many surprising things obviously, but to me it's mainly how kind and helpful the people were, especially the students from the two hosting schools. They had representatives who accompanied each school everywhere in all events from the time we arrived at the airport till we departed from Singapore to ensure that we were well taken care of. The way that they arranged activities and managed such a large-scale event also impressed me a lot. For the night fiesta, they created photobooths, food booths and even a dance floor to let us enjoy our time with our newly-met friends. I was fascinated by how well organised the activities were, which made me reflect on my leadership skills.

Marina:I totally agree! The people there were very nice and I have met a lot of friends there too, also during the sharing they were very patient and when I faced some challenges, they supported me too! At the grand finale on the last day, students from different countries performed to showcase their local cultures. We performed a classic Cantopop song called 喜歡你, and we even practiced together every night. It was super fun! During this event, we all cried because we were reluctant to leave.

Sammi: I enjoyed the performance with you guys and my group too! Aside from the Hwa Chong student leaders that surprised me, I am also proud of myself in this Summit, because I stepped out of my comfort zone! I won’t say I am an extrovert, but I took the valuable opportunity to interact with different people, because when will you get a chance to meet student leaders from different countries! In the beginning it was really awkward with many moments of silence. Everyone didn't know what to do or say but then at the last day everyone started feeling a lot closer to each other and missing each other when it was time to leave.

Bella: During this trip, I think I have effectively stepped out of my comfort zone through socialisation and discussion. I took the initiative to propose solutions to political issues to strangers. This meant accepting criticism and engaging in conversation, which is an area I struggle in. But through this act, I was able to improve my communication skills and broaden my perspectives on political and social matters by hearing my group mates viewpoints on it.

Natalie: At first, I felt really scared that it would be embarrassing to speak up during the discussions because in our school and maybe same as many schools in Hong Kong, during discussions, nobody would talk first. Therefore, I needed to step out of my comfort zone to communicate with people proactively. I started off quite shy because I didn’t know anyone around me but during icebreaker games, I talked with the people around me, asking them questions like their age, names and their hobbies. It was cringey, but it worked well. At last, I made more than 5 close friends from Singapore, Australia and Taiwan, which broadened my social circle. This facilitated my personal growth too! How about you, Marina?

Marina: Pretty much the same as your learning, Natalie, I also challenged myself to share my thoughts more proactively in the discussions, in which I talked about the policies and measures in Hong Kong. I became more courageous, in a way that I don't feel nervous when talking to different people. Also in this summit, we had to prepare a presentation within 3 hours. It improved my collaboration skills and creative thinking, preparing me to become a leader.

Hebe: Although this trip was short, it was meaningful. Not only were we able to explore the global social and political matters to deepen our knowledge, but we were also able to meet people across the world, sharing our different perspectives and experiences and overall forming a tight bond within a short period of time. We strongly encourage students to take such valuable opportunities when they are available, as they effectively help us reflect on our personal growth and prepare ourselves as future leaders. Thank you!