PNG youth leaders attend conference in Hawaii

Education

FOUR Papua New Guineans were among 42 youth leaders across the Pacific who participated in the 2022 Young Pacific Leaders Conference in Hawai’i, Honolulu last week.
The PNG delegates were Yorlanie Amepou, Raylance Mesa Tikien, Philie Julai and Kim Allen.
Allen said the conference provided a platform to share local and national challenges and solutions and an excellent opportunity for collaboration in the Pacific to advance collectively as young people and as a region amidst national, regional, and global challenges.
“If there is unity in the Pacific region, it is within the youth space, and this needs to be recognised and harnessed to realise the potential of the region at all levels and across sectors,” he said.
The discussions focused on social and economic development, civic engagement, education, climate change, and environmental issues.
Participants were able to raise concerns affecting their community with shared ideas and solutions.
The conference activities included panel discussions, break-out sessions, and community visitations and services to project sites and the Bishop Museum in Hawaii.
As part of the programme, participants would carry out their action plans and follow-up projects following the programme.
Amepou highlighted the importance of environmental conservation and climate change in PNG, pinpointing PNG’s rich biodiversity that needed to be protected.