Through my time being a Laidlaw scholar, I have seen myself grow into a more ethical leader and responsible global citizen.

My summer project during my first year as a scholar involved working under a professor at UCL to engage with the perspectives of students on the role of universities in equipping them with the knowledge, tools and resources to understand, analyze and act on sustainability issues that society today faces. Our objective was to, based on the ideas and opinions we gathered, design a policy brief for policymakers and senior management teams in higher education institutions to inform decision-making on undergraduate climate change and sustainability education and sustainable campus-wide practice. As a result of this project, I thought more critically about the sustainability issues facing the world today and what we as students at a university can do from our positions. I was able to ask pertinent questions, make firm and meaningful policy-related recommendations and raise awareness. As such, I became a more sensitive and proactive leader and citizen of the world.

In my second year, I worked with an NGO named Leaderonomics based in Malaysia to run workshops on responsible energy consumption for primary and secondary school children. The core objective of these workshops was to teach students how to calculate their electricity bills and how they can use energy more efficiently to reduce these bills and externalities on the environment. Through my work with Leaderonomics, I developed immensely as a leader. A key experience for me was learning how to work with young kids. Given that the kids we usually worked with were between the ages of 12 and 15 and studied at public schools, it was crucial that we were patient with them and sensitive to their needs. Being patient was initially a challenge for me, but I gradually taught myself to be more understanding and clearer when giving instructions, for example. This is a different style of leadership than I was perhaps used to, but equally important to learn and hone. This project also helped me reflect on where I was working and in this way become a more globally aware and responsible citizen. Working at schools in remote areas of Malaysia such as Seremban and Johor Bahru provided me exposure to the issues facing villages in countries that are relatively less wealthy and more in need. For instance, at some of the schools, students spoke very little English, which was I felt may act as an obstacle for them in the future as they try to become global citizens themselves. Probing into why this is the case, I realized that it is in fact the school management that prioritizes the local language instead of English. At the end of my project, I urged the NGO to speak with the schools we worked with about this issue and encourage them to gradually provide greater emphasis to English speaking among their students. In such ways, I was able to be more receptive to the issues in an unfamiliar geography and context and act in response to them. 

I intend to continue being an ethical leader and global citizen by applying the exposure I received and the skills I have learnt in new situations that I may find myself in the future. I believe that while the issues I encounter may be different, the core values of being sensitive and proactive are equally as important and will help me effect change in a wide range of contexts.