Empowering the Next Generation to Speak Up: Cultivating Youth to Make a Positive Impact on Society

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Empowering the Next Generation to Speak Up: Cultivating Youth to Make a Positive Impact on Society

"I am the second generation of Taiwanese and Vietnamese parents !" Xiaoxian, a college freshman, began to focus on various issues and developments of Southeast Asian. He looks forward to becoming an advocate of cultural diversity and inclusion.

The New Immigrant Family Service Center in Kaohsiung City of The Mustard Seed Association, launched the workshop " The Next Generation to Speak Up " this year. Through two-year podcast teaching and planning of programs, the " next generation " touched various issues through group discussions while also interacting via board game playing, all of which are to help them further experience a journey of identity acknowledgement, immigration and multiculturalism.

The first class, professional lecturer Xia Junming guided students to write down something about themselves on the "Tell the Truth" cards, he asked students to share the information with others in the class. In other words, everyone would share what they learned about one student in an undistorted and logical way with another student. During the information exchange, they take this opportunity to practice media communication exercise. During the process, everyone went from being shy to becoming familiarized and interacting enthusiastically. Later, the "Topic Discussion Gathering" session, by using the content and material from books and articles, the social, economic and cultural development of Southeast Asian countries were analyzed in depth. Such type of discussion allows students to be able to observe the world from multiple perspectives.

In the second half of the class, through the board game named “next generation overseas hero " reference to “Life of Migrant Workers", developed by 1095 Literature and History Studio, student Xiaoxian played the role of migrant workers of different nationalities. Through the act, he was able to experience and understand the dilemmas and challenges of being migrant workers. He then further learned about the relationship between agency and migrant workers. Moreover, he discovered various factors why foreign migrant workers choose to escape. Xiaoxian had deeper thoughts on the issue of migrant workers, and is inspired to have a follow-up podcast focusing on how to help migrant workers create a friendlier environment and improve the quality of life. He believes, by sharing this information, migrant workers have better chance to stay longer or even settle down in Taiwan for good.

In order to explore how the ethnic settlements of new immigrants in Southeast Asia are formed, the class arranged a tour to visit Kaohsiung’s Nanguo business district, halal-certified restaurants, Indonesian overseas Chinese shops, etc. Through this trip, students discovered that various ethnic groups have unique gathering cultures. For example, most Vietnamese residents live around different districts of the city while Indonesia gather in public transportation hubs to facilitate gatherings; and with the rise of viaducts, the areas around underground tunnels have also become new strongholds for new immigrants, creating close connections in different areas.

This workshop not only helps build up knowledge, but also trains the next generation of young people to learn to read the world and develop deeper understanding of society. It is hoped they will integrate what they have learned into their lives. More importantly, this group of young people can transform the two different cultures of their families into their own advantages. They can embed the cultural diversity to become their advantage in the future and making positive impact. As a result, they will develop to become a key person of communication between Southeast Asia and Taiwan.

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