I received inspiration and motivation for this article from two important projects that I participated in this summer which will have a long-lasting impact for me and for my country (Ukraine). Hence, this article will speak concisely about two interesting stories that can make the life of every political scientist brighter and more vivid and turn the boring summer days into active and truly fruitful ones.
Back in April, I applied to help organize an important project that would help to bring the most talented Ukrainian teenagers together and establish a network of enthusiasts. These people would share the passion and motivation to deliver different projects and make their community better. The project was a simulation of the Model United Nations, where teenagers could learn how the organization works by representing a certain UN country and debating different issues, taking into account the political stance of the country they represented.
The group photo of counsellors and campers in the camp “Moloda Gvardiya”, Odessa, Ukraine. Photo: Camp Model UN 2018/Matthew Yarbrough.
In the beautiful city of Odessa on the Black Sea, I and 20 other American and Ukrainian volunteers had around 70 talented students from every corner of Ukraine, all of whom were passionate to learn about international relations and diplomacy and to improve their public speaking skills. My personal motivation beyond volunteering at the camp and helping campers understand global trends was to share my own experience in international relations and democracy, as well as to teach campers how to look for opportunities in the world. I was also interested in getting to know more about the problems that the current generation of teenagers is overwhelmed with, how they define their values, how teenagers set their priorities, and how they identify themselves in general.
