Waipahu High School sophomores Cara Phillips and Jessica Fernandez learned about other cultures and their young people as the first Hawaii students to attend the Jeju Youth Forum, an annual international student conference held entirely in English on a South Korean island from Oct. 26 to 28.

"Meeting with a diverse group of people that come from different places and think so differently, I was forced to be more open-minded," said Phillips, 15. "I always thought one way because I was raised that way, but listening to others’ personal experiences, I was able to get new ideas and empathize with different types of people."

The conference, in its third year, was sponsored by the provincial government of the island of Jeju and brought together nearly 100 students from seven countries to network, learn about other cultures, and discuss issues important to current and future generations, like volunteerism and charity, drug use, bullying and the changing face of communications.

To prepare for the forum, students were asked to write an essay on one of the discussion topics, to be printed in books distributed at the event, and acted as panel members on their chosen topics for the audience from Jeju High School.

They also met with Jeju education officials and spent a day sightseeing and learning about the island.

"The most significant things I’ll take away are the friendships and (feeling of) culture shock," said Fernandez, 15. "For me, I’m so used to living in Hawaii, on this island, but after going to Korea, experiencing different cultures, languages, people, I want to branch out. I had never planned to travel internationally, but the fact that I did makes it feel like, yeah, I can do it again, there’s nothing to be afraid of. You’re going to gain more than you’d ever lose.

"And the friendships I made are awesome. They’re really genuine. I want to meet with them again. We are the future leaders and together, we can probably save this world."

On Thursday, the two students met with schools Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi to share their experience and what they learned.

Both students were chosen because of their proven leadership, said Joy Takara, Waipahu High student activities coordinator, who accompanied the two students on the trip. Fernandez is a student government council member and Phillips is in student government as well as on the school’s design thinking team.

"Having that international perspective on how kids from other places think, what their opinions are like, you can’t teach that from a history book," Takara said. "You can teach them about culture, history, all those things, but to have that first-hand experience is something no textbook can teach. It’s such a rich experience for them and makes them way more well-rounded."

Keith Hayashi, principal of Waipahu High School, added: "Experiences like these have the potential to impact students for the rest of their lives. It gives them confidence, global knowledge, an appreciation of other cultures, and they have fun making new international friends. This is what education is all about, providing new opportunities for students to learn."

The Jeju government provided food, accommodations and ground transportation, and Waipahu High covered the trio’s airfare.

Hayashi said because of the connections made during the forum, students from his school have been invited to attend a youth conference in Russia next spring.