During her trip to Busan, South Korea, Kimberley Mosher, Comm ’08, may get the opportunity to discuss global business issues with world leaders.
Mosher is one of six Canadian students who will be attending this year’s Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in November, and the first Queen’s student to do so. The trip is organized by Junior Team Canada through the non-profit organization Global Vision.
APEC is made up of a group of 21 countries, including Canada, that border the Pacific Ocean. These countries meet annually to discuss economic co-operation between member nations.
Mosher told the Journal she will be participating in a program for youth attendees called Voices of the Future. She and other students from similar delegations will interview dignitaries and submit written and video reports to worldwide media outlets.
“We do media work, we get to interview world leaders and all of our publications get submitted to news streams around the world,” she said. “I expect to definitely see Prime Minister Paul Martin—he was [at the summit] last year.”
She said she and her colleagues will spend a couple of days in Seoul, South Korea to meet with the Embassy, before heading to Busan.
Mosher said Junior Team Canada takes young people aged 16 to 25 to countries to examine their business relations, in the same way Team Canada does for the Federal government.
“They examine trade relations,” she said.
She added that Junior Team Canada is a great opportunity for students in all disciplines who are interested in international development and business.
“I would say this is a great thing for them to get involved in. It’s a nice way to see the world and learn how business affects everything else … the way countries interact,” she said. “It’s a really awesome opportunity to see how everything works on a global scale.”
Mosher said she thinks the conference is important because it allows Canadians to learn about many Asian countries’ growing economic strength.
“In of world issues and things like that … Asia is becoming huge,” she said. “I don’t think we recognize the technology development going on over there. I don’t think we recognize the sign of what that’s going to be in the future—it’s important to get the youth involved for the future of Canada.
“We’re not just Canada by itself anymore [and] the [USA] isn’t just the dominant culture. Asia dictates a lot of things … things like technology, a lot to do with the business world, fiscal policy.”
This past summer, Mosher said, she attended a Junior Team Canada mission to Brazil.
“It was a blast to see how they do business,” she said.
She said she applied to go to Brazil after an on-campus training session last year.
“[Junior Team Canada] does 30 training centres per year based at universities,” she said. “You can go for the day … [and] learn about international development.”
This year’s training at Queen’s will take place in the spring.
Mosher said that for her trip to Korea she is required to fundraise $4,000, as she did for her trip to Brazil this past summer.
“Part of the deal is raising your funds,” she said. “[The fundraising] pays for airfare, meals and lodging.”
Mosher added that to raise the money she had to local businesses, which was a good learning experience.
“You have to cold-call people,” she said, “[But] the worst they can say is no.”
Mosher said that she is looking forward to meeting new people on her trip, as well as learning about international business practices.
“I think the best part is meeting students from around the world [and] watching people interact in the business world,” she said.
“[To] see their culture reflected in the way they do their business.”
She added she’s looking forward to the experience and the education that could give her an advantage in the work world.
“I’m really excited to interact with students around the world, see what they feel about business and compare what we’re learning,” she said. “I think gaining the international experience and just getting to interact with people on that level—world leaders—I think that will give me a boost when I move into the job market after university.
“A lot of employers are looking for the international edge, and this is a great way to get that.”
According to the CBC website, the APEC summit, which is held annually, became violent in 1997 when the conference was held in Vancouver. A number of UBC students engaged in protest against the presence of former Indonesian President Mohammed Suharto. The protesters tore down a fence and were sprayed with pepper spray. The incident resulted in an investigation into complaints against the RCMP.
Mosher said she’s not concerned about controversy at this year’s summit.
“I don’t think there will be [any controversy],” she said. “Now that some time has ed, people are more receptive to new ideas and cultures. Just because we can’t survive on our own, we’re dependent on other people and we have to work together.”
—With files from cbc.ca and apecsec.org.sg
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