GOING on a trip overseas to intern at a nature park is not what most Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) school-leavers would think of doing after their exams.
For Chen Xin Ying, however, that was the ideal post-SPM experience she had been eyeing since her discovery in April that the Taiwan-based Global Environment Education Partnership Asia-Pacific Regional Center (GEEP APRC) was organising its inaugural International Internship Programme.
Open to youths aged 14 to 30 from the Asia-Pacific region, the 14-day programme selects participants from Taiwan to intern in Australia or Vietnam, and those from other countries in the region to intern at one of three nature sites in Taiwan.
The aim is to facilitate learning exchanges and future cooperation in environmental education within the region, as well as to provide youths with opportunities to learn about foreign cultures, and the operation and management practices in environmental education.
Determined to seize the opportunity for herself, Chen, who is an advocate for environmental conservation, put together her application, comprising documents such as an autobiography, detailed internship planning, certificates and achievements, and a recommendation letter.
Her diligence paid off when she became the first Malaysian and one of two international interns – the other being a Vietnamese – to be accepted into the programme after going through a secondary review and an online interview.
“I was ecstatic to receive the acceptance letter stating that I would be interning at my first choice, the Aowanda Nature Center. I arrived in Taiwan on July 1 and was there for a total of 19 days,” she told StarEdu.
During her internship at the centre located in the Aowanda National Forest Recreation Area, which is a popular tourist spot, the 18-year-old, along with seven Taiwanese undergraduates, was tasked with assisting the in-house environmental educators, which included leading summer camps for children aged 10 to 14.
“We had very interesting activities, such as environmental strategy games, tree climbing and scavenger hunts, which integrated not just environmental aspects, but also historical elements of the area. I was given the chance to carry out these activities firsthand,” said the environmental engineer aspirant.
“The internship exposed me to different kinds of insects, such as beetles, and plasmids, which were kept in the nature centre for research. We were all given a chance to rehome the insects and observe them closely, which was an experience I will never forget,” she added.The Selangor native said besides enriching her nature knowledge and instilling in her a greater sense of independence, the internship led her to new friendships.
“I made friends with the other interns, who had been so hospitable and welcoming during my stay there. They did not hesitate to teach me anything that I was not familiar with, and we had a whale of a time together,” she said.
Early exposure
Chen’s passion for environmental conservation began in Form One when under the influence of her friends, she joined the Eco Team under the World Wide Fund for Nature’s (WWF) Eco-Schools Programme at Sri Bestari Private School.
An international programme, it requires participants to carry out environmental sustainability initiatives for their schools.
Her participation took her from being a newbie learning the ropes to becoming the Eco Team leader in her final year of secondary school.
Her team’s initiatives, which included organising workshops, seminars, campaigns and school visits, earned them two Silver Awards, three Green Flag Awards and the Hibiscus Award by WWF-Malaysia.
“One of my proudest achievements was in 2022, when I led my team to organise a net-zero emissions workshop.
“The proposal for the workshop was submitted to WWF-Malaysia and we were chosen to be given an RM5,000 grant to carry out the workshop. Not only that, we won the Eco Champion Award. We were the youngest winners of that year,” she enthused.
Attributing her achievements to the programme coordinator at her school Shamsul Mutaza, Chen, who is currently pursuing her A-Levels at Sunway College, urged the youth to educate themselves on environmental conservation.
“It is important for the young to feel a sense of responsibility for the planet’s well-being. Without proper education and awareness, things will not change for the better. We can stay updated through many resources that are easily available online or through other media. It is also best to start our own community.
“Encouraging your fellow classmates to turn off the lights when not in use, or to bring their own water bottles to school every day – these are simple steps that anyone can implement. “Students may significantly advance environmental conservation efforts and motivate others to follow suit, resulting in a ripple effect of positive change in their communities and beyond,” she said.
Weng Sam, 20, a student in Penang, is a participant of the BRATs Young Journalist Programme run by The Star’s Newspaper-in-Education (Star-NiE) team. To join Star-NiE’s online youth community, go to facebook.com/niebrats.
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