Adi Sivo excited to travel overseas
AS 110 University of the South Pacific students prepare to leave our shores next week for Japan, one of the successful recipients, Adi Sivo Sivonabuli, says she is excited as this will be her first time travelling out of the country.
On to her last semester of her Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Management studies, the 21-year-old said she signed up for the youth exchange program because she was an opportunist.
“The JENESYS program has the package, from the learning opportunity, sightseeing to great cultural exposure,” said Ms Sivonabuli.
“Actually, I had been on a lookout for this program but when
COVID-19 hit, everything had changed and the program was done virtually.
“I signed up for the program particularly because I wanted to do something new, specifically an educational opportunity that would enable me to foster global competencies and cross-cultural understanding.
“So when it was advertised via email, I applied for JENESYS 2020 Virtual Tour 12 on the theme Marine Resources.
“That was during the pandemic, and now that we are back to normal, I am fortunate to be selected to participate in the JENESYS 2022 Tour to Okinawa Prefecture based on the theme Marine Resources.”
Ms Sivonabuli said being selected to participate in the JENESYS 2022 program was truly an honour.
“Not only do I get the chance to represent the institution and my home country, Fiji, but also to market our unique and diverse culture.
“This program will give me a better understanding of Japanese culture and how its education system works.
“It will also afford me with a more comprehensive understanding of marine resource management, which I am sure would benefit my studies in Environmental Management.
“I am confident that I will promote the program by sharing my experiences and what I will learn during the tour to students at USP as well as my friends and family members.”
She said from her experience and observation as a student, she has learnt that there were many barriers that hinder Pacific islanders from sustaining and managing marine resources.
“My aim is to learn how local communities in Japan have sustained and managed their marine resources using traditional methods so that everyone in my community can improve their way of life, supporting all the day-to-day activities.
“Marine resources play an important role in our livelihood in terms of food security, protein source and meeting financial needs, climate change, use of unsustainable fishing practices, IUU fishing and overfishing are among the major complications to the management of marine resources.”
Adi Sivo added she hoped the program would help refine her knowledge and skills to empower communities who were the country’s key stakeholders to take the leading role in marine resources management.
“At the end of the tour, I hope to learn all about the successful management tools used to sustain marine resources through trainings, marketing strategies, GIS and remote sensing tools used to capture data in order to develop appropriate management policies and traditional Japanese methods used.
“And I’m looking forward to experiencing this first-hand.”
Her message to the youths is “be teachable regardless of how much you already know”.
“There’s always more to learn, be addicted to bettering yourself, to succeeding and to stay humble.”