Two students from Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU) brought their ideas to the 2026 Wisedemo Campaign: Asia-Pacific Youth Shenzhen Dialogue, held in Shenzhen from October 12 to 15, sharing proposals on youth cooperation and sustainable development.
An official side event of the 2026 APEC China Year, the dialogue brought together nearly 100 young representatives and experts from across the Asia-Pacific to strengthen cross-cultural understanding and cooperation among young people.
Jointly organized by the Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies and Shenzhen University, the event was held under the theme "Gathering Youth Wisdom, Building the Asia-Pacific Future Together".
The two SYSU students were selected through the International Youth Wisdom Initiative, which received 202 valid proposals from young people across APEC economies, including China, the United States, Canada, Russia, the Republic of Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Mexico, Chile and Peru.
Building Lasting Youth Cooperation
Park Sohyun, a doctoral student from the Republic of Korea at SYSU's School of Geography and Planning, presented her proposal titled "From Participation to Co-Creation: Building a Sustainable Youth Cooperation Mechanism for APEC," in a session on mutual learning among civilizations and inclusive development.
Her proposal calls for an APEC Youth Co-Creation Network to help young people exchange ideas, contribute to policy discussions and build partnerships across economies.
Drawing on a survey of young people from eight APEC economies, she highlights the importance of turning one-off exchanges into longer-term collaboration.
For Park, the dialogue offered an opportunity to share her ideas and learn from others working toward a more connected Asia-Pacific.
"Regional cooperation is not just about what we achieve at a single event, but also about whether the relationships we build and the outcomes we achieve can continue to grow afterward," she said.
Exploring Greener Campuses
Pham Kim Khanh, a Vietnamese second-year undergraduate at SYSU's School of Business, presented her proposal, "APEC Youth Net-Zero Ledger: A Blockchain-Integrated Framework for Carbon Neutrality and AI Sustainability in Higher Education."
Her project explores how digital technologies can support sustainability initiatives in higher education. Using university campuses as pilot sites, it proposes a framework that integrates blockchain technology and AI to record, verify and trace students’ individual carbon footprints and encourage more sustainable everyday practices.
Having her proposal selected from among 202 proposals was an exciting experience for Pham. She also valued the opportunity to exchange ideas with young people from different backgrounds and gain new perspectives on shared challenges.
"I learned a lot and made many connections with outstanding young people from different economies," she said.
Through the dialogue, the two SYSU students shared their perspectives on regional cooperation and sustainable development while learning from peers across the Asia-Pacific. Their participation brought ideas developed at SYSU into a wider conversation about the region's future.
