I was born and raised in Markham, Ontario and I come from an ethnic Chinese background. My family originated from Hong Kong and I am able to speak both English and conversational Cantonese. Last summer I was able to work at a summer camp and plan and run the camp for three weeks. This experience taught me invaluable work skills in terms of organization and the need for clear communication. I am interested in specializing in the field of marketing or event planning in the future and am looking forward to being able to learn how to integrate sustainability with a career.
Additional Information
Personal Definition of Sustainability
I have been asking various alumni who were involved in sustainability what sustainability means. To me I see sustainability mainly in terms of the environmental aspect. I think sustainability within a business environment means being able to generate profits and products while leaving a small carbon footprint and continuing to create innovative processes in order to be as green as possible. Recently, I have started to learn more about social sustainability as well, which I believe is the desire to see businesses become more socially responsible and involved in greater humanitarian issues.
Sustainability-In-Action
Two summers ago I went on a mission trip abroad to Sichuan, China. On my trip to Sichuan, China I was part of an organization known as MSI Professional Services. This organization sent doctors and business professionals to developing areas around the world to help teach locals and offer their services to communities in need. The team that I went on the trip with were business professionals and we were sent to a local school in Zhaojue- a small city in the Sichuan province where the Yi minority live- where we taught students English and other skills in the hopes that they would be able to use these skills to find a job. On this trip we also volunteered at a farm where we offered advice to the local farmers on how to more efficiently run their day to day activities and increase the profits from their harvests.
This summer I hope to be able to either work in a firm that specializes in marketing and social or environmental sustainability or volunteer with an organization that promotes business sustainability. I currently do not have any specific plans for the summer, but am still looking for opportunities to get involved and learn more about sustainability in the business sector.
