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Youth Profile –Laura Weinbender
Participating in a National Youth Ambassadors Caucus in South-East Asia
YOUTH PROFILE
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Laura Weinbender, Sliding Hills Charolais, Canora, Saskatchewan
Global Vision is a not profit organization that was created in 1991 by a former parliament member, principal and school teacher, who goes by the name of Terry Clifford. This program was created to engage Canadian youth with hands‐on experience so they can become leaders to make a difference, not only in Canada, but the World. Since this program was created, Global Vision has trained 30,000 youth, supported the work of five Prime Ministers and had represented Canada in thirty countries and six continents, making this program nothing short of impressive. However, in order to achieve with Global Vision there are a few phases you must go through to be chosen for the various programs they offer. The first leg of my journey with Global Vision was at the Western Global Leadership Conference (WGLC) held in Winnipeg, MB.
Three other students and I were chosen from my high school to attend a conference this past February, and we all had hopes of getting chosen to go to Ottawa to be a part of the National Youth Ambassadors Caucus (NYAC), where we would be selected for the trade mission held in August. We were all challenged to prepare three presentations with our group (two of them being on the spot, and one we had to prepare for). All of the groups were given a challenge by Parks Canada for ideas to bring in more youth to our beautiful national parks, and we were judged and placed by representatives from Parks Canada. This is where we had to prove ourselves and stand out from the eighty students that attended the conference. All the hard work paid off, because shortly after the WGLC, all of the students from my high school were chosen to go to Ottawa for the NYAC, and we got the news that we were chosen to attend the Trade Mission to South‐East Asia!
However, we still had to apply and attend the Ottawa conference, but now it was narrowed down from 500 applicants to 100 applicants all over Canada! In Ottawa we were put to the test with similar challenges as the Winnipeg conference, so even though I was already chosen, I still had to perform my best. During our stay in Ottawa I had the chance to meet with several Members of Parliament, including my MP Garry Breitkreuz, right in the Parliament building! That experience in itself really opened my eyes to all of the possibilities that we as a young generation have to offer. I was competing against many impressive youth from all across
Above: Laura (second on the left) with the delegates from her high school at the Marina Barrage in Singapore Below: All of the delegates on the mission with the Consul General, Ian Burchett
Canada, and being chosen to attend the mission trip was an honor, but I tried my best and proved to myself that it is possible to accomplish what you never thought you could.
The mission trip was held from July 30 to August 19. Our four stops were Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, but before we could go, each delegate had to raise $5,500 in sponsorship to fund our mission. Since we were informed that we were selected early we had extra time to raise the money, but I still collected the last of it two days before we left! The whole purpose of getting sponsors was to get a mandate, so we could make connections in Asia for the businesses back home, and that is where we haved to promote our province and sponsors. In the end, I did not receive a mandate, but, I really wanted to get information on the agriculture sector and how Canada and Asia do business together, and if I was lucky I wanted to see what they had to offer in terms of livestock.
A few days before the trip I stared to get excited, nervous, and anxious. Tons of thoughts started to go through my mind! I did not really know what to expect on the mission or what I was going to make out of it, but I did know that it was going to be an experience that not many youth get to have.
The moment we arrived in Hong Kong we headed to the hotel and we immediately had to get ready for our meeting at 10:30 that morning! So it’s safe to say that when we landed in Asia our trip was go, go, go! In the first few days of the mission we were introduced to several people that are very important to Canada, such as the Consul General of Canada in Hong Kong and Macou, Ian Burchett. The role of the Consul General is to create ties between the country they are representing and the country they reside in, for trade and tourism. We also met several High Commissioners in a bunch of different sectors, one was agriculture. What they had told us about agriculture was not unexpected at all. Since Hong Kong has a population of over seven billion people, and a density of 7,000 people per square kilometer there isn’t much room for agricultural growth, because all of the land they have is going to be needed for expansion. Even though, Hong Kong doesn’t have much to offer in terms of agriculture, it is however the place to start up a business, or to expand a business over seas. Little did I know there are many Canadian businesses that have offices in Hong Kong right now! So if any companies want to expand, Hong Kong is the place to do it, because it is known as the global trade and financing hub of the world.
During our time In Hong Kong we went to the Hong Kong World Trade Center, The Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks, Invest HK, and we also received the honor to give presentations to Ian Burchett and a
bunch of business representatives from Hong Kong, at Ian’s residence. Promoting ourselves was one of the things that you could not fail at. Meeting with all of these important people was intimidating, but you have to get yourself out there so they remember you. Hearing about Hong Kong is nothing like experiencing it first hand with the opportunities that Global Vision set up for us. One of the things about the Science and technology parks was really interesting. They have created two out of the planned three completely green buildings that are energy efficient in every possible way. In two years they plan on starting and finishing the last building of the three! That is very fast compared to how fast structures go up here! However, seven days was not long enough to stay in HK, but we still had a long list of things to do. Guangzhou was our next stop, and let me tell you, this city is impressive.
The development in Guangzhou was incredible! From 2006 to the present year Guangzhou went from having dirt roads, and not many sky scrapers to a huge population increase, paved roads, a 150 kilometer metro system and amazing growth in the amount of skyscrapers and buildings. Also Guangzhou is home to the Canon Tower; which is the tallest tower in the world, which was built in only five years, and it is architecturally beautiful. There was so much to see here, but we only had three jam packed days to do it. Here we met the Consul General of China/ Guangzhou and one person by the name of Minster Li who gave us some information about agriculture in the five provinces in China. I found out that there is a Viterra stationed in Guangzhou. Overall, the five provinces of China had more to offer, like canola, wheat, barley, and sweet potatoes. Lots of natural resources are available there, such as mining. It was more interesting to learn about those aspects of China for me, and nice to hear about what I am familiar with back home.
If you have ever heard of manufacturing companies, Komaspec is an impressive company that manufactures designs from engineers. We had visited their factory and went behind the scenes to see the action of producing a variety of 400 different products every year. I have never been in a factory, but it is very interesting to see the process and system that they have going on in order to be efficient making the products. Also, in Guangzhou we had the chance to go to a watch, sunglasses and purse market…being a girl that sounds like a test to see how much you can resist. On the bus ride there, I just stared out the window and gazed at the amazing landscape and structure of the province. I couldn’t believe that only even years ago it wasn’t half of what it is today. The way the people work is amazing, they are so quick and efficient, and they created a place that is structured so thirteen million people are able to get from point A to point B the fastest way. It really opened my eyes to say the least. Leaving the province of Guangzhou was probably the hardest place to leave on the whole mission! I would have loved to stay and see more of the province, and get more information about the immense growth that it achieved in so little time, but the next stop was said to be even more impressive.
Forty three kilometers from the north to the south, and a little over twenty kilometers east to west, Singapore is only 710 kilometres squared with a population of over 5 million people. It is said to be one of the smallest countries in the world, and only forty nine years old.
Singapore is beautiful; it is home to Botanical Gardens, the Marina
Barrage, and a huge port. The
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Top to bottom: Group picture with Heather Grant, James Soh (NYAA executive director) and Mr Two Sur Luck ( the minister of state for trade and industry & the mayor of the Northwest district Singapore); Group shot with the High Commissioner of Canada in Malaysia; Shot with James Soh (NYAA executive director); Laura accepting her certificate for the mission to Asia for active participation and contributions as a Canadian Youth Ambassador; Victoria Harbor, Hong Kong.
No Borders Select SaleTuesday, December 10th 1:00 PM Heartland Livestock, Virden, MB Offering: 53 Quality, Selected Lots Polled, Red Factor, Full French
Show Prospect Heifer Calves – some right out of the show string Herdsire Prospect that was campaigned this spring Proven Producing Females from the top of the herd Future Breed Matrons out of and bred to industry leading sires
DSY 172Z Broody, Sparrows Seminole
bred Keys All State
HTA 332A Big volume RGP Remington 101Y
daughter out of an HTA Bravia female
KTS 12U Easy doing LT Bluegrass daughter
bred to Cougarhill Hank
KERR 204Z One of six full French females
in the sale
LEJ 240Z Fancy JWX Private Ryan
bred SRK Canyon
RAMM 11Z Complete Merit Roundup
bred Keys All State
NMF 216A Silverstream Performer P38 x KCH
Malibu 1M, full ET sister to TRI-N Prefix PLD ET 54Y the high selling bull in 2012
RGCG 281Z Thick Pleasant Dawn Mustang
bred DCR Perfecto
JMB 310A Thick, CSS Sir Gridmaker prospect
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Above: Komaspec Factory in Guangzhou. Right: Laura and Heather Grant, High Commissioner of Canada in Singapore. Below: Laura at the batu caves in Kuala Lumpur
greenery made me feel more at home, because Hong Kong and Guangzhou didn’t have much of it. We had amazing opportunities here that I was excited about. We had met the High Commissioner of Canada in Singapore, Heather Grant. We also met the director of the NYAA (National Youth Achievement Award) in Singapore, who gave us some amazing success stories about the power of the youth today. Also we went to the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) where we saw a 3D printer in action, and were placed in a room with three 3D screens surrounding us, and we put together an interactive game. It felt like you were inside the game! I have only heard of this technology and experiencing it first hand was something I only dreamed of. We also got to see the twin towers of Singapore called the Petronas Tower, and we also saw one of the most impressive water treatment plants. At this water plant what they do is they save all of the rain water in water catchments (in Singapore you cannot even collect rain water without permission), and they also save used water, but they treat the used water first and put some back into the ocean, and they use the rest of the treated used water with the rain water to make NEWater. It is purified and safe for drinking, and this system is to prove that any water of any quality can be purified into something safe to drink. Singapore was the first country to come up with this system, and are now getting recognized for it.
During our stay we also broke into group sessions with high commissioners just like we did at the beginning of our mission. Now, Singapore is much like Hong Kong in terms of agriculture. However, I learned that ninety percent of the food that Singapore and Hong Kong require is all imported from other countries. That is a huge amount, but considering the land density there is no room for crops, and land to raise livestock. One other thing that I loved about Singapore was the diversity of all of the different cultures there. We stayed in a hotel in “Little India”, and even though we were in Asia we were surrounded by Indian culture everywhere in the area we stayed. People in Singapore were so friendly, and easier to talk to, because it wasn’t rare for them to see Canadians walking around on the streets. In Guangzhou, very few spoke English, so we were constantly trying to find people to translate for us. Singapore is one of the places I would go back to in a heartbeat. If you ever get the chance to travel there, take it! Singapore brought us almost to the end of our trip, but our last stop was Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Searching this place on the internet did not do it justice! The view from the hotel was amazing, even though it consisted of skyscrapers and a hazy
A sample of our 2 Cow/Calf Pairs and 5 Bred Heifers going to the No Borders Sale, December 10, Virden
DST 23Z • KCH Winchester 26X daughter bred May 23 to KCH Medicine Man 7Z
KTS 91W • Rolling D Budweiser 601S x Cougarhill Hank bred May 11 to XAL Firestruck 3Z
KTS 16Z • KCH Winchester 26X daughter bred May 14 to KCH Medicine Man 7Z DST 38Z • Rolling D Vintage 922W daughter bred April 28 to LT Bluegrass
Get & Service in these Happy Haven herdsires sell
Rolling D Vintage 922W • Polled HTA Blockbuster Pld 620F x Sparrows Vendetta 14H CE 89 BW -.1 WW 53 YW 94 M 12.8 TM 39 KCH Winchester 26X • Polled/s KCH Remington 41T x KCH 2244 Power Play 12J CE 92 BW -.4 WW 46 YW 84 M 24.5 TM 48
HAPPY HAVEN CHAROLAIS
Kevin, Crystal, Kory & Shaylin Stebeleski • Box 266, Oakburn, MB R0J 1L0 P/F 204-234-5425 Cell 204-365-6010 • happyhaven@goinet.ca
Science and technology park - Hong Kong.
smoke above me, but I had started to get used to it by now. The first day there, we had breakfast with the high Commissioner of Canada in Malaysia. Throughout the whole mission I had wanted to visit a livestock yard to see the differences between the way that they raise livestock there, to how we do here. The only place on the mission that I had any hope in was Malaysia, but I would have had to travel four hours out of the city to get to one. With our schedule that day and only being there for three days it was impossible! That same day I had attended a meeting at Talisman Energy. You may have heard of this oil and gas company because it is stationed out of Calgary, Alberta. At this meeting I met Ian, who attended the University of Saskatchewan, and he knew my neighbors, pretty small world! This was a great way to end the last day of meetings in the mission. The next day we went to the Batu Caves where we saw lots and lots of monkeys. There was no doubt people couldn’t tell we were tourists then. This brought us to the last day of our trip, and I couldn’t be more satisfied with the experience.
One of the fun activities Global Vision had planned for us was “The Amazing Race.” In every place except for Guangzhou we had to go all over the city we were currently in, and get clues that lead us to the most important sights to see in the area! It was just like the television show; and we even had shirts that had the amazing race logo on the back! If you ever want attention when you are travelling just find an amazing race shirt and people will want to take pictures with you because they think it is the real thing! We had so much fun with that part of it. Doing these amazing races in three countries allowed us to see the amazing sights that each place offered, and let us have fun with it as well! It also made you work together in your team, and my team won the race in Singapore. Without this activity I would not have been able to see the major sights, because of our busy schedule. I cannot possibly be able to list all of the sights we saw because of the amazing race!
My first impressions of Asia were how hot and humid it was, and the overall weather. However, I was not looking at the big picture. For example, travelling out of Singapore in a five hour radius covers half of the world’s population. That is insane considering the area of the land that all of those people live on. I could not believe that when I heard it! I also didn’t realize that Canada has major ties with all of the places we visited! All of these countries have to work together in order for a stable and successful economy and growth. Going into this mission I never realized how much we have to rely on other countries, or vice versa. Trading happens every single day, and we depend on it, and I could not believe how blind I was to this. Having a global knowledge is key to
understanding the importance and value of the relationships between other countries. Being exposed to this has changed my whole insight on the world and how it spins around. You have to look outside the box, go out of your comfort zone, and let your curiosity soar into something that is unknown to you, and that is what Global Vision has allowed me to do.
“Junior Team Canada brings the best and brightest young Canadians together, to give them hands on business experience and prepare them for success in the global economy.” This quote pretty much sums up my whole experience. Global Vision gave me the opportunity to have a hands on experience on a global scale. Being introduced to so many important people has not only opened my eyes to the endless opportunities that I can achieve, but I also learned a lot about myself in the process. Before I was involved with Global Vision I did not know what I wanted, and I was not someone who would be able to approach people with such importance. Since the trip, my curiosity has gone through the roof, and I am much more confident in myself, and how I present myself. To be honest most of the people on mission were almost done university, or already graduated. So as a high school graduate my knowledge was nothing compared to the others. Being surrounded by so many successful people is what really inspired me to explore my options and keep my eyes open because you never know what is out there.
Laura and her winning team from the amazing race in Singapore
BEAVER CREEK COMPLETE HERD DISPERSAL SALE
Saturday, December 14, 2013 • Heartland Livestock, Virden, MB 2:00 PM, in conjunction with Bred Cow Sale
RED 251S & 201A RED 201Z RED 209Z
30 Cow/Calf pairs • 11 Heifers bred to a son of Bluegrass • 8 Red Factor Bull Calves • 19 Heifer Calves
RED 204A RED 222A
