Raising Global Empathy

The elderly emcee insistently harrumphs a second time. Finally, the about 20 adolescent’s agile voices die down. Now, only the sound of the creek’s gentle ripple outside the little tea house is creating a far more appropriate atmosphere for the procedure to come. We are attending a traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony. I am with a group of soon-to-be high school graduates. They are about to be sent off to Japan for their final study trip. But why exactly am I here?

I just started my internship with the Pacific and Asian Affairs Council. Its mission is to promote global awareness among Hawaiian’s high school students, college students, and community members. The group I am with at the Tea House just received an extensive bibliography from me. The mandatory readings are related to Japanese-Pacific security, societal, and economic issues – I just hope they’ll still find time to enjoy their travels.

What may turned out to be more helpful for the kids are the actual conversations we’re having about absorbing new cultural hemispheres, how to show respect, and how to encounter significant differences in mentality and social intercourse. I therefore slightly touched upon one or the other shock I repeatedly experience with American peculiarities.

Hawaii itself has a very unique and a diversified social fabric. Since Japanese traditions have a strong foothold in the local culture, we really haven’t had a hard time putting our talks into action. Quite contrary, attending the traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony is both spiritually and physically relaxing. However, it requires patience. The overall procedure, from the teapot to the teacup, takes about an hour – well noting that this is already the short version. 

Meanwhile, the emcee devotedly tries to get the idea across to the students, that it is all about the journey. After numerous obeisance, each student ends up gracefully sipping at a teacup, having learned an impressive lesson in Japanese culture. I, quite personally, realize that it is going to heavily reduce my consumerism of coffee. The teahouse monk’s green tea is just too good to be true.

The Pacific and Asian Affairs Council is the most remote representative of America’s World Affairs Councils, a non-partisan network of political think tanks and educational institutions throughout the U.S.

Prominent Company at the East-West Center, PAAC's homebase

On an overarching scale, my job exemplifies the practical application of a lot of theoretical thought work we went through at the Global Leadership Center back on the mainland in Ohio. How do I explain the European Financial Crisis and its societal impacts to a young Hawaiian business major at the local university? What happens to an area with more homogenous social make-ups during a significant influx of migrants?

The latter emerges into being the topic of my personal mid-term project. I am working on developing a conference outline. It portrays the concept of Human Security in the Context of the European Refugee Dilemma. Sounds familiar? Indeed, that’s what my peers and me finalized our project charge on before presenting to the German Consul in Chicago. Obviously, this topic is still pressing and is not likely to cease in its urgency throughout the next decades.

However, the PAAC does not only work with the growing-up. It also heavily reaches out for the already grown-up. It’s International Visitor Leadership Program, sponsored by the U.S. State Department, flies in citizens from all over the world. One of the recent weeks, about 25 professionals, predominantly from Central- and Eastern Asia, explored Hawaiian achievements in the ecological tourism sector.

Int. Visitor from Sri Lanka

The fun part was a two hour-long Catamaran ride along the shoreline of Waikiki. Well, fun for most of them – a few clearly struggled with the rather turbulent cruise. On top of it, experts from the University elaborated on effective storm water management and coastal recreation in front of the shaking audience; a discussion basically circling around the questions, what happens when- and after a Tsunami hits the island.

The Safe Shore

It is fair to say that the majority is happy to be back on soil after two hours. “Building global bridges and promoting citizen diplomacy one handshake at a time”, it reads in one of the Council’s mission statements. It certainly leaves a lasting impact on the participants. May it be the memory of the ascetic Tea House Monk, or the Catamaran captain’s relieved facial expression after safely delivering the Internationals back to shore.