Before I begin, I want to make clear that I am not here to insult males. I am here to not insult females. By definition, feminism is about ensuring equality among all sexes by advocating for women's rights in various aspects like education, wages and employment. Several decades back, I feel that women were considered as birth-giving machines. Since then, I feel opportunities for women have grown where they are able to achieve in places they were never able to before. Education plays a vit...

I just came back from the USA after completing a year as a Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) Scholar. I was actively involved for a significant time in community service projects as a young volunteer. I am now on board to do the same in Bangladesh and anywhere else in the world. I've already started the "Dream Green" campaign project to build awareness among young people planting trees and help stop global warming. I am passionate about mathematics and physics! I have a keen interest...

This was the topic for my extempore when I was applying for a post in "some" company. It baffled me at first, I found it an incomprehensible question. The most I could understand was that they wanted me to discuss the goals, aims and aspirations of our generation.What first came to mind for my response was gender equality. Being a citizen of developing nation, I still find a tacit norm of do's and don'ts based on your gender. Although there is a constitutional right of every individual to pursue...

We were born curious.Curiosity is the basis of any human endeavour which makes us different from other species. And it is the basis for any form of knowledge known to us. From the very moment we were born, we were thirsty for an understanding of the unknown. It is possible that, the flame within us which attracted any new knowledge about the world around us started to die, the day we were officially permitted to learn. Our notion about learning changed the way we look around us. We were no long...

I am the daughter of a single mom. Single parenting is constantly increasing at the rate of 15 million single mothers in the USA. What is the life of a single mom? It is lonely and financially draining. It is a race against the clock. It is exhaustion, it is double parenting 24-7. It is never giving up. Single moms are left alone to raise a child, oftentimes, more than one. My mom is a single mom who does it all, every day, without complaint. I am her world, and she will climb the highest m...

This post was originally published on Voices of Youth Cambodia by Monineath Nop, on the occasion of World Skills Day 2018. The final exam is coming; your right hand is holding a book scanning necessary vocabulary while your left hand is holding a cup of coffee. Empty coffee cups start stacking up next to your desk as they accompany you reviewing your lessons, yet you could barely concentrate on the book. Does this sound familiar to you? Been there, done that! We are somehow influenced by th...

This post was originally published on Voices of Youth Cambodia by Vanly Keomuda, on the occasion of World Skills Day 2018. “What is your future prospect for choosing this major?” I first heard the question above on the first day that I began a new chapter in my life — the very first day that I started college. I remembered my lecturer going around the classroom asking everyone this simple, but profound question. Back then, I remembered hearing all kinds of ambitious and optimistic answers f...

This post was originally published on Voices of Youth Cambodia by Chheng Sotharath, on the occasion of World Skills Day 2018. Being in your 20s is probably the age of uncertainty in almost every aspect of your life. At this point, if you still feel like you’re not ready to “adult’ yet and you really don’t know what’s gonna happen, you are not alone. One of the most common uncertainties that Cambodian youth these days encounter is finding the right career for themselves. There are many chall...