Six University students plan to launch global service commitments after attending the Clinton Global Initiative University.
The CGI U is former President Bill Clinton’s newest project designed to push college students to take action and tackle global problems.
The organization selected 700 students worldwide to convene at Tulane University for the inaugural meeting of the CGI U in March.
Participants were selected based on their service commitments included in the application.
Students focused their commitments in four main areas: energy and climate change, global health, human rights and peace and poverty alleviation.
Marcelle Boudreaux, LSU architecture graduate student, will focus her commitment from an architectural perspective and plans to preserve five buildings in the Baton Rouge area.
“When you preserve a structure, you reuse it,” Boudreaux said. “You use what you already have and make it perform better. It’s a way of recycling, so it’s good for the community.”
Millie Dave and Aida Lisan, biological sciences sophomores, plan to recruit University students to raise money to help Third World countries become more efficient.
Lisan said she hopes to hold fundraisers for the Millennium Promise, an organization that works with impoverished African villages to improve the basic areas of education, health care and agriculture.
Lisan said she already donates money to the organization, but she wants to get more students involved.
Dave and Mille agreed University students are not doing their part in taking action.
Dave said she expected more University students to be involved in CGI U, especially since it was held in New Orleans.
“I think we can do a lot more,” Lisan said. “People from other schools had already done so much, and I felt LSU was behind.”
Yun Huang, business graduate student, is taking actions into his own hands. Instead of raising money for other organizations, Huang plans to start his own.
“We all have social responsibilities,” Huang said. “We also should take action.”
Huang said he is traveling to China to be a volunteer teacher in a rural village this summer.
He said he will officially open the foundation to support high school students in a poorer region of China when he returns to the University in the fall.
“I grew up in a rural area in China, so I know how difficult it is for education,” Huang said. “A lot of children can’t get a high school education because they can’t afford tuition.”
Huang said the real challenge will be promoting the foundation and raising money.
“It’s difficult to raise money because we don’t have connections as students,” Huang said. “But I did see successful examples at the conference.”
Huang said he developed fundraising ideas at CGI U. He plans to pay for his own travels, and all proceeds collected will help support the children’s high school education.
Huang said he plans to host a benefit concert to raise awareness with his friends in the music college.
“Even if you can donate a dollar, it’s great because we’re students.” Huang said. “If I can take a small action, I can help a lot of students.”
Huang said he was amazed by the other commitments of participants at CGI U.
“We are all doing the same job to take small steps to help the community,” Huang said. “It’s not about ourselves; it’s all people.”
—-Contact Leslie Presnall at [email protected]