The goal of the second Global Leaderhsip Program workshop, held on November 4th, was for students to become critical consumers of information. They learned about propaganda techniques and created their own campaign to support a UN Sustainable Development Goal.
Pooja Chowdhary, a communications professional with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in India and Leadership Fellow at the East-West Center’s Asia-Pacific Leadership Program, shared examples of her work with students to illustrate how WWF ads are crafted to provoke particular emotions in viewers.
The second half of the workshop focused on modern slavery. Nattasuda Annusonadisai, a journalist for the Associated Press in Thailand and Pulitzer Prize winner for reporting on slavery in the Thai fishing industry, shared her experience as a reporter covering human rights abuses. The day came full circle when Ms. Annusonadisai shared examples of government propaganda from Thailand. Students gained a greater understanding of how modern slavery relates to their lives and the importance of thinking critically about the information they consume.
View more photos from this workshop in our Gallery.
Participant Reflections:
“I want to remember that slavery is not some far off institution only in 3rd world countries, but it also occurs in the US and in Europe.”
“Knowledge is power. It is the first step to changing. I hope that what I learned...today will make me more aware of my surroundings and encourage me to make a difference.”