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Buddies Without Borders Forums  -  Global Education Destinations.

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Buddies Without Borders Online Forums are month-long, web-based collaboration and competition projects attended by students aged 12 - 18 around the world. ​The Forums are held 3-4 times a year. Around 3-4 representatives from each country are selected to meet weekly online. Students are grouped internationally into teams, assigned a country as their joint identity, and together throughout the month they will debate and co-author recommendation papers to solve a predefined SDG-related challenge. Each team is coached by a college student and each session features a guest speaker. All papers are reviewed and ranked by international educators including college admission officers and subject-matter experts. The winning Team's paper is published online and receives a free year-long International Online Internship provided by Leadership Initiatives and funded by top brands including Microsoft and Starbucks.  Best Representatives receive college application essay reviews.  Finally, a Pioneer Award is given to an exceptional student leader which offers the opportunity to establish a BWB Club in his or her school community free of charge.

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Recently, four exceptional students from the Senior School: Iliana Skordi(myself), Emily Kyriakides, Helen Zhu and Kristin Dikaios, were selected to participate in an international conference – a forum-, named “Global Destinations -Buddies without Borders-”, because of their outstanding applications! All students of the Senior School were informed about the program, and the students were able to apply, and with the support of our inspiring Greek teacher,  Mrs  Maria  Zapiti , were able to be chosen from a large list of international applications (as the coordinator,  Mrs   Yihung  Mohs informed us)! Buddies Without Borders Online Forums are month-long, web-based collaboration and competition projects attended by students aged 12 – 18 around the world. This year, Emily, Helen, Kristen and I, will be working with students from countries like Indonesia, the USA, Canada, Morocco, Egypt, Spain, France, Taiwan, India, and more, something that will allow us to hear different points of view from all around the world, as well as establish long- lasting relations!

Pura Vida
ream • -The Perceptive
Pioneers

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Each representative cooperated well with their teams and created a unique and creative social enterprise business plan, to help reduce poverty in an abundance of ways   in their assigned countries, and furthermore pitched our ideas to an esteemed panel of judges ! We are all looking forward to working with our fellow participants in the future, and realize that this is a truly great opportunity, which will end with us formulating fruitful responses, and will build upon our already vast knowledge of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals! This experience will remain enshrined in our memories, and will be extremely valuable for our educational, social, and entrepreneurial progress in the future!

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What was the final result, from the February 2021 forum?

All four representatives from our school received extremely positive feedback from the panel of judges, of which some were representatives from Harvard University, as well as members of the admissions board of different colleges and universities! Iliana Skordi, I,  (Y8R) was nominated for the Best Representative, as well as the Pioneer Award, and received the Best Representative Award, and together, a year-long internship funded by Microsoft, The Starbucks Foundations, as well as UNICEF, to help create plans to transport supplies to children in Nigeria. This experience has truly been eye-opening, and I am  honoured  to have received such an award, and am eager to continue my journey in cooperation with Global Education Destinations in the future!

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BWB (Buddies Without Borders Club)  @ The Senior School

Schools serving students aged 12 - 18 are invited to establish BWB (Buddies Without Borders) clubs to benefit all students who are interested in socializing with other like-minded students around the world to discuss issues that impact all of us.  These school-based think tanks are led by student leaders under the guidance of Global Education Destinations and the supervision of the school officials.    Club presidents are given the opportunity to learn important leadership skills by organizing local activities.  Club members are encouraged to share ideas and perspectives in a safe and judgement-free online social group across the world.  ​It is a global THINK TANK!

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While offering unique experiences to debate different subjects, as well as meet professionals in the chosen field of debate, and doing local actions, you get the chance to communicate with students internationally, you can earn credentials for your IB diploma too, if you have chosen that path.  The club is open for all Senior School Students (ages 12-18/19)!

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As my favourite Greek poet, C.P Cavafy once said, “Just to be on the first step, should make you happy and proud. To have reached this point is no small achievement: what you've done already is a wonderful thing. Even this first step is a long way above the ordinary world. To stand on this step you must be in your own right a member of the city of ideas. And it's a hard, unusual thing to be enrolled as a citizen of that city. Its councils are full of Legislators no charlatan can fool. To have reached this point is no small achievement: what you've done already is a wonderful thing." This forum has been MY city of ideas! OUR city of ideas! And it is with great honour that I accept the award of “Best Representative”, on this very first, extraordinary, eye-opening step we have taken!

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We hope to see you in our club and join the BWB international family!

Iliana Skordi : Club President Forum members: Emily Kyriakides, Kristin Dikaios, Helen Zhu

Mrs.  Zapiti  : Club Moderator  Ms. Skordi: Substitute Moderator (Co-moderator)

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Changing the
world is fun
if we do it together
Join us for our next Forum
www.GlobalEducationDestinations.org

Buddies Without Borders Forums - Global Education Destinations.

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