• This entry was created by Ms. Sokkheang Heng, one of HOPe Youth Ambassadors for a Nuclear-Free Sustainable Future.

On August 4, I hosted a session in my school, E2STEM Education Preah Yukunthor, and have shared my experience and knowledges regarding nuclear weapons to the students and teachers, as well as encouraged them to participate in folding paper cranes and share message of peace in the event of #CranesForOurFuture.

I was so happy to see everyone being really cooperative and took interest in different parts of the presentation like the story of Sadako Sasaki, Black rains,…etc.

At the end of the day, we had a mass sharing session. Since today’s event is aligned with the topic of our Character First class, Dependability, everyone was encouraged to think about how we can become a Dependable leader who will make sure the use of nuclear weapons will never happen again.

I was in the discussion with a group of schoolmates, and one of them shared ‘Although things might look hopeless and really hard right now because we, as youth, are not in the position to decide this, we can come in and create a solution to minimize the effect of this destructive weapons until we can fully abolish it’. One of the student also shared ‘the only way we can become Dependable leaders, is to make meaningful connections with those around us regardless of their backgrounds’.

In this mass sharing session, I have shared my motivation and a bit of my background story of becoming a Youth Ambassador and interest in this topic of Nuclear Weapons. I also mentioned the message of the Hibakusha I have heard in the forum 2 years ago, as below:

‘I used to be discouraged and thought that as a Normal girl in a country with no relation to Nuclear Weapon, I felt hopeless and not sure of what I could do to help this world get rid of Nuclear Weapons. One day, I attended a forum and heard a Hibakusha’s message for us, young people and future generations to make meaningful friendships so the tragedies will never repeat itself again. For everyone here too, don’t think that you are powerless, you are force we need to overcome this hurdle’.

The participation in today’s event really motivated me to work harder and sharing awareness to others.

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• A note from Mr. Sinet Sem, Teacher of E2STEM Education Preah Yukunthor:

‘I was born in a war-torn area where landmines scattered so close to my village. My childhood’s nightmares were about explosions and the pictures of wounded people. Growing up, I learned about the tragic events in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I couldn’t imagine the pain and suffering of the Japanese inflicted by the nuclear bombs that annihilated thousands of lives in the blink of an eye and left thousands more injured. Since I was young, I have been wishing for peace in the world. And I stand with all the people who oppose the use of nuclear weapons.’