The Momentum Continues: AUN Summer Camp in Singapore and Thailand

With two campsites in the Philippines and Brunei Darussalam successfully concluded, the momentum of the brand-new AUN Summer Camp in promoting academic student mobility and future-proof talents of the region continues in July 2024.

In the first half of the month, two campsites were organised in Singapore and in Thailand, respectively. NUS-AUN Summer Programme 2024 was organised on 1-13 July 2024 by National University of Singapore (NUS). In parallel, AUN-Thailand Summer Camp 2024 (CUxMU Summer Camp), co-hosted by Chulalongkorn University and Mahidol University, took place on 1-12 July 2024 in Bangkok and Nakhon Pathom, Thailand. With the respective themes of “Interconnected Communities” and “Beyond Border, Better Health: Medical Tourism in Thailand”, both campsites brought together young undergraduate talents of ASEAN and, in the case of NUS, a few other Asian countries together to join two-week experiential programmes for an engaging and enriching learning journey with their international peers. 

The aim of AUN Summer Camp is to provide concurrent experiential learning programme that groom participating students to become equipped with future-proof skills as well as deepened knowledge and understanding in the assigned themes. Equally important is the goal for the participants to develop long-lasting friendships with their international peers which could grow beyond the precipice of these camps.

Below are the highlights of the first two AUN Summer Camp sites in the first half of July 2024:

NUS-AUN Summer Camp 2024
Alternatively known as Asian Undergraduate Symposium (AUS) 2024, the NUS-AUN Summer Camp 2024 united over 319 student participants from all the 10 ASEAN countries as well as China, Japan, India and South Korea. Conducted since 2015, Asian Undergraduate Symposium (AUS) by the NUS College is a longstanding cultural exchange and networking programme for undergraduate students in Singapore and other Asian countries, with primary focus on ASEAN. This year, AUS 2024 joined the AUN Summer Camp programme as the only campsite in Singapore with the theme “Interconnected Communities”. The programme was designed by the team of NUS College, led by Mr. Nigel Kaw, AUS Lead & Programme Designer.

Week 1 

On Day 1, the international participants of NUS-AUN Summer Programme were welcomed to the programme by AUS Fellows from the 2023 programme. After the warm welcome by the programme lead, Mr. Nigel Kaw, and Dr. Lim Chee Han, Academic Lead and one of the programme’s mentors, the participants spent the afternoon in an ice breaking and team building exercise session. This provided them a perfect opportunity to warm up and get to know each other before embarking on the later parts of the programme jam packed with ideas and activities.

In Week 1, the participants enjoyed the plenary sessions on the four sub-themes: Needs and Wants, Environment and Sustainability, Diversity and Inclusion, and Smart Cities. These sub-themes enabled them to better understand and see the societal themes that serve as crucial components in creating an interconnected community and society. The session on each sub-theme was led by an international panel of experts, academics and professionals from fields relevant to the themes.

The afternoon session in Week 1 was slated for the programme’s Learning Journey where the students went out and explored the knowledge and ideas learned from the plenary session at destinations related to the diverse sub-themes of the programme. The sites where the students visited included:

• Common Ground Civic Centre — The role of civic centres in promoting inclusive common spaces,
• Toa Payoh — Investigating chronic unhappiness in Singapore through the lens of human space,
• Sustainable Singapore Gallery — Exploring sustainable development in Singapore, from climate change to energy efficiency,
• Jalan Kukoh — Understanding the complexities of income inequality in Singapore,
• SG Assist — A community-centred approach to supporting caregivers in Singapore, and
• Little India — Humanising migrant workers in Singapore and their challenges.

The inputs by experts and distinguished speakers helped greatly in shaping the perspectives and knowledge building of the  participants towards promoting interconnected communities.
From Day 6 onwards, the students began to gather the knowledge and ideas learned throughout the activities in the first week to generate and  share ideas for projects and/or activities to address each sub-theme in the efforts to build interconnected communities. The morning of Day 6 was dedicated for idea pitching and sharing among the students. In the afternoon, the students formed project groups in gearing towards the second half of the programme, focusing on bringing their brilliant ideas into real project planning and implementation.

Week 2

Throughout week 2, the participants brought the knowledge and perspectives learned throughout the first half of the programme to formulate project ideas and working plans on selected themes. To further build the idea generation and consolidation skills among the students, Day 7-8 were packed with mentor sessions where over 20 mentors and coaches from the NUS College hailing from diverse backgrounds and disciplines (i.g. STEM, humanities, business, etc.). These mentors paired up with different project groups and helped guide the students as they poured and arranged their ideas on project boards before turning the ideas into presentations and project videos. The supportive and engaging environment created throughout these sessions not only allowed the students to develop essential skills in project planning and management, but also served as a great opportunity for them to bond with their international peers and experts involved.

The programme eventually resulted in over 330 individual ideas generated by the participants to address particular issues related to society, environment and community engagement.  A total of 38 group project ideas were created from the brainstorming and group work sessions.
After robust group work and discussions on the previous days, the project groups then consolidated their project ideas and submitted the presentations and the videos for viewing on Day 10.

On 11 July 2024, the programme was honourably graced by Dr. Mohamad Maliki Osman, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister for the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Singapore, who participated in a plenary session and discussed with the students on various issues ranging from government policy dynamics, diversity, inclusivity and the government’s initiatives to engage citizens in consensus-building for a better and co-created future.

On the last day of the programme, top-3 project ideas by the students were presented to Dr. Tan Eng Chye, President of NUS as well as Dr. Choltis Dhirathiti, AUN Executive Director. The winning team was rewarded with funding for further implementation of their project.

NUS-AUN Summer Programme concluded with the closing remarks by Dr. Tan Eng Chye, President of NUS, and Dr. Choltis Dhirathiti, AUN Executive Director, who congratulated the student participants for their outstanding engagement and achievements throughout the two-week programme in Singapore.

As NUS-AUN Summer Programme 2024 reached its conclusion, the student participants departed not only with newfound and future proof knowledge on the ways to promote interconnectedness in their country and communities, but also new friendships and connections which will stay with them beyond this programme.

AUN Summer Camp 2024 in Thailand (CUxMU Summer Camp)

Happening concurrently in early July was the AUN Summer Camp 2024 in Thailand, hosted by Chulalongkorn University and Mahidol University. With the theme “Beyond Border, Better Health: Medical Tourism in Thailand”, this summer camp was aimed to introduce participating students from all the 10 ASEAN countries to the vibrant landscape of medical tourism in Thailand in alignment with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Goal 3: Good Health and Well-Being. This programme garnered the participation of 97 students from AUN Member Universities from all the ASEAN countries.

Week 1

The first week of the programme was spent at CU campus in central Bangkok. The programme started with an opening ceremony attended by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nopraenue Sajjarax Dhirathiti, Vice President for International Relations and Corporate Communication, Mahidol University, and Dr. Ram Piyaket, Director of the Office of International Affairs and Global Network, Chulalongkorn University, who gave the introductory remarks. On this occasion, Dr. Choltis Dhirathiti, AUN Executive Director, along with Assoc. Prof. Dr. Palanee Ammaranond, Acting Vice President, Chulalongkorn University, also delivered welcome remarks to the participants.

On Day 1 and 2 of the AUN-Thailand Summer Camp, the students participated in, first, the lecture on “Introduction to Wellness Business”, which offered the participants an overview of wellness concepts based on the context of Thailand, and, second, “Chersery  Premiere Senior Care’s Presentation and Exhibition” by distinguished speakers from Bangkok Dusit Medical Services (BDMS) and a representative from Chersey Care. These lectures provided the background on the wellness industry and the concept of medical tourism in Thailand for the students to grasp upon and explore later in ideation activities. The students also actively participated in the discussion with the invited speakers on questions related to the development and management of medical services and tourism in the country.

Following lectures and plenary sessions led by experts in the industry, the participants formed project groups to explore ideation and consolidation of business models and discussions related to the development and management of medical tourism on national and regional levels. Their group work was further enhanced by site visits to medical tourism hotspots around central Bangkok. This part of the programme was crucial for the students to develop an active understanding of the fundamental principles of operating a wellness business such as operational strategies, business planning, and so on.

Week 2
The second leg of the programme was spent at Mahidol University, Salaya Campus in Nakhon Pathom, where the participants continued with their group work to consolidate their business plans and convert them into final presentations. These activities were guided by coaches and experts from MU – a university with a countrywide reputation for academic excellence in medicine, science and innovation.

On 12 July 2024, the final day of the programme, the participants engaged in a panel discussion session where they took turn presenting their group business models to a panel of commentators hailing from Thailand’s medical tourism and related fields. In this regard, a total of 8 topics of business ideas by the students were presented, including:

1. ASEAN Wellness Odyssey: App-powered Cultural Journeys to Wholeness
2. Harmony: Integrating Tradition and Modernity for Holistic Mental Health
3. Service that's Affordable, Target towards mental health
4. ASEAN Wellness Tourism: ASEAN Wellconnect Application
5. ASEAN bridge Health: Equitable Access to Healthcare
6. Health Promotion Cruise Ship: Health promotion with tourism.
7. Mama care application: An application for young mothers in underserved areas across ASEAN.
8. Jelly Supplement: Traditional herbs of each ASEAN countries all in one place

Throughout the active and engaging discussion and knowledge sharing with the commentators, the students were able to acquire ideas from other group presentations and insightful comments from experienced commentators for further improvement to their project ideas and plans. The impromptu discussion with the commentators and their fellow participants also honed the students’ critical thinking and problem solving skills. Above all, the two-week programme offered a safe and highly convivial space for the students to form lifelong friendships of their peers which hopefully would grow beyond the end of this programme.

The remarkable results from both campsites in Singapore and Thailand serve as a testament to the prowess and excellence of universities and students of the ASEAN region. In this regard, the AUN Secretariat would like to extend its deepest gratitude to NUS, CU and MU for yet two other successful campsites of AUN Summer Camp contributing towards the development of young ASEAN talents with future-proof attitudes, knowledge and competencies.

This year’s AUN Summer Camp programme has now reached its half way point with five more campsites waiting to be covered. Stay tuned next week for coverage on two more campsites concluded in the second half of July, conducted by Viet Nam University of Ho Chi Minh City (VNUHCM) and Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), respectively.
 

For further reading regarding AUN Summer Camp:

• Off to an Exciting Start, AUN Summer Camp 2024 in Brunei Darussalam and The Philippines is Just the Beginning
• AUN Summer Camp