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Economic Cooperation (APEC)
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'06 Furman students and Dr. Nelsen in Hanoi, Vietnam (l-r)
Daniella Fergusson, Webb McArthur, Dr. Brent Nelsen, Cindy
Youssef, Ke Ji, and Kristen Capogrossi
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APEC
2006
Hanoi,
Viet Nam
November 13-19,
2006
Five Furman
students—Kristen Capogrossi, Daniella Fergusson, Webb McArthur,
Ke Ji, and Cindy Youssef—along with Dr. Brent Nelsen, Professor
of Political Science, had the opportunity to participate in the
APEC "Voices of the Future" program held November 13-19,
2006 in Hanoi, Socialist Republic of Viet Nam. To
view the students' blog from Vietnam, click
here.
During the
CEO summit, the Furman contingent attended the addresses given by
various heads of state and heads of government, who were representing
their nation. The speakers included Secretary of State Condoleeza
Rice, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, Chinese President Hu
Jintao, New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, and Australian Prime
Minister John Howard. According to Webb McArthur, “it was
truly an amazing experience to hear all of those voices, too often
blurred together in the static of international relations, talking
with one voice about free trade, the Asia-Pacific, and the future.”
Additionally,
the group attended a special interview with General Giap, a Vietnamese
four star general who was the military leader of the Viet Minh guerrilla
group under Ho Chi Minh’s government. Cindy Youssef expressed
her feelings about this experience, “It was incredible to
have the opportunity to see him in person as he is approaching 100
years of age. He spoke with us and even took some of our questions
about how he joined the army and made a difference in the life of
Viet Nam. Also, he charged us with taking our own leadership roles
and making a difference in our communities.” Mrs. Harriet
Fulbright was also in attendance with General Giap. Her late husband,
former Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, was instrumental
in establishing the Fulbright Scholarship program.
The APEC “Voices
of the Future” group, comprised of student representatives
from the twenty-one APEC member economies, attended the “Doing
Business with Vietnam” forum. While this forum allowed Vietnamese
business leaders to advertise their country in hopes of increasing
trade with the U.S., the European Union and others, foreign investors
too were able to network with the Vietnamese as they consider investment
in Vietnam’s economy. The forum opened with an address from
the Prime Minister of Viet Nam, Nguyen Tan Dung. He expressed his
desire for Viet Nam to become truly engaged in the Asian, APEC,
and world economies. Representatives from BP, Flour Daniel, Intel,
GE, Federal Express, and Oracle also gave speeches and participated
in panel discussions.
Furman students
have been the only U.S. college students to attend the APEC “Voices
of the Future” program in Mexico (2002), Chile (2004) and
Korea (2005). With each successive program, the participating students,
educators, Senior Officials, CEOs, ABAC Members and APEC Leaders
gain more of an understanding of the APEC vision and are able to
take the knowledge back to their respective classrooms and all APEC
communities.
To view an
article that appeared in The Greenville News, click
here; The State, click
here; Furman's news release, click
here. To
view the post-trip story byThe Greenville News, click
here; by the by GSA Business, click
here; from a Vietnamese source, ITPC (Investment and Trade Promotion
Centre, click
here.
For
photos, click
here.
For more information
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