{"id":2549,"date":"2024-12-18T17:22:15","date_gmt":"2024-12-18T17:22:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/riley\/?post_type=furman-update&p=2549"},"modified":"2026-02-24T14:59:33","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T14:59:33","slug":"furman-students-rep-u-s-at-asia-pacific-economic-meeting-in-peru","status":"publish","type":"furman-update","link":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/riley\/news\/furman-students-rep-u-s-at-asia-pacific-economic-meeting-in-peru\/","title":{"rendered":"Furman students rep U.S. at Asia-Pacific Economic meeting in Peru"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

By Tina Underwood<\/em><\/p>\n

In November, five Furman University students and two professors traveled to Lima, Peru, for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation<\/a>\u00a0and its\u00a0Voices of the Future<\/a>\u00a0(APEC VOF) meeting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Introduced to Furman in 2002 through\u00a0The Riley Institute<\/a>, the meeting enables Furman students and faculty members to represent the United States at the talks designed to support sustainable economic growth and prosperity in the member economies ringing the Pacific Rim.<\/p>\n

Alice Arnold \u201925, a politics and international affairs major, gave an overview of the American economy to about 100 youth delegates. The event was important because \u201cAs much as we can talk online or listen or learn about our economies, nothing compares to face-to-face communication,\u201d Arnold said. She enjoyed \u201chearing the viewpoints of students who represent diverse cultures and learning about what they care about, what makes us different, and what makes us the same.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sumter Archer \u201925, Ori Chambliss \u201925, Andrea Valeria \u201927 and Jacob Taylor \u201925, who helped prepare the\u00a0Youth Declaration<\/a>, were also among Furman\u2019s cohort.<\/p>\n

Peruvian organizers schooled delegates on their country\u2019s history and culture. Students and educators toured a navy training ship and the archeological site Pachac\u00e1mac, first settled in 200 A.D. before the Inca Empire reigned supreme.<\/p>\n

Cleve Fraser<\/a>, APEC codirector and a professor of politics and international affairs, said the cultural experiences were as valuable as the official meetings. This was his 13th trip.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe unscripted moments, like conversations among delegates about different experiences, challenges and hopes for the future, bring the global economy to life in a way no textbook ever could,\u201d said\u00a0Jessica Hennessey<\/a>, the John D. Hollingsworth Professor of Economics and interim department chair.<\/p>\n

Fostering that kind of global citizenship is a key component of\u00a0The Furman Advantage<\/a>, the university\u2019s approach to undergraduate education that creates pathways for students to discover who they want to be and how they want to contribute to the world.<\/p>\n

With full access to a CEO summit, delegates heard from trade ministers, heads of state and other officials like the heads of TikTok and JPMorgan Chase. Anthony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State, stressed the importance of global cooperation, investment in one another and unity.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s the personal connections that students will remember most, Fraser said, noting the \u201cinteresting dynamics\u201d that emerged even among political and economic rivals.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a kind of mini d\u00e9tente between our delegation and the Russians. The students and educators spent a lot of time together \u2013 it was something to see,\u201d he said. Come time to board planes back home, Fraser said there were some heartfelt goodbyes.<\/p>\n

APEC VOF sows seeds for future careers, Fraser said, recalling a 2008 VOF delegate who was recruited to the Foreign Service, and in 2015 arranged for Furman\u2019s delegation to meet with the U.S. ambassador to the Philippines.<\/p>\n

Many students \u201cwill go on to bigger and better things \u2013 becoming government officials, business leaders, advocates for nonprofits. Our hope is that through this experience and the connections students make, the world will be made a better place,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Arnold, who has her sights set on policymaking in the digital space after graduation, came away from the meeting with renewed hope for the future.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are a lot of aspects of our culture that are very different from other economies, but we all really care about our home countries,\u201d she said. \u201cWe all want to be connected to make our world better as a whole. I can\u2019t see the future, but I know that if the young people I met at the conference are the ones in charge, I think we have a bright future ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Tina Underwood In November, five Furman University students and two professors traveled to Lima, Peru, for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation\u00a0and its\u00a0Voices of the Future\u00a0(APEC VOF) meeting. Introduced to Furman […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":2551,"template":"","update-categories":[51,49,46],"class_list":["post-2549","furman-update","type-furman-update","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","furman-update-category-applied-public-policy","furman-update-category-furman-innovation-lab","furman-update-category-student-programs"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/riley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/2549","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/riley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/riley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/furman-update"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/riley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/2549\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2610,"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/riley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/2549\/revisions\/2610"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/riley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2551"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/riley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2549"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"furman-update-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/riley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/update-categories?post=2549"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}