For the next several months, Sydney Millerd will be spending her days in a modern metropolis in the Middle East, far from the familiar comfort of the University of Hawaiʻi–West Oʻahu, where she graduated from in the spring.
But even though Millerd is thousands of miles from UH West Oʻahu, it is still very near to her in many ways.
“My time at UH West Oʻahu provided me the experiences that have prepared me for a global event like this,” Millerd said via email from Dubai, a city in the United Arab Emirates.
The ‘global event’ is Expo 2020, also called the World Expo. Millerd, who formerly served as the 8th Senate President of the Associated Students of the University of Hawaiʻi–West Oʻahu (ASUHWO), was selected to be one of 75 Youth Ambassadors to the USA Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai.
“For instance, serving as student body president allowed me to practice leadership, coordination, and communication skills necessary for this role where there is a lot of interaction with the public and fellow youth ambassadors,” Millerd said.
She continued, “As a Sustainable Community Food Systems (SCFS) and Political Science student, I feel as though I was prepared to speak about sustainability — as it is one of the core topics of this expo — and about our country in a professional manner.”
Expo 2020 Dubai, which features 192 country pavilions, promotes ‘Connecting Minds and Creating the Future’ through sustainability, mobility, and opportunity. The expo began Oct. 1, 2021, and will run through March 31, 2022. It was originally scheduled for Oct. 20, 2020, through April 10, 2021, but it was postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Youth Ambassadors at the USA Pavilion are the “Faces of America” to the millions of visitors at Expo 2020 Dubai, serving as greeters and exhibit guides, according to the USA Pavilion website. They create an authentic and engaging experience for Pavilion visitors, sharing detailed knowledge of exhibits and a deep understanding of U.S. culture and diversity.
“Through this World Expo, the world is coming together for a celebration of culture and innovation after a year-plus of challenges and sadness that came with the COVID-19 pandemic,” Millerd said. “Being here allows me to be a part of this healing celebration where I can help to facilitate this healing by, not only sharing my life as an American and person from Hawaiʻi, but also learning about others from around the globe to build relationships between our countries and each other as individuals.”
Millerd, who is currently in Dubai, said the experience so far has been great.
“It has been hard to get used to the weather and air quality, especially coming from Hawaiʻi, but getting to know the culture of this place has been amazing,” she said. “On off days, I have been able to visit the city and older areas of Dubai and it has all been very cool.”
Millerd added, “This is my first time being away from Hawaiʻi for so long, so it has been quite a learning and maturing experience for me.”
