Embracing future challenges

At the 2023 Tsinghua Global Youth Dialogue, young leaders from diverse backgrounds discussed AI technology, climate change mitigation, and the importance of cultural exchange for a sustainable future, Meng Wenjie reports.

"The world is like a vibrant mosaic and we seek to embrace, learn from and celebrate our shared humanity, even extend it to our metaverse," said Susan, an artificial intelligence (AI) host at the 2023 Tsinghua Global Youth.

The event, which took place from Aug 20 to 30, had the theme of "United Youth, Shared Future". It attracted more than 60 participants from different countries and regions around the world, representing a wide range of fields including academia, entrepreneurship, technology, policymaking, and social activism.

From Aug 20 to 28, youth representatives explored and engaged in social activities in cities like Shenzhen, in South China's Guangdong province, and Chengdu and Deyang, both in Southwest China's Sichuan province. Then they gathered at Tsinghua University on Aug 29 and 30 to discuss and exchange ideas concerning three main topics: AI technology and the digital economy, climate change and sustainability, and mutual learning and cultural exchanges.

Ayushi Sinha, from the United States, is an MBA candidate at Harvard Business School. With a plan to establish a healthcare AI startup after graduation, she raised a thought-provoking question to the audience: "Would you trust AI when you're really sick?" Sinha said that while AI technology will likely play a bigger role in the area of healthcare in the future, it is still a challenge to fully rely on AI for medical diagnoses.

"Whenever we look at AI, sometimes we get a 'hallucination', which means the AI will just simply make something up. It is incredibly dangerous because you're working with human lives," she said.

Like Sinha, many of the young guests participating in the discussion viewed AI as a double-edged sword. "AI can solve complex and hard questions within a short period of time," said Takaya Inoue, from Japan, an author and aspiring software engineer. "However, some fake news may appear to be correct information, and it's really difficult to distinguish whether it is correct or not."

"AI technology comes with extraordinary growth potential, but it also comes with a lot of risks," said Naman Kapoor, from India, a scholar in child development. He believes that it is crucial to raise children who possess a strong sense of agency and can effectively navigate the potential risks associated with AI "in a way that our survival is at least guaranteed".

"I don't think that everybody can know which direction the world will go in respect to AI, but one sure thing is that there will be a next generation who will have to deal with the consequences of the decisions that we make today," he said.

For Wang Hanyuan, from Hong Kong, AI serves as a powerful tool in addressing climate change. Wang is the founder of Climind, a data integration platform that delivers actionable climate data infrastructure through AI technology to facilitate mitigation and adaptation solutions. "We're working on large language model applications dedicated for climate change," said Wang, adding that the goal is to make high-quality climate change data easily accessible.

Tiffany Zeng, from the US, a graduate student at Harvard University who studies global health and population, highlighted the strong link between climate change and public health. "Nowadays, we can clearly see how climate change has significantly affected our environment through extreme weather events, altered disease patterns, deteriorating air quality and food and water insecurity," she said. "More than ever, we need to start investing in green technologies and renewable energy to ensure that mass outbreaks and preventable diseases can be mitigated."

Ao Chaoyu, a Chinese undergraduate student from Tsinghua University and an intern at UNICEF China, is trying to find ways to encourage young people to get involved in climate change prevention. "My answer to this is pretty simple. I think the only way to do this is through education," he said.

Ao said the first step should be to introduce climate change as part of students' curriculum, and encourage them to dedicate themselves to solving the problem. He mentioned that many job opportunities will arise in the green industry, according to a report titled Green Jobs in China. "That is why it is important to address the significance of so-called 'green skills' among the next generation," he said.

Nguyen Dang Dao, from Vietnam, a UNESCO consultant, shared his research on the concept of green cities. Nguyen, a co-founder of a youth organization focused on urbanism in Southeast Asia, emphasized the importance of urban nature-based solutions, low carbon development, and inclusive city planning. He highlighted a statistic from the World Bank, stating that around 70 percent of the global population will be living in cities in the future. "Creating a livable and green city is really crucial for each of us to have a better quality of life," he said.

Nguyen added that three aspects must be considered in order to create more livable cities. The first is technology — specifically creating low carbon infrastructure and public spaces. The second is nature — that is finding nature-based solutions to urban problems. And finally, there is the human factor. "It's really important to consider ourselves and make cities more human-centric when it comes to green development," he said.

Vadim Kuznetsov, from Russia, director for Sustainability and Climate Initiatives at the BRICS Youth Energy Agency, emphasized the importance of dialogue and mutual understanding between different cultures and countries in solving pressing issues related to climate change.

"The need for dialogue has never been so important: dialogue for mutual learning, and dialogue between and within societies, generations and cultures, including faith and beliefs," he said.

At the conclusion of the event, Zhu Zhen, a Chinese student from Tsinghua University and one of the organizers of the event, expressed the heartfelt wishes and dreams of the young delegates for the future of humankind: "May our children and grandchildren inherit a world that reflects the best of what we know to be possible. May they be guided by the principles of courage, integrity, and selfless service."

Contact the writer at mengwenjie@i21st.cn