By Yusril Nurhidayat, YES 2016-2017, Indonesia, hosted by AFS in New Jersey

I recently returned from the BUBW (Better Understanding for a Better World) 2017 Conference, which was a life-altering experience for me. It truly helped me understand the importance of my exchange year from a new perspective. This three-day conference gave us the opportunity to engage with, understand and respect different religions, cultures, and attitudes. It instilled in us the idea that in order to be understood, one must first understand, and that diversity is an extremely beautiful thing.

I have only been alive on this earth for a little more than 17 years, and even after these few years, I can understand that this world really needs to change, as it seems to always be filled with conflicts and wars. Through this conference, I learned that historically, different groups of people have tried to impose their religions onto others, suppressing others’ cultures and beliefs. What we discovered through our workshops was that there are ways to break-down barriers, solve conflicts, and eventually, make world peace a reality.

At this conference, a total of 15 exchange students from 9 different countries came together and shared the experiences they've had while living here in the United States. It was so eye-opening to discover how many people already had different points of view after having been here for only a few months.

Some people may think that we are divided into certain races, and some may say that there have to be barriers between religions. In some cultures, skin color can determine a person’s quality of life, and his or her status. We examined this phenomenon in our discussions, and realized that this mindset is completely wrong- we live on the same earth, put our feet on the same land, share the same oxygen, and when we die, each one of us leaves the same bunch of bones behind. So why do we think we are better than each other all the time? Why do we try so hard to make social hierarchies in our lives? Why don’t we just work hand-in-hand, help each other, and make this world nicer, more peaceful, and more beautiful to live in? Wouldn’t it be better than seeing rubble everywhere and people killing each other?

Through this conference, it became clear to me that becoming a global citizen is the first step in making the world a better place. It means separating oneself from his/her nation, and making him or herself responsible for the well-being of the whole world. We need to step back and realize that we are all just human beings, and note what needs fixing in the world. We should all move forward together, looking at things with a more positive outlook and caring for one another. It is with this kind of spirit that we will bring peace and love to the whole earth.

In addition to gifting me the desire to make this world a better, more peaceful place, the BUBW conference also gave me a broader perspective about other religions and helped me reflect on my own in a new way.

Through the interfaith dialogues, I was able to confront many of the stereotypes that I had about other religions, and I got the chance to share my voice, speaking about Islam and correcting the many misconceptions that others had.

During Interfaith Day, we visited a synagogue, a church and a mosque. We heard explanations about each place of worship by clergymen and got the chance to ask questions and discuss the religions in detail. One of my favorite moments of the day was when we went to the mosque and I finally got to do my Friday worship. It was an amazing feeling to show my friends how to clean themselves before worship, and I felt so happy when they wanted to accompany me as I worshipped. It really touched my heart seeing how much they respected me and my faith.

This conference inspired us, reminding us that today’s youth is the future of tomorrow. We had the opportunity to work in teams to address a variety of global issues. Youth from conflicting countries finally got to meet and discuss political issues, and in the end, they all agreed to spread peace, shaking hands with each other. We are each sent into this world only once, and life is truly a gift. It would be so much easier if we could all just spread peace in this world by sharing a smile and beautiful memories together, regardless of our race, ethnicity, or gender.

Saturday was our day off, so we spent it exploring Disney World. Besides going on really fun rides, taking tons of selfies and silly pictures, and taking in our last few hours of Florida’s warmth, we bonded a lot and had the opportunity to share our cultures with one another. It was humbling to see how such different people could get along so well. I was also very impressed to see how inspiring everyone was, and how much we could all make a difference in this world if we decided to put our brains together. 

Following the conference, in addition to a new set of Mickey ears, I brought back with me a whole new set of values and ideas, ones that have made me want to positively impact, and engage with, my community. I want to give presentations about what I learned from this conference as well as work with other youth in my community to build a new youth organization, one that will teach others the leadership skills that I developed at this conference. It’s crazy to think how it all started off, with a bunch of foreign students who knew nothing about each other, and through being together for five days, we left as a family, one with big plans to make the world a truly better place!