Last Thursday, we attended the World Vision Youth Conference alongside representatives from all around Otago and Southland. The day was very inspiring, with guest speakers from different walks of life.

We learnt about the way we play a big role in the world due to simple things like our consumption. The speakers reiterated the same issues that we hear often, but gave us food for thought and practical ways to help make a difference. We all signed the petition to take action against modern slavery, which is one easy way to take a step in the right direction. Some stories that were shared were very emotional and made us realise how privileged we are to live in a mainly safe country with fresh air, a surplus supply of food, guaranteed shelter and the ability to go to school.

We did an activity searching for pegs around the room. Each coloured peg represented something we would get for morning tea, e.g. a black peg was a can of coke, a yellow peg was a piece of cake and a pink peg was a slice of pizza. After this, they announced that the pegs actually represented good health, fresh air, enough food and shelter. This completely changed everyone's perspective and, rather than wanting as many as possible, we soon realised that we should only take just enough for us. This is linked to the idea of watching the way we consume.

Of course, because the conference was organised in relation to the 40 Hour Famine, we looked into that campaign and we are excited to see the involvement of Columba students this year.