Youth Spotlight - Sintya
Why did you decide to join the GEAS Global Youth Advisory Board?
As an extrovert, building new relationships and sharing with them is my passion. Apart from that, I see every opportunity I get is a valuable thing for me to learn more things to increase my capacity in an effort to become a better person. Involvement in Global Early Adolescent Study (GEAS) is one of those opportunities.
Initially, there was only one reason that could represent myself to be part of (Global Youth Advisory Board) GYAB, that’s the sense of responsibility as part of the Indonesian team in the GEAS to be able to contribute in a wider scope. However, as time goes by, it turns out that it's not only that, things about me seem to be in line with the vision of this organization, from personality type to global issues that I focus on. This is what ultimately led me to be a part of GYAB until now. I hope that the experience I get from here I can share later with other Indonesian youth especially who are also interested in the same issue.
Which issue or topics are you interested in (e.g. mental health, youth employment, ending gender-based violence, climate change, etc)?
I’m interested in adolescent reproductive health issues. Talking about the development of this issue in Indonesia, many people especially teenagers and even parents, consider reproductive health education as a taboo object. In fact, from another side, the lack of knowledge about this is especially related to sexual and reproductive health rights that trigger unwanted things, such as violence in courtship, unwanted pregnancies, to sexually transmitted infections. So, it's time for us as teenagers to take action to call for the importance of sex education, especially for all of youth in the world.
What kind of job would you like to do later in life?
I see this as referring to ideals. It’s not uncommon for us to hear and even experience changes in ideals from time to time, maybe because of environmental influences and I also experienced the same thing. However, from all the dynamics of changing my ideals since childhood, all of them are not far from the world of education and health. Therefore, I decided to continue my career in these fields, especially the field that I am currently focusing on in college, that is dentistry to become a dentist. One day, I hope to become a dentist who not only understands very well in theory but also in practice and of course can share it with others.
Who inspires you and why?
I'm currently enjoying reading self-improvement books. One of the books I had read was entitled Atomic Habits by James Clear. Of course, the person who inspires me is the author. Through the messages conveyed in each of his writings that are thick with relevance to everyday life, it really helps me to change my negative habits into positive ones to achieve the goals I want. The hundreds of pages thick book does feel readable because it is presented in an attractive way with pictures. I hope that I can put my ideas in writing for a book so that many people can read it.
What are some of your favorite hobbies?
My favorite hobby is reading books. I don't just do this hobby when I'm happy while I enjoy my free time or vacation, but even when I'm sad. Sometimes I feel sad and uncomfortable to tell other people the problems I'm experiencing because I'm also the type of person who doesn't easily trust others, even those closest to me to share my sadness, at this time I will try to read self-improvement books that relate to my problems. In my opinion, the book is the most honest object, whoever the reader, analyzes the problem until the solution given remains the same. There may not be any interaction I can make in a troubleshooting attempt, but at least I'm relieved to read it moreover indirectly getting troubleshooting suggestions.
If you could be any animal, what would you be and why?
I want to be a duck. Learned a lot from the duck's personality, especially his wisdom which reflects teamwork. When the ducks are fed by the owner, even though they live in groups they will still line up neatly to get food rations without worrying that their friends will dominate to get more food rations. It doesn't matter who has this trait, whether animal or human. But about how the impact of this wise nature on the group's resilience to achieve common goals.