The LUMS Campus Climate Unit and the Extra-Curricular Activities (ECA), Office of the Dean of Student Affairs, in collaboration with three universities, the Student Council, ten student societies, and four non-profit organisations from the development sector came together to organise a conference on, "Peace Building and National Integration" at the National Youth Summit Pakistan 2018. This was intended to celebrate the diversity of our nation and to discuss the challenges faced by today’s youth on university campuses. The Conference was held at the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir from October 17-19, 2018. The chief guests at the conference were some of the prominent government leaders, including Mr. Masood Khan, President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Shehryar Afridi, Interior Minister and Justice Jawad S. Khawaja, former Chief Justice of Pakistan.
The LUMS delegates representing IEEE LUMS at the conference were Kashmala Usmani, President IEEE WIE (Women in Engineering), Efra Usmani, President IEEE PES (Power and Energy Society) and Azan Bin Zahid, Vice President IEEE. The National Youth Summit Pakistan 2018 presented an amazing opportunity to the youth of the nation to present their ideas and views on issues pertaining to national importance.
The session where IEEE LUMS partcicipated, was held with the objective to engage young, enthusiastic women in STEM fields. They discussed how these fields are becoming inclusive of women, what steps need to be taken to improve the current situation. They informed the attendees on how IEEE WIE (Women in Engineering) is working in providing these women with an international platform where they can be part of the global network, share and discuss their innovative technological ideas, get funding for their projects and contribute towards making this world a better, technologically advanced place.
"One of the aspects of the conference that we personally loved the most was the opportunity to meet the students from all over Pakistan studying in various universities, belonging to different cultures. Understanding each other’s cultures, histories, heritage, common practices, grievances and exploring the similarities between us, which bind us as a nation, was the best part of this trip," shared the LUMS delegates when asked about the overall experience.
