Mattias van Ommen - as part of my campaign for President of the EWCPA board as a write-in candidate

Vision of East-West Center: I see the East-West Center as a diverse, large, thriving community of which I am not only part, but which in the course of the last two years has also become part of me. This may sound like a silly exaggeration, but I truly believe that my current personhood is shaped by the experiences that have brought me where I am today. These include unforgettable social gatherings with the Vietnamese, fantastic Indonesian dances, having food with my friends from Bhutan and Nepal, and I could go on and on... However, besides these social occasions, we at the East-West Center all have our own programs which also require our serious attention. Most of us are facing a number of extra challenges besides building up a multicultural social life in a new environment, such as getting through our academic programs in a timely manner, as well as funding issues. At its core, we are a large group of diverse people pursuing different types of degrees or academic qualifications, who also share a social space with one another. Using these spaces, we may share our own cultures and experiences with people from completely different backgrounds, as we struggle along to pursue our professional goals. To me, this duality is the core of our community. I would strengthen that core as much as possible through the EWCPA, and I have a few ideas on how to do this.

Basically, I would try and maximize the efficiency of what I believe are the three main strengths of being a part of the East-West Center community: 1. An active engagement with and appreciation for humanity's diverse cultures and peoples. The degree to which personal engagement with a variety of cultures is possible here is definitely unique. To me, actually living with one another provides so many advantages in understanding another culture or people over just reading about them in a book or watching something on the television. 2. Utilizing the strengths of this location and the expertise present at the University and the EastWest Center, going through the process of obtaining professional and academic skills and knowledge as smoothly as possible. This means minimizing levels of stress, social isolation and cultural misunderstanding as much as possible. 3. Through these intercultural social engagements and daily struggles of keeping up with the pace and pressures of our academic programs, we can create long-lasting social relationships.

Actual plans* Based on the above, which may appear somewhat abstract, I will proceed by sharing some more concrete ideas of plans that I would try to implement as president in order to maximize the efficiency of what I call the "core" of the East-West Center experience.

1. EWCPA Student Mentor Program Throughout the years, I have witnessed and personally experienced not only the process of accommodation into a new cultural environment, but also finding my place in my academic department, as well as dealing with numerous bureaucratic processes as part of being a student here. I believe most programs and departments have a sort of mini-culture of their own, and we are expected to become competent members of these mini-societies as well, which can be challenging. Therefore, I intend to set up an inventory of current or recently graduated, experienced members from as many different academic departments or programs (such as APLP) as possible. Then, whenever a new batch of students arrives, these students would have the opportunity to request a student mentor in their specific field or program. This person, ideally a current participant or recent graduate of the same department/program of the incoming student, would be able to support the student into the intricacies of their new academic program. In my experience, this can be extremely valuable. Some simple lessons, such as how and when to apply for departmental travel grants, or how to approach the secretary of your department or certain professors, can effectively maximize the efficiency of becoming a competent member of one's academic program and in this way increase the core of the East-West Center experience.

2. Extra support and visibility during exam periods In the past, I have observed a tendency of having many events and activities at the start of a term (CBI, for example), and as the semester progresses, sometimes pressed by the demands of our studies, we do not get to socialize with each other as much. This is particularly the case around exam weeks. I believe the EWCPA can play an important role in trying to accommodate students during these stressful and demanding times, by providing some food options during exam weeks and actively supporting the already ongoing stress-relieving activities such as yoga.

3. Increased engagement with our non-participant neighbors through more open social gatherings With the reality of a smaller number of incoming participants recently, this automatically means that the relative number of non-participants using our housing facilities would be expected to rise. Taking on the example set by Hale Kuahine, I would hope to increase the sense of sub-communities by organizing welcoming potlucks every semester for each kitchen unit in Hale Manoa. I believe it is very important to know your neighbors, regardless of their status of participation in an East-West Center program, and this would help to accommodate the large rate of turnover in our kitchens. Moreover, I also intend to organize more frequent general social gatherings on Fridays (perhaps every other week), where everyone knows that after a long week of work they can meet up with people at Hale Halawai if available, and perhaps proceed to have some food or informally proceed elsewhere. I would seriously consider the options of opening up these and similar events to non-participants as well, and find a way of communicating the existence of such events to that part of our community.

My strengths: In short, I believe my strengths to be accessibility, flexibility and passion.

1. Accessibility This refers to the quality of being genuinely interested in all kinds of cultures, and harboring an openminded, optimistic view of humanity and people. Concretely, this means that (board member or no) you can always count on me for a little chat, and it is very likely that you will see me walking around campus and the dorms quite often.

2. Flexibility This refers to my own personal multiethnic background, as well as my experience as active part of academic communities across three different continents. I appreciate the value of capacities such as cultural/linguistic code switching, and I believe it takes more than one cultural perspective in order to solve complex problems. Concretely, it means that I do not stick to one specific sub-community, but instead view myself as related to all the sub-communities and the community overall in unique and special ways.

3. Passion I am very careful in what I choose to spend my time in. When I do, however, there will be no half measures. The things that I choose to make a part of my life will usually be things that I believe in and will commit to fully. I usually do not commit to something unless I feel very passionate about it. Needless to say, this applies to my run for EWCPA presidency as well.

My ideas for how to take on the role of president: - Although it is important for each board to have their own sense of identity, I would like to emphasize that I would continue many of the fine ways in which previous boards were managed. Amongst other things, this includes creating open board meetings and thinking of a fitting position for anyone who would like to become part of the board after the elections. - I would be the spokesperson that everyone can always address, whether they are participants, EWC staff, non-participants or external organizations and the like. - I would prioritize smooth facilitation of the board so that the talents of each individual board member will be allowed to be utilized and developed. This, with a board of around 20 members and diverse backgrounds and cultures, will be a huge challenge in itself, but I am confident that I can take on the job. I am very aware of social dynamics and how things such as culture can play a role in this. I

hope to use this knowledge and experience to make sure that every board member will be heard and have the feeling that they can share their ideas and that their opinion counts. - If necessary, I am not afraid to give my opinion and make difficult decisions, if I feel that would serve the board and community. However, I do think that everyone, regardless of their position, has the same amount of input in how to handle board matters.

* These plans are contingent upon the feedback and support of fellow board members in the case of election.