Before Daha Yeo came to Germany in 2021 and began studying illustration at HAW Hamburg, she studied painting in South Korea. After arriving in Hamburg, she looked for opportunities to get involved that went beyond her own studies. Initially she found this with the Hamburg aid organisation 'Hanseatic Help', then in the university context of climate and sustainability policy.
Cross-university commitment to climate protection and sustainability
The topics that Daha Yeo stands for are climate protection and climate justice, interdisciplinary climate education, environmentally-friendly and healthy nutrition as well as democracy and freedom. With the cross-university initiative ‘Students for Future - Hamburg’, she advocates vegan nutrition, a climate-neutral university and climate education in the curricula. She designed the initiative's Hamburg website (www.studentsforfuture-hamburg.de) and was also co-organiser of ‘Climate Week’ at Hamburg's universities, organising a tour of the Competence Center for Renewable Energies and Energy Efficiency (CC4E) and the clothes swap party at the Design Campus Armgartstraße. In order to strategically advance these topics at HAW Hamburg, Daha Yeo has been involved in the HAW Hamburg sustainability strategy work group since December 2023. Daha Yeo is also an elected member of the university's student parliament.
Dr Thomas Flower, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering & Computer Science, asked Daha Yeo to take part in a public panel discussion on ‘Social change in times of critical sustainability requirements’ at the Faculty's Future Forum lectures in March 2024 and says: ’Daha Yeo is characterised by her determination to improve the world through active action. (...) I am convinced that she is a valuable representative of her fellow international students and with her work to date she has already made an important contribution to achieve more sustainable universities in Hamburg.’
Get involved!
In her award speech at the welcome dinner, Daha Yeo addressed the new international students directly: ‘Why did you come to Hamburg? To study? To learn a new culture and language? To gain new experiences? For better job opportunities? For your future? Or for freedom?’ She had a message for the new international students and encouraged them: ‘Whatever the reason for your studies: You are not just a guest here, but a part of this society. I would like to encourage you not to be passive [...]. [...] What you do here can and will change the people around you, yourselves and society itself. It's great that we can make a difference. More than we think. Get involved!’
Text: Johanna Ludwig und Ines Tobis