Adam White ('14)

Before arriving at JMU Adam White ('14) of Richmond developed an appreciation for the Korean people and culture during a brief stay in Seoul. It wasn't until his participation in the summer 2011 Korea America Student Conference, however, that the sophomore international affairs major awakened to the challenges facing North Korean refugees crossing the border into South Korea. Now, thanks to JMU's leadership of the International Network of Universities, White can build upon his vision of helping this group of defectors assimilate into a free society.

White participated in the 2011 INU Student Seminar at Hiroshima University. The year's theme, "The Responsibility to Protect," helped reinforce White's convictions about ethical obligations in an interconnected world and led him to outline a plan to increase the visibility of persecuted North Koreans and to provide English language training to North Korean refugees.

White received the 2011 Henry Fong Award, which recognizes an INU student for contributing to the network's theme of global citizenship. With a $2,000 stipend to study abroad at one of the consortium's 11 member universities, White intends to enroll at Kyung Hee University in South Korea in the fall of 2014 after getting an English teaching certificate and completing his language studies in Japan.

”Different peoples, cultures and belief systems are equally valuable parts of a greater human community," he says. "And it is the duty of each person and organization, regardless of background, to make choices that promote the welfare of this collective, diverse whole.“