Exceptional Deciding Committee Member Interview: Morgan N.

Morgan loves to swim. Morgan loves the other Deciding Committee members she got to hobnob with this Summit. Morgan loves just about every global cuisine under the sun. And playing the piano. She’d appropriate the Men In Black memory-zappy thing into something that zaps away COVID-19 (now there’s a plotline, Hollywood). And… Morgan forgets what else she loves. She can’t think of anything else, at the moment. 

Remembering one’s hobbies under pressure is, of course, even more of a strain than remembering the nuclear bomb deactivation code within the 10 defusing-opportunity seconds you get after the oaf in the war room accidentally presses Launch. 

Whether or not we know Morgan as well as we’d like to through personal facts alone, what comes across, without the need for grace under “Tell me what you like to do in your free time?” pressure, is all that we need to know: She’s a good egg. 

Give Morgan a big round of applause for her performance at Model G20’s 2021 July Summit, A Healthier Earth and Beyond, and lend your eyes to her interview!

Justine Hudock: What’s your name, where you are from, what year you are in school, and what a silly, fun fact about yourself?

Morgan N.: My name is Morgan, and I come from Indonesia. I’m currently in Grade 10, and a silly fun fact about me… don’t particularly have any fun facts about myself, but I guess I love to swim. 

JH: What was your title and country in the Summit? What did you find most interesting about your role?

MN: I was part of the Deciding Committee for this Summit, and I was assigned to the Country Delegation of Germany. What I found most interesting about my country’s Delegation, and actually, in particular, what made this Summit so exciting for me, was that my Delegation’s members were so dedicated and hardworking. 

JH: Before you came to the Summit, did you have a preference between our two topics, global health and space exploration? And did that stay the same by the time you left, or did you flip halfway through and end up preferring the other topic?

MN: I came to the Summit more interested in global health. Although I do think that learning about space exploration is very cool, I think because of COVID-19, and how the news circulates around the pandemic especially, I think that’s what kept my interest in global health. 

JH: In that case, to what extent does global health inform your future path? For instance, toward a future career, how you consume in everyday life, or what you imagine you might study in college? 

MN: My interest in global health for the Summit, and the Summit itself, I think, really helped me hone my interest in a medical career. I mean, I’m not exactly sure, but it’s just an interest that I might consider. I really enjoyed working on a global scale and getting the firsthand perspectives of so many people from across the world. The discussions we had were just so great, and how we were able to add on to each other to make the best sort of solution that we could was just so great. 

JH: Did you come to the Summit already knowing that the global scale of health was something you loved learning about, or was it more that you were hoping to encourage that within yourself?

MN: I came in actually interested in just generally global health, and how countries work together to battle COVID-19. And also, because I was part of the previous Summit, I really enjoyed seeing how other nations cooperated with each other, and how we were able to discuss solutions to issues in the current issues in the world. 

JH: What was your favorite part of the Summit — be that a formal learning experience, or something about interacting with the other Delegates on a social level.

MN: I thought the symposium, on our second day, was really fun because we sort of got to get to know each other instead of having to communicate to each other purely about global health or space exploration. But I also, again, enjoyed communicating with my Country Delegation so much, and just talking with the other DC members. They were literally the craziest people out there, and the funniest as well. I truly enjoyed every moment that I spent with the DC members. They are all such sweet, amazing people.

JH: You mentioned you love to swim, which is wonderful. What else do you like to do outside of school? Any other hobbies, or academic extracurriculars?

MN: Outside of school, I enjoy playing the piano as well; I’ve played instruments since I was pretty young, so that’s played quite a big part in my life. 

JH: If you could invent one thing that would make life easier for people, what would you invent?

MN: Do you know those zappy things that they use in Men in Black? That, but instead of wiping a person’s memories, this device can zap some sort of magical medicine that would totally eliminate COVID-19 around the world. 

JH: What is one goal, personal or professional, you would love to achieve in the next five years? Your wildest dream!

MN: Well, I’m about to take the GCSEs, so I really hope I do well on those. I guess another thing would be — and this is totally unrealistic — but in my dreams, I guess I could be like some sort of Olympic swimmer. Meet all of the amazing Olympians out there, both from current and previous Olympic races. Michael Phelps, obviously. And also Katie Ledecky. I think she’s really cool. 

JH: What is your perspective on good leadership? And what do you think it means to evolve as a leader?

MN: I think a good leader is one who encourages their team. Firstly, arouses the desire to work hard, then helps sustain the drive to work hard, and dedication within the team, especially if it’s like a long term project, so that their principal goal is achieved. I think a good leader also always finds things to improve and develop, for example, improve and develop the task at hand or maybe even themselves, or the members as an overall team.

JH: You’re three years away from college, but even so, do you have any college plans roughly laid down yet? Is there a dream school that you know you’ll be applying to? 

MN: As of right now, I’m still completely clueless about college, but I am hoping I can enter a university or college in the United States. Maybe I’ll extend it to other countries. In terms of a major, yeah, medicine is one of them. And perhaps a minor in business, as well.

Favorite Five

Class at school?

English, because we’re currently reading Life of Pi, and I think it’s a really incredible book.

Book?

Not a single book, but my favorite series would have to be Alex Rider, by Anthony Horowitz.

Food?

Gosh, I don’t have a single favorite food. As far as cuisines go, I love Chinese, Italian, Indonesian, and Japanese food.

Emoji?

I like the multi-layered pink heart. I use that a lot.

Quote?

“It costs $0 to be a good person.”