"We are not just giving them answers. Step by step, we are helping them ask sharper questions. Effective mentors do more than provide answers. They challenge assumptions, encourage curiosity, and guide learners toward independent thinking. At IVECA, this principle lies at the heart of mentorship. Mentors become collaborators, catalysts, and facilitators of learning, empowering students to think across disciplines, cultures, and perspectives. Through the IVECA Global Youth Mentorship Program (iGYMP) and the IVECA Global Youth Mentor Internship (iGYMI) this spring 2026, university students worked alongside high school students to tackle real-world challenges aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The iGYMP and iGYMI shared a common purpose: connecting younger learners with university mentors whose academic experiences, perspectives, and guidance motivate them to pursue higher education while developing the confidence and skills to become global changemakers. By engaging with students regularly, mentors supported students' academic growth and demonstrated how intercultural learning can be transformed into meaningful action. They provided diverse cultural perspectives and ways of thinking needed to understand global challenges and co-create innovative solutions.
The IVECA Global Youth Mentorship Program (iGYMP) enabled mentors to asynchronously help students explore how food connects people, communities, and the environment. Students then applied science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) to design projects that make the world healthier and more sustainable. By providing detailed and critical feedback, the mentors guided students to narrow broad ideas into well-defined problems, strengthen arguments with reliable evidence, and develop practical, AI-supported solutions. As one mentor encouraged a team exploring the global kimchi supply chain, "Your project has a very strong topic... The next step is to narrow your focus." Another praised a team's understanding of the issue’s interconnected factors while reminding them that "AI is completely missing from your action plan."
In the IVECA Global Youth Mentor Internship (iGYMI), mentors interacted with their students both synchronously and asynchronously. While the iGYMP mentors developed their own projects to exemplify the research and design process, mentor interns in iGYMI dedicated their efforts entirely to supporting student teams. They also worked closely with the IVECA team to facilitate the program, providing continuous guidance, resources, and feedback throughout the students' project development. On Fridays, mentors attended guest lectures and reviewed students’ project progress. On Wednesdays, they worked directly with teams, facilitating discussions, recommending resources, and helping the teams refine project ideas. Their feedback prompted students to stay curious, think critically, and continue to improve their work. One mentor inspired a team studying transportation inequality in their city to strengthen personal observations with official data, noting that "Your focus on the transport and infrastructure gaps in Incheon is highly relevant and addresses a very real urban challenge." Another challenged students to look beyond local observations by asking a simple but thought-provoking question: "Are young people leaving older districts mainly because those areas are pushing them away, or because new towns are pulling them in?" Such guidance helped students to investigate the underlying causes of complex issues and develop stronger, practical, and evidence-based recommendations.
Ultimately, both programs showed that mentorship goes beyond sharing knowledge; it builds intercultural relationships that foster curiosity, confidence, and mutual learning. The youth mentors captured this shared growth in their final reflection: "We have learned and gained so much from you as well. The skills and global perspectives you've developed here are going to carry you far beyond the classroom. Always stay curious, continue to embrace diversity, and remember that your voices matter in shaping our future. We are proud of all of you, and we look forward to seeing what you achieve in the future."
