Youth are essential advocates for One Health issues. As such, SEAOHUN encourages each member country to coordinate student clubs in order to motivate young people to familiarize themselves with One Health approaches, especially through collaboration and the discussion of relevant issues. Unfortunately, due the COVID-19 pandemic, many students have had limited in-person interaction with peers in recent years. There was a strong need to provide studets with an environment that helps them recognize their own potential and empowers them to envision their futures. Towards this goal, and to nurture youth towards becoming future One Health leaders, LAOHUN held a Next Generation Orientation in conjuction with the LAOHUN Student Club at the University of Health Sciences (UHS), Laos.

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The orientation was held on  11 March 2023,organized by senior members and alumni of the club. There are 27 students involved, including 21 new members, which demonstrates a growing interest in the club. The orientation aimed to encourage and stimulate students to interact, get to know one another, be open minded and empathetic, and help each other work together as a team. Activities consisted of an introduction to LAOHUN and the student One Health club, a team-building  activity, and a reflection on the core values and expectations of the club. Through creating a space where students feel comfortable naturally expressing themselves, the student club hopes to be a place to help students expand thier learning in One Health. 

At the end of the event, club alumni shared their knowledge and experiences to the new club members. They encouraged current members to work hard to form bonds with thier peers and collaborate to solve future problems. They also expressed thier hope that the new generation of students can sustain the student club’s activities throughout the coming years. Upon hearing thier advice, student leaders expressed their enormous gratitude, saying they believe that small seeds were planted through the orientation that  have the ability to sprout into sometghing bigger for new students as they move forward in thier careers. The students were especially grateful for the opportunity to meet others that have found success in the One Health field, as well as the chance to hone thier collaboration skills with thier peers across multiple generations.