2008 World Citizen Essay Contest
June 17th, 2008
The question from the 2008 World Citizen Essay Contest was:
“In April, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama (1989 Nobel Prize winner for Peace) will journey to Seattle to discuss and celebrate compassion in action with Seattle-area youth, educators, and policy makers. Definition: ‘Compassionate acts are generally considered those which take into account the suffering of others and attempt to alleviate that suffering as if it were one’s own.’ (From Wikipedia – as cited by the organization Seeds of Compassion) A) Considering the definition above, identify an individual who has been moved by compassion to take action on a problem. Describe his or her work. How did he or she demonstrate compassion? B) Now, imagine yourself as an adult. Following in this individual’s footsteps, what international issue would you want to tackle? Why is this issue important? What steps might you take to resolve the issue? Why does this issue awaken compassion in you?”
Thank you to the over 200 students who submitted essays and the 33 judges who spent time reading them all. Essay contest winners were honored at a special reception and award ceremony on June 17, 2008.
Our special congratulations to the following students, top finalists in each category.
| 3rd-5th Grade | 6th-8th Grade | 9th-12th Grade | |
| First Place | Karthik Meiyappan,
Stevenson Elementary |
Adriana Cvitkovic,
The Northwest School, |
Angelia Tyler,
West Seattle High, |
| Second Place | Kathleen Zhu,
Stevenson Elementary, |
Corryn Wetzel,
Seattle Girls’ School, |
David Hyde,
The Overlake School, |
| Third Place | Sheuli Chowdhury,
Stevenson Elementary, |
Krista Showalter,
Haller Middle School, |
Ilham Abdulrahman,
Sammamish High School, |