The First Hurdle
After establishing the foundation for
their organization, AmSTEA youth
members set out to produce their first
video based on the Carbon Market.
Carbon Market Video on July 8th, 2022
by Kuan Fu and Madison Corliss
The fabrication of AmSTEA can be credited back to the ideas put behind their first video. Incipiently, Christina Zhang, Evan Zhong, and Maggi Qi, the nascent organization’s first youth members, collaborated to compose what drew from their passions. They wanted to find a STEAM-related topic to work with; one that few people knew about, and one that could feasibly forge a significant impact on the world through an easily interpreted video.
Following hours of brainstorming and caffeine abuse to no avail, the exasperated Zhang stumbled upon the perfect subject amidst a conversation with her father. The founding members finally discovered a topic that fit their needs: carbon trading. After further groundwork and discussions made, the three students concurred that this was their ideal topic. Zhong depicted the carbon market as a system that is “untapped compared to the stock market”. In a nutshell, carbon markets are trading systems, though one that is not as exploited as the stock market, in which carbon credits are sold and bought. These credits are generated from emission reduction projects or pollution allowances allocated by government cap-and-trade systems. The tradable assets generated from these carbon markets, which would smooth the low-carbon transition for countries, sparked major potential to Zhong, who claims to be “someone who is interested in the economic and political state of the world”. This alluded to the perfect topic for AmSTEA’s youth branch to research and present.
In commonality with most first projects, the beginning was a stagnant process and the young leaders were out of their depth. The first hurdles came when they needed to revise the fundamentals of their organizational structure to appeal to the principles of the video production process. The team needed assistance from knowledgeable directors, scriptwriters, video producers, publicists, and actors. For the first time since starting the organization, Christina Zhang was stuck in a pickle, and couldn’t Pickle Rick herself out.
Thankfully, because of her communication skills and network of students, Zhang expeditiously advertised positions to any fellow acquaintances. Within days she met with her friends, and together they managed to propel the organization back on track to success. Taking on many important roles herself, Zhang co-wrote the first carbon trading script with editorial member Kuan Fu, going through numerous drafts within a few days. The final product was within reach once the script was concluded. As the organization serenely bobbed along the smooth untouched surface of the water, it looked as if the once shadowed, tainted sky with myriads of roars that ensued from the inside had finally diminished.
However, this was not the end of AmSTEA’s troubles. With her young organization exiting the eye of the storm, Zhang would have to fight bare bones and all to keep her vision afloat. As they glided through the inexorable storm’s rough waters, many perils were thrown their way. Despite the struggles the team had to face in order to secure actors, filming locations, or even a good cup of coffee, Zhang and her team persevered. They quickly expanded their network through the recruitments of new members, which provided more resources to utilize. Thanks to the team’s effective communication and resourceful attitude, AmSTEA had secured everything they needed to make their video a success.
The location was secured, all the equipment was set up, and the team was eager to begin one of the last steps of the project. The day of filming was now real, and became the day where Zhang’s visions would come to fruition. Taking on the role of director, Zhang coordinated the filming along with videographer Caleb Kusomo and audiographer Juntong Liao to make her concepts come to life.
A notable event was that Actor Jasmine Jung received her role last minute, as Zhang was left by her original prospect, but performed terrifically in spite of her late notice. Without the help and dedication of people, like Jung, the production would not have turned out as it did. The cheery spirit of Jung and her smiles filled the room throughout filming, inspiring other actors to have the same commitment and “fun channeling [their] inner environmentalist”, just as Jung claimed she did. Concluding a great evening of filming, acting, laughing, and learning, well-earned food was brought out for everybody to enjoy, through the courtesy of Zhang and secretary Annabelle Kong.
Moreover, even after such a successful filming session, AmSTEA still struggled to get the video out. The organization’s video editor was unable to finish editing the video due to other responsibilities, so they needed to find someone to help. The young members put out advertisements all on their social media, but were ultimately unsuccessful in finding a video editor. Instead, the organization had to once again rely on Zhang, who stepped up and became the editor for their first project. Without any prior experience with video editing, Zhang struggled through two sleepless nights, numerous setbacks, two separate applications, countless YouTube tutorials, and many failed uploads until she was finally able to publish the video. Through Zhang’s perseverance and dedication to her team to learn all new material in an area of expertise she was not equipped with, she is one of the main reasons there is a video for everyone to watch.
When asked about her experience throughout the entire process, co-founder Zhang only had three words to say: “It was amazing”. For a group of high school students to get together and configure such work is truly impressive, especially when you keep in mind the numerous setbacks the team had to endure. Sticking with AmSTEA’s purpose of providing a valuable youth network, Liao expressed that it was “amusing to collab[orate] with students from different schools”. Without the contributions of every person who had worked toward the completion of the project, AmSTEA’s first video would not have achieved the level of professionalism and message it was striving to provide to audiences. They are proud to affirm that AmSTEA has a finished project for all to watch.
It is crucial to acknowledge that AmSTEA is still undergoing their rudimentary stages. Though having completed a short film and having set up a basic fundamental structure for an organization, the current state of the association and the content produced are still in the works to transpire into greatness. There is still development potential, and with gained opportunistic experiences over time, it will reflect itself in the devised content. AmSTEA is always eager for constructive feedback from you, so it is encouraged to let us know how you feel on our various social media platforms. AmSTEA wants to cater the best approachability and experience possible, and that can only be possible with input from you.