Theme: Love, Friendship, and Social Support

Friendship, love, and general relationships we make help to cultivate our lives and broaden our horizons. Research has shown that close friendships and relationships protect our mental and physical health when times get tough. Furthermore, social support can be categorized into three types: Perceived (Psychological) Support, Received Support, and Social Networks. Love, friendship, and social support are all deeply rooted in our everyday lives as we thrive off of these factors to increase our own viability. This in turn has demonstrated that we are social creatures who need others to survive and flourish, and this is extremely important to comprehend.

Shanghai Community International School
1161 Hongqiao Road
Shanghai, Shanghai, 200051
China

Anna Thelin

She was born in a small town in Sweden and moved to an international community in Istanbul at the age of 12. She’s lived in Shanghai for four years and is interested in health, fitness, and nutrition. She has been through a journey in which she has learned how to better understand herself, and she can’t wait to share an important lesson she’s learned with you all.

Ashima Shukla

She is 17 years old and studying in grade 12 at SCIS. She was born in Delhi and has lived in 4 different cities, which has instilled in her an unquenchable curiosity about the world. She also loves to consume and share stories through various mediums such as prose, poetry, photography, and film.

Benjamin Dunbar

Ben Dunbar is a third-generation teacher with backgrounds in sustainable development and teacher training. He spends his free time modeling whimsy and silliness to his two young daughters while scrambling to understand fatherhood. He and his family spend holidays at home in Bozeman, Montana, hiking as much as possible.

Danielle Chu

Danielle Chu is an extraordinarily chatty and energetic tween. She’s 12 years old and in the sixth grade. She is originally from Taiwan but has lived in Shanghai for her whole life. Her hobbies include: Horseback riding, taking pictures, and traveling.

Emily Blalock

She is the SCIS College Counselor and is passionate about helping teens reach their personal and professional goals. Prior to SCIS, she spent ten years teaching fashion business at the University of Georgia, in the USA. She has a background in training and supporting women’s groups in entrepreneurship.

Gabriel NG-Triquet

Gabriel Ng-Triquet has lived in Shanghai for five years and has lived in Paris, Hong-Kong, Saigon, throughout his 15 years. He enjoys playing sports and always seeks to find a balance between his academics and recreational activities. From living in Shanghai, he feels that he has learned a lot about being independent and having an open-mindset to trying new things. He also enjoys challenges and loves opportunities for growth.

Irene Savi

Irene was born in Bologna, Italy. At the age of five, she moved to Shandong, China with her parents and baby sister. There, Irene attended a local Chinese school where she studied everything in Chinese. After finishing fifth grade, she moved to Shanghai and has been living here ever since. Irene plans to major in psychology to become a Clinical Psychologist.

Jeni Lin

She is currently the CEO of Peida International Technologies LLC, an innovative company in the technology, media, and internet space that has secured over one million dollars in funding. Previous to this, she worked in private equity (KKR) and investment banking (Goldman Sachs) and studied at NYU (Finance) and Harvard University (Economics&Philosophy).

Nicholas Spring-Peers

He is from Toronto, Canada and has been teaching internationally for the past ten years. He is a huge hockey fan, and his favorite team is the Toronto Maple Leaves. He also has a tremendous passion for reading and learning and believes that discovering our true potential demands a continual thirst for knowledge.

Oliver Kristensen

He loves spending time with his family at home or hanging out with his friends doing whatever and who knows what. But most of all, he really enjoys making new friends because for him, seeing happiness in others warms his heart.