The section of active youth dedicates each month to commendable scholarship recipients who selflessly engage in activities that contribute to the community. They are those who, through every action, strive to be better children, friends, students, mentors – in short, better human beings. Being a good person means doing good whenever the opportunity arises.

Kindness knows no limits, neither in time nor space, and it doesn’t solely rest on direct contributions to people. It can also manifest indirectly, often seen in how we love, respect, and represent our homeland. Therefore, this time, we present to you our Amina Bašić, a person who has fulfilled all the criteria mentioned above as an altruist and philanthropist.

Amina Bašić hails from Hadžići, near Sarajevo. She graduated from the First Bosniak Gymnasium and currently attends her third year at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Sarajevo – Department of Bosnian, Croatian, and Serbian language, and the Department of Literatures of the Peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina. She is the author of several academic articles in the fields of philology, linguistics, political, and legal sciences, published in print and electronic journals. Her first research work on diplomacy (NATO integration) was published in November 2022. Furthermore, she’s involved in translating and digitalizing a collection of old manuscripts. She actively engages in diplomacy, leadership, presentation, and rhetorical skills, having completed various training courses in these areas. She has moderated numerous project presentations and has been a lecturer, speaker, and participant in various conferences.

She began her volunteer engagement working with students, highlighting how this work with young scholarship recipients has been an invaluable professional experience – an excellent preparation for her future profession: teaching. Accordingly, she emphasizes the importance of community as a crucial factor influencing the development of an individual’s personality:

We are created to function together and within a community because as individuals, we find it very challenging to make significant progress in society.

In October of this year, Amina visited the People’s Republic of China, specifically in the Fujian province, as Bosnia and Herzegovina’s representative at the Northeast Asia Youth Camp on Sustainable Development 2023 Fujian. Kanita Hamzić and Amina Bašić were the only representatives from Europe.

The camp’s goal was to explore different economic potentials in the cities of Xiamen, Wuyishan, and Fuzhou, visiting companies whose main business frameworks are based on sustainable development principles. Visits were accompanied by meetings and lectures related to these themes. Alongside diplomatic activities, Amina had the opportunity to acquaint herself with the rich Chinese culture, art, history, literature, and the diplomatic continuity of these cities.

Although Amina has proven to be a true friend, mentor, and philanthropist, she demonstrates her skills by volunteering as a lecturer within the Hastor Foundation. Amina expresses her satisfaction in sharing the knowledge gained from the Department of Bosnian, Croatian, and Serbian language and the Department of Literatures of the Peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the readers of the Hastor Foundation Newsletter:

I must say I am extremely proud to have the opportunity to practically apply everything we learn in our studies and what we are being prepared for. The work of a lecturer is very demanding, but simultaneously, I feel immense satisfaction that I can contribute to the Foundation in this spectrum.

In conclusion, Amina advises young people and everyone reading this at any point in their lives to work on themselves repeatedly, strive for lifelong learning, bravely defend their views, and always maintain dignity. The battle, unfortunately, does not end overnight; it is omnipresent and inevitable, but it is also the only path to truth and justice.

Prepared by: Aldina Šaljić