Isha Menon is almost the same age now as Junko Morimoto was 68 years ago when she survived the atomic explosion that obliterated most of the Japanese city of Hiroshima.
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But when Ms Menon recited a poem at the High Court on Monday recalling both the horror of the blast and the touching humanity that endured beyond, it marked a continuing connection between the youth of today and the lessons of the past.
''Bring forth new life!'' she exclaimed to an emotional crowd at the opening of a new Red Cross exhibition, Memories of Hiroshima and Nagasaki: A Quest for Peace. ''Even should it cost me my own, Bring forth new life!''
Ms Menon's recital of the poem We Shall Bring Forth New Life came after the group of about 230 people heard from Ms Morimoto, an author and survivor of the August 6, 1945, bombing in Hiroshima.
Ms Morimoto, who was 13 years old and home from school in Hiroshima when the bomb hit, said it was important the lessons of the tragedy were passed on to new generations.
''These exhibitions can actually teach people a lot of things about Hiroshima and Nagasaki,'' Ms Morimoto said through a translator.
''It is very important to keep showing the event, and how important world peace is. As long as I live I will share the experience with future generations, because once everyone has gone who went through it, who can speak?''
Ms Menon, a 16-year-old Dickson College student, said she learnt about Hiroshima and Nagasaki at school, but didn't realise how devastating the atomic bomb was until she first read the poem.
''The devastation was incredible, so whenever I read it out I don't even need to try to feel any emotions,'' she said. ''I think as long as [nuclear] testing is going on, and people are thinking of using it then the story is still relevant.
''Young people are … the next people who are going to be politicians and people in power, so if you manage to get to them, it might make a difference later on.''
The opening was well attended by groups of students, some of whom were visibly moved by the event.
Red Cross ACT director Joan Hughes said the exhibition came at a time when work towards a global ban of nuclear weapons was gaining momentum, and it was important to ensure young people were involved.
''Part of the aim is to educate younger people, so we're really, really pleased,'' she said.
Ms Hughes said exhibitions like this, in conjunction with initiatives such as the Red Cross website Make Nuclear Weapons the Target, helped the current generations understand the humanitarian cost of nuclear weapons.
Memories of Hiroshima and Nagasaki: A Quest for Peace is a free exhibition at the High Court of Australia until August 28.
