In the midst of numerous global challenges, OYW Ambassadors have demonstrated their continued leadership in their countries and communities. In recent months, Ambassadors have received prestigious accolades, launched new initiatives, and published important pieces.
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Zubair Junjunia, Yi Kang Choo, Aimée Clint, Gulnahar Mahbub Monika, Sara Rajabli, Benjamin Bocio Richardson
Diana Award Recipients
Zubair, Yi Kang, Aimée, Gulnahar, Sara, and Benjamin received the Diana Award, which was established in the memory of Diana, Princess of Wales. The Award is given out by the charity of the same name and has the support of both her sons, The Duke of Cambridge and The Duke of Sussex. The recipients of the award have been honoured for going above and beyond in their daily life to create and sustain positive change.
Kehkashan Basu
Launched Mobile Library
Emirati
Kehkashan's organisation, the Green Hope Foundation, launched a mobile library, which runs on solar energy. The children of this village in Bangladesh, like hundreds of villages in Global South, have missed out on going to a school library for more than one and a half years. The Green Hope Foundation decided to bring the library to their doorstep, so everyone has the same accesibility to education.
Siddhant Sarang
COVID-19 Response
India
Siddhant, a climate activist and OYW Ambassador, runs a one-person volunteer operation to supply critical medical supplies such as oxygen to those affected with COVID-19 in India. The pandemic has been spreading to rural communities where health-care systems not prepared to handle the virus.
Anya Lazarova, Sonal Sharma, Caroline McGroary
Promoted Cybersecurity Awareness
One Young World Ambassadors, Anya, Sonal, and Caroline, collaborated to promote cybersecurity awareness. Through a university and industry collaboration, they designed an initiative to help educate students about the importance of being cyber aware. They also launched the #CyberSecureChallenge to promote cybersecurity awareness.
Svanika Balasubramanian
Addressed the Nobel Prize Summit
India
CEO of rePurpose Global, Svanika, addressed the inaugural Nobel Prize Summit, emphasized amplifying diverse voices, and launched the Color For Climate Petition. As an environmental innovator, Svanika called for international environmental organizations to create a Reality Seat on their governing boards which allows for people of color under 35 to represent the environmental concerns of communities.
Raghu Appasani
Launched Mental Health Resources
United States
Raghu and his organisation, The MINDS Foundation, are working to create resources that provide support to those who have been affected mentally due to the pandemic.
Madhav Datt, Serkan Toso, Alexia Hilbertidou, Zahin Razeen, Shubham Choudhary, Yaseen Khalid, Prakash Koirala, Chen Chee Yang
James Da Costa, Kaene Disepo, Joseph Migila
Candidates for the Commonwealth Youth Council
Among 40 young leaders, James, Kaene, and Joseph were announced as candidates and stood in the election. Candidates that are elected serve on the council from 2021 to 2023 and will lead consultations, projects, and events which will develop the ideas and concerns of young people which will shape youth development policies and frameworks.
Apefa Adjivon
City of Toronto's Confronting Anti-Black Racism Advisory Committee
Canada
Apefa has been appointed to the City of Toronto's Confronting Anti-Black Racism Advisory Committee which provides advice to the City Council on inter-government and institutional work in education, child-welfare, policing, housing, employment, and the justice system.
Dayo Okewale
Creating Opportunities for Black Entrepreneurs
United Kingdom
Dayo recently announced the launch of ‘Be the Best’ which will bring together elite industry leaders from every field. ‘Be the Best’ guarantees to create a purposeful ecosystem that promotes black career growth, black entrepreneurs and business ownership.
Gwendolyn Myers
Appointed the Global Chair-Youth Empowerment
Liberia
Gwendolyn received the Global Appointment of the Global Chair-Youth Empowerment @G100 eminent and empowered club of the top 100 women leaders in the world. This appointment provides a path for young people, especially women, to dream, grow, aspire and lead.
Florian Jardin, Peter Roozemond
Willice Onyango
Published Book Focused on Peace and Security
Kenya
Willice along with his colleagues recently published a book titled "Securitizing Youth: Young People's Roles in the Global Peace and Security Agenda". This book offers new insights on youth engagement regarding peace and security.
Brighton Kaoma
Joined United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network
Zambia
Brighton has joined the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (UN SDSN Youth) as their Global Director. Their mission is to promote practical solutions for sustainable development and apply the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at national and international levels.
Jessica Novia
Supported Sustainability Efforts at Unilever
Indonesia
As the forefront of Unilever's Green Office concept in Indonesia and Singapore, Jessica has initiated reducing plastic usage, adding jet hand dryers, and inspiring employees to use reusable water bottles to encourage a more sustainable office lifestyle.
Jonny Jacob
Featured in 'The Book of Hope'
United Kingdom
As a part of his mental health advocacy, Jonny, was invited as one of 101 stories in Jonny Benjamin MBE's new book, 'The Book of Hope'. Jonny was also featured in ICAS' CA Magazine May edition titled 'Why mental health is everyone's business'.
Anita Mitic
Serbia
Anita recently gradauted as a Fulbright Scholar from Texas A&M University. Anita was the first international student to give a graduation speech as a class speaker.
Hauwa Ojeifo
Nigeria
Hauwa gave the opening statement at the United Nations Conference of States Parties (UN COSP) where she focused on mental health conditions and psychosocial disabilities while examining the socio-economic impact of COVID-19 on those with disabilities.
Dara Latinwo
United Kingdom
Dara recently moderated Gulf Information Security Expo & Conference (GISEC) Inspire. This event combined cybersecurity companies, governmental organizations, and think tanks to encourage women to enter the field of cybersecurity.
Enass Abo-Hamed
United Kingdom
The CEO of H2GO Power, Dr. Enass Abo-Hamed, recently spoke at the UK Business Group Alliance for Net Zero, led by the Corporate Leaders Group UK. The webinar showcased UK businesses that are taking climate action through their commitment and dedication to Race to Zero to achieve the net zero targets.
Salam Al-Nukta
Syria
Salam joined a panel discussion, with more than 500 viewers, with the Social Progress Imperative and the European Youth Forum. Panelists tackled issues such as the climate crisis and the fallout of Covid-19 and discussed how to combat the the global pushback on civic space.
Lorenz Narku Laing
Jamaica
Lorenz was featured in an article by Codelist titled, "An ambassador from Bruck speaks against discrimination". The article details Laing's delegate speech against all forms of discrimination during the One Young World Summit at the Munich Olympic Hall.
Guled Ibrahim
United States
Guled was announced as a 2021 Bush Fellow. The Bush Fellowship allows individuals to develop the skills and relationships to drive large-scale change among a variety of issues in communities around the region.
Kishore Gopal Reddy, Isabella Villanueva-Garcia
Xiangkun (Elvis) Cao
China
Elvis was recently named to one of the 200 Leaders of Tomorrow by the 50th St. Gallen Symposium in Switzerland. This annual Symposium invites decision-makers from the diverse fields including, economics, politics, science, and society, to meet and exchange ideas with the next generation of leaders.
Nishall Garala
United Kingdom
Nishall was recognized by Harlow Council as an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the local community. One of Nishall's biggest accomplishments is running the Big Up Harlow campaign since 2014.
Moctar Dembele
Burkina Faso
Post-doctoral fellow at IWMI, Moctar, was recently awarded the Prix de la Société Academique Vaudoise 2021. This academic award, given to the best PhD thesis of the academic year, recognizes Moctar’s remarkable methodological thesis which integrates remote sensing and hydrological modeling methods.
Greg Rockson
Ghana
mPharma, Greg Rockson's company, was selected as an inaugural recipient of the Morgan Stanley award for developing concepts that aim to solve global challenges.
Siobhan Gardiner
United Kingdom
Siobhan was named on the 2021 Management Today's 35 women under 35 list. As the Director for Sustainability and Climate Change at Deloitte, Siobhan collaborates with strategic alliances to take the initative on climate action.
Vilma Saloj
Guatemala
Vilma's organization MAIA Impact School, Central America’s first secondary school which was designed for Maya girls in rural Guatemala, was recently recognized by HundrED.org and the Inter-American Development Bank. MAIA was also featured in a report about 21st-century skills in education in Latin America and the Caribbean. Right now, MAIA continues to conduct classes virtually, taking the necessary precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and is working to keep families informed through an educational campaign about the COVID-19 vaccine in Maya languages.
Radhika Batra
India
Radhika was selected by the World Economic Forum as one of India’s Top 50 COVID-19 Last-Mile Responders.
Regis Burton
Antigua and Barbuda
Onneile Maripe
Botswana
Ahmad Nawaz
Pakistan
Abideen Opeyemi
Nigeria
Maureen Muketha
Kenya
Ali Qasim
United Kingdom
Kellyn George
Dominica
Nhial Deng
Ethiopia
Reyhan Jamalova
Azerbaijan
