In the midst of numerous global challenges, OYW Ambassadors have demonstrated their continued leadership in their countries and communities. In recent months, Ambassadors have published groundbreaking reports, met world leaders, and joined exclusive leadership positions.
Have some news to share? The Community Team would love for you to get in touch via [email protected].
Mete Coban
Launched Path to Net Zero
United Kingdom
Councillor Mete Coban announced the Hackney roadmap to net zero, which is set out to rebuild a greener Hackney. The Councillor, along with the Mayor and Deputy Mayor of Hackney, hosted a roundtable with youths from the Cardinal Pole school to determine how to respond to the climate emergency.
Tim Keaveney
Featured on Dragon's Den
United Kingdom
Tim and his co-founder recently appeared on accalimed BBC show, Dragon's Den, with their refillable and eco cleaning products company, Homethings. Their products can help households dramatically reduce their single-use plastic waste.
Mpho Manyisa
Selected for McKinsey & Company Program
South Africa
Mpho was selected for McKinsey & Company's Next Generation Women Leaders 2021 program. This program emphasizes the importance of women in leadership and develops connections among young leaders.
Ambassadors making strides to achieve the SDGs
Our latest collaboration with Ladderworks were interviews with Etienne Adriaenssen, Tamara Meckler, Amira Odeh, Yi Jun Mock, Reyhan Jamalova, Parveen Begum, Arjun Mishra, Mazbahul Islam, Emmanuel Niyoyabikoze, Bhagya Uppala Wijayawardane, Taylor Quinn, Kenna Questelles, Raeed Roshan Ali, Tatiana Houndjo, Lara Valentina Pizarro, Laís Naoko Higashi, and Karime Guillen Libien which have been featured on NASDAQ's website.
Ladderworks is a publishing platform of diverse stories with the mission to inspire kids and youth around the world to become empathetic entrepreneurs.
Andrea de la Torre
"'Fake News', an existent reality"
Colombia
Co-written by OYW Ambassador Andrea de la Torre, the article "'Fake News', an existent reality" highlights our route towards fake news, the anatomy of fake news, and recommendations to fight against fake news.
Brighton Kaoma
Joined the 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.
Rut Einarsdóttir
Ambassador Meeting Prime Minister
Iceland
Rut met Katrín Jakobsdóttir, the Prime Minister of Iceland at the reception for the Icelandic Delegation to the CSW 65. The largest gathering on gender equality at the United Nations, the Icelandic delegation to the Commission on the Status of Women, was composed of diverse fields in Iceland, all of whom work together and individually to further women's rights on a global scale.
Xiangkun (Elvis) Cao
Co-Authored Report on Energy Transition
China
Elvis co-authored Theme Report on Energy Transition at the UN Technical Working Group on Energy Transitions was published recently. He also joined the Future Energy Leaders Programme with the World Energy Council. This community is composed of young professionals who are dedicated to making the transition to sustainable energy a reality.
Juan Carlos Viloria Doria
Participated in Youth Forum
Colombia
Juan was an active and involved participant at the 3rd Migration Youth Forum. This is an annual forum that gathers youth perspectives in key thematic areas across different regions that focuses on intersectional issues. Additionally, Juan Carlos Viloria Doria recently urged governments and various organizations from around the world for solidarity with refugees and migrants from Venezuela.
Maria Alejandra Téllez Correa
“Retratos del campo: Mujeres de tierra y agua”
Colombia
Maria Alejandra Téllez Correa released a documentary about the relation between gender, rurality and climate change in Colombia. The work's name is "Countryside Portraits: Women from Earth And Water", which are real life histories.
Joseph Sarvary
Selected as President of INDEVOR
Paraguy
Joseph was selected as President of INDEVOR (INSEAD MBA Impact club). He will use his skills and experiences to guide his school toward a more sustainable future.
Kristin Duquette
Selected as Security Fellow
United States
Kristin is joining the Truman National Security Project Class of 2021 as a Security Fellow. Kristin will be collaborating with over 2,000 veterans, policymakers, and national security experts who are committed to making national security more diverse and innovative.
Albert Ninepence
Published Book on Impact
Ghana
Albert recently published his book, 'Impact of Structural Adjustment Program on Sub-Saharan Africa', which investigates and evaluates the impact of Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) in Ghana.
Morgan Hewett
Selected for Fast Track to Scale Program
United States
Morgan was accepted into a pilot opportunity with Anthem, the second largest health insurer, through their Fast Track to Scale program. In this program Morgan will generate important proof points around the efficacy of treatment options, better understand Anthem's network of psychiatrists, and learn how to navigate patients to the proper care.
Brad Gudger
Appointed Trustee Position
United Kingdom
As a Youth Expert Advisor for NHS England and NHS Improvement, a Young Leader for the Queen’s Commonwealth Trust and a OYW Ambassador, Brad was appointed as a new trustee to the board for the National Academy for Social Prescribing.
Nhial Deng
Joined Advisory Board
Ethiopia
Nhial recently joined the East African Centre for Forced Migration and Displacement as a Member of its Advisory Board. He will work with the Centre in advocating for policies and research that incorporate the voices of the displaced populations in the region.
Keithlin Caroo
Signed Memorandum of Understanding
St. Lucia
Keithlin's company, Helen's Daughters, signed the Memorandum of Understanding with Export Saint Lucia. Their partnership will provide women and youth with training programs and support to improve capacity in the agricultural sector.
Jemima Lovatt
Received Offer of Pupillage
United Kingdom
Jemima recently received an offer of pupillage from 6 Pump Court, fulfilling her lifelong drem of being a barrister. Jemima also launched Thrive, which assists businesses in reducing and and mitigating the risks associated with gender inequality.
George Imafidon
Ambassador Meets Prince William
United Kingdom
An engineer on Team X44, George Imafidon, recently met with Prince William to test drive their electric racing vehicles.
Xiangkun (Elvis) Cao
China
Elvis was invited by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs to be a panelist on their Global Policy Dialogue for Climate Action. The dialogue is titled 'Imagining the Carbon-neutral Future: Transformations in Energy and Transport' and featured discussions of practical solutions and ways to minimize the effect of clean energy and sustainable transport on the environment.
Svanika Balasubramanian
India
Svanika focused on the theme 'Our Planet, Our Future' while speaking at the first Nobel Prize Summit. This event brought together Nobel Prize laureates, scientists, policy makers, business leaders, and youth leaders to explore the question: What can be achieved in this decade to put the world on a path to a more sustainable, more prosperous future for all of humanity?
Salam Al-Nukta
Syria
As the founder of ChangeMakers, an organization which aims to close the gender gap in STEM, Salam Al-Nukta will be speaking at Youth 2030 Feminist Vision for the Arab States at the Generation Equality Forum, which will be held in Paris.
Stephen Ogweno
Kenya
Stephen's foundation, Stowelink, won Student Innovation Project Of The Year during the Quality Health Care Awards. It was also the first runner up in the category of Innovative Use Of Social Media For Healthcare. Additionally, his work with the NCDs 365 project and App and the impact created has been recognized by The Young Innovators For Health Award, an Africa wide health innovation award. Since 2020, the project and the app have reached 3.5 million people in the world.
Courtney Sunna
United States
Courtney moderated the World Humanitarian Forum's session, "Youth Leadership: The role of youth in building back better" which addressed the challenges of today's generational gap and solutions to rebuild and create an intern-generational society.
Manoly Sisavanh
Laos
Manoly Sisavanh, the Deputy Country Director for the Wildlife Conservation Society Lao PDR Program in Laos, has been shortlisted for Women of the Future Awards South East Asia 2021 in the Community Spirit and Public Service category. Manoly currently leads government policy dialogue on protected areas and wildlife and in 2019 won the Mary Robinson Climate Justice Award.
Jemima Lovatt
United Kingdom
Jemima has been nominated for the National Diversity Awards for her work with Thrive, the social enterprise for gender equality. Thrive provides education on domestic abuse, stranger harassment, creating safe spaces, the double discrimination faced by black women and equal pay to corporate clients.
Emmanuel Niyoyabikoze
Burundi
Founder of Greening Burundi, Emmanuel, has been named as an Earth Champion by ICPAC, as a leader at the forefront of Sustainable Development and Climate Action in Eastern Africa.
Rimla Akhtar
United Kingdom
Rimla was recognised in The Queen’s Birthday Honours 2021 lists, which acnkowledges those who give extraordinary contributions and service across the United Kingdom. Rimla was honoured with the Order of the British Empire as an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to Equality and Diversity in Sport.
Renee Davis
United Kingdom
Renee was recognized in UK Black Business Week's 25 Top Black Entrepreneurs to Watch in 2021. As the founder of Out The Box, a community of over a thousand young creative entrepreneurs, and black professionals in various fields, Renee feels very passionate about seeing young people thrive and reach their full potential.
Dalia Yousif
Sudan
Dalia received the Chevening Scholarship and is preparing to complete a MSc in Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Management at Imperial College London and eventually looks to be the future minister of Trade in Sudan.
Izzy Obeng
United Kingdom
Izzy Obeng was recognized in UK Black Business Week's 25 Top Black Entrepreneurs to Watch in 2021. Izzy is the Director of Foundervine, an international training consultancy specialising in start-up and scale-up acceleration programmes. She works to address the inequalities that women and young people face when starting a business or social enterprise.
Alexia Hilbertidou
New Zealand
Esther Marshall
United Kingdom
Jacob Hamar, Sabrina Kolbeck
Cecilia Chapiro
Argentina
Siddhant Sarang
India
Yi Kang Choo
Malaysia
Adam Bradford
United Kingdom
Emerson Salguero
Guatemala
Kamal-deen Kassim
Nigeria
