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Class of 2022
Dun Oliver Abiera, Philippines is a graduate of international studies at Ateneo de Davao University and studied environmental preservation and peacebuilding program under the Philippine Youth Leadership Program (PYLP) at Northern Illinois University. He founded Yabong with his passion for bridging digital gaps through media and information literacy (MIL). Currently, he is a Youth Coordinator for Asia and the Pacific for the UNESCO-led MIL Alliance and is based in Mindanao to educate and empower youth leaders with the use of social media to yield a credible and safe information space.
Rebecca Aime, Rwanda was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo but had to move due to political instability in the country. In 2010 together with her family, she moved to Uganda as refugees. At just 13, she was forced to drop out of school to support her family after her mother who was the family provider got a back problem working as a house help that left her unable to walk. Rebecca has over 10 years of experience running small businesses from selling roadside foods, hawking, fashion to exporting clothes and shoes from Uganda to other refugees in the diaspora. In 2016, she joined Social Innovation Academy (SINA) which empowers marginalized youth to become social entrepreneurs, where she underwent training in leadership, social entrepreneurship and, business start-up and mentoring. With the help of this foundation, she founded Patapia which seeks to empower refugee women to become entrepreneurs towards economic independence. In 2020, she joined the SINA Accelerator program as a participant and later as a mentor.
Yasmin Al-Douri, Germany is the founder and director of Diverse Young Leaders (DYL), Europe’s first and award winning organisation advocating for diverse and inclusive youth leadership. Her engagements have led her to funded study experiences abroad and work opportunities at the German Embassy in Canada, the United Nations, as well as the German Development Agency GIZ. Yasmin is currently working as a Research Assistant at the Future AI4EO Lab and is completing her M. Sc. Degree in Politics & Technology at the Technical University of Munich, where she focuses on AI Ethics and the regulation of Emerging Technologies.
Juan Pablo Alegre, Argentina is a public servant and a political and social activist. He holds a degree with honors Cum Laude in political science. He received many awards and distinctions, such as a scholarship for student leaders from the US State Department. He spent 6 years working in startups and tech companies dedicated to innovation and business development. There, he led diversity and inclusion initiatives too. After that, he decided to join the public sector as a consultant at the State Congress of the City of Buenos Aires. Today he has an elected government official role as Member of District Council of “Comuna 15” in the City of Buenos Aires. With his project SMB Acceleration, he works for economic and social development, and promoting inclusive and sustainable environments in his community.
Stanley Anigbogu, Nigeria is a Nigerian storyteller and creative technologist. He is the founder of ArtecHubs Nigeria, a leading STEAM skill acquisition company for young minds in the southeastern region of Nigeria. Stanley is enthusiastic about storytelling and how it can be used to transform the world while also empowering the next generation by closing the gender gap in STEM and reducing inequity among children in rural areas. He is an internationally recognized, award-winning innovator and filmmaker. Stanley is the winner of the J & J Champions of Science 2020, a Diana Award Recipient in 2021, a Falling Walls Engage Winner in 2021, and the Opportunity Desk Impact Challenge Winner in 2021. He is also a Google Creative Campus fellow for 2020/2021 and a Cannes Lions Roger Hatchuel Student Academy 2021 Class.
Maria Wilvenna Añora, Philippines is the Co-founder as well as Strategy Head of AtoANI and AtoANI BioPack. She is passionate about social innovation and using it to contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. With a Chemical Engineering and MBA Degree, her corporate experience in multinational companies involved working on various topics in the areas of Strategy, Digitalization, Innovation, Finance, Material Management, Quality Assurance, Program and Project Management. This has enabled her to work with multi-cultural and cross-functional teams at all levels of the organization from top management to the operations personnel. She also has freelance experience consulting and creating business plans and digital transformation strategies for startups and enterprises from various countries (Asia, USA, Europe) in the areas of E-commerce, tourism and mobile Apps. Outside work, her interests include food, books, movies, documentaries and travelling.
Angellica Aribam, India is a political activist working on issues of gender, race, and the democratisation of politics for a decade now. Hailing from the marginalised north-eastern region of India, she has been at the receiving end of racial injustice since her childhood. She joined politics at the age of 20 believing it to be the best way to change the status quo. In 2012, she became the first student from the northeastern region to be elected in the Delhi University, India’s prominent student organisation. Angellica was a National General Secretary of the students' wing of the Indian National Congress, India’s oldest political party, for half a decade. She was named one of Forbes India's "30 Under 30" in 2017 for her work on policy and politics. Based on her lived experiences as a first generation woman in politics, she founded Femme First Foundation, a non-partisan non-profit organisation, to amplify women's political leadership in India in 2019. Her work has been featured widely by both national and international media. She has spoken at colleges and universities across the world. She has been a Vital Voices fellow, an American Council of Young Political Leaders Fellow, and a MOFCOM scholar.
Etienne Jacques Basson, South Africa is an Environmental Officer, Western Cape Government (WCG) Department of Environmental Affairs & Development Planning (DEA&DP), Sustainability Directorate, Green Economy. Etienne is the Founder of the Envirolove NGO ("Nature hikes as safe spaces for children in violent landscapes: An ethnographic study in South Africa" International Conference on Sustainable Development (ICSD) 2021 Abstract presentation) & Co-founder of the Idas Valley Community Trails NGO (World Economic Forum Uplink BiodiverCities Challenge Top Innovator Winner 2022). He is a sustainable development practitioner with almost 10 years of experience in the field of community development through the development and implementation of social and environmental programs in vulnerable and violent communities in the Western Cape of South Africa. Etienne has a degree in Ecology and is currently in the process of completing a honours degree in Environmental Monitoring & Modelling.
Kehkashan Basu, Canada is, as winner of the 2016 International Children’s Peace Prize, an iconic global influencer, environmentalist, champion of women and children’s rights, TEDx speaker, Climate Reality Mentor, author, musician, peace and sustainability campaigner. A Forbes 30 Under 30 and the first-ever Winner of the Voices Youth Gorbachev-Schultz Legacy Award for her work on nuclear disarmament, Kehkashan is a United Nations Human Rights Champion, a National Geographic Young Explorer, a UN Habitat Young City Champion, the Regional Organizing Partner for North America for the NGO Major Group and one of Canada's Top25 Women of Influence. Kehkashan is the Founder-President of global social innovation enterprise Green Hope Foundation, that works at a grassroots level in 26 countries, empowering young people, especially those from vulnerable communities, in the sustainable development process and she has spoken at over 200 United Nations and other global fora across 25 countries. She is the youngest Trustee of the Parliament of the World's Religions, Co-Chair of the University of Toronto's SDG Advisory Council, Council Lead of the Toronto-St. Paul's Constituency Youth Council, Canada, Winner of the World Literacy Award for for Significant Contribution to Literacy by a Young Person, Winner of Canada's Global Energy Show Emerging Leader Award, a member of the World Humanitarian Forum Youth Council, Winner of the Pax Christi Toronto Teacher of Peace Award and a Co-Leader of the UN Women Generation Equality Forum Action Coalition on Feminist Action for Climate Justice. She continues to work tirelessly to amplify the voices of young people, women and girls, in decision-making processes.
Diogo Bezerra Da Silva, Brazil is considered one of the Young Leaders of Americas Iniciatives, an Award winning and recognized as the social entrepreneur of the year of 2020, by the Global Education Laureate Group. Founder of +1Code, an online social enterprise all over Brazil that helps social lower income youths to become experts in solving problems of their own communities using technology, promoting and giving access to good tech education and development paths where they can level their economic lives. He also has founded 4way, a social English School where every three paying student is given a 100% scholarship to someone who are not able to afford for an English course. Diogo got a degree in Marketing at Anhembi Morumbi Laureate International Universities and he is pursuing another degree in Advertising&Marketing, and now he is the Ambassador of the Brazil Conference.
Nitesh Bhardwaj, India is a development professional and a social entrepreneur with a Master’s degree in Communications. Nitesh has experience working with both Government and Non-Government organizations. With his project “Aadiwasi Janjagruti” Nitesh is working extensively on bridging the gap between the government and the people by using hyperlocal communications in India. He has been an Acumen Fellow, SBI Youth For India Fellow and has got National and International recognition because of his work on Development communications in India.
Ajit Bhatta, Nepal is a Co-founder and Chief Project Officer at Samsara Creation, a Nepal-based social initiative that is working towards promoting a circular and sustainable economy through intelligent collaboration with the local artisans. His initiative was listed in Top 500 startups across South Asia by Innopreneurs in 2021. Apart from that, he is also involved as a Lead Research Project Officer at one of the largest youth-led global non-profit organizations known as - United Nations SDSN Youth. He holds a MA in Development Studies from Kathmandu University School of Arts. He is a Development Practitioner, Sustainability advocate and a Social Innovator.
Anthony Chielo, Nigeria is Community Engagement Officer for the Artvocacy project and Ambassador of Street Project Foundation. He is passionate about community building, storytelling and the use of ARTS as a tool for advocating for social change.
Sameera Chukkapalli, India is the founder and director of Needlab, a nonprofit organization that works to solve habitat and urban resilience problems in cities and rural areas. She is selected by the Obama Foundation as an Obama Leader for Europe in 2022. Needlab works with communities worldwide to develop human and environmental-centered architectural design solutions. They have completed 46 projects on four continents, directly affecting over 5,000 individuals. Currently, Sameera is working on "house for all" with migrants, refugees, and locals on one of the first participatory designs for a new, sustainably-built housing project. The project aims to help improve the integration of migrants and refugees through participatory collaboration. Sameera is the youngest architect to participate in Barcelona Design Week, UN-Habitat first assembly and she is passionate about making sustainable design solutions accessible to all.
Carla Maria de Souza Barbosa, Brazil is a Brazilian social entrepreneur based in Berlin. She is the founder of Project Três, a non-profit organization that operates in India and Kenya. Her work focuses on gender equality and human rights. Through skill training and educational programs, she supports vulnerable women to grow into full financial and personal independence to live a self-determined and self-sustaining life. So far more than 100 women have participated in Project Três. Carla has worked in the nonprofit sector for the past 5 years after leaving her career as a fashion designer. She wanted to make use of her skills and her challenging personal experiences as a domestic violence survivor in order to empower other women experiencing similar situations. In 2021, Project Três won Schwarzkopf Foundation's Million Chances Award.
Rosario Del Pilar Diaz Garavito, Peru Rosario is a SDGs activist and Founder & Executive Director of The Millennials Movement. Currently she serves as Elected Focal Point for the Children, Adolescent and Youth Group of the Latin American and the Caribbean Region Civil Society Participation Mechanism (MesCLAC) for the formal review process of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at the United Nations. On 2019, she was awarded as Obama Scholar, graduating from the Master’s Degree in International Development and Policy at the Harris School of Public Policy, University of Chicago. Rosario is a specialist in sustainable development, and youth policies. Her work is focused on supporting youth, women and grassroots organizations to be bring the voices and actions from the territories to global and regional decision-making spaces and efforts to achieve a more inclusive, peaceful and sustainable world, supporting the advancement of the SDGs. Rosario is member and contributes with relevant spaces, she is a fellow for the LAC Women Empower Program 2022- 2023 of the Ban Ki Moon Center; and former Youth Power Panelist 2020 - 2021 for the #YouthPower Initiative of The Global Goals Campaign; fellow of the Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative 2016; UNLEASH Talent 2017; and Peruvian Youth Delegate for the United Nations High Level Political Forum 2017. Rosario´s work it´s been recognized by the Vice Presidency of Peru, the Regional Coordinator of the UN System in Peru, The United Nations Millennium Campaign, AIESEC International with the Leader for Peace Award and by UN Women as “Women Champion 2015 – 2016” for Empower Women Global Movement for Women Economic Empowerment.
Abdul Dumbuya, Sierra Leone is co-founder at Concerned Generation Network, a social enterprise that works with rural farmers and produces raw ginger and processes it into an economically preservable ginger powder. He is Regional Director for the Association of African Future Leaders-AAFL-West Africa, Founder at Power Girls Network which is a youth led educational and skills training organization supporting female school drop-outs and illiterate women in both rural and urban areas in Sierra Leone, Co-founder at Drip-Store, a production and marketing company that produces wears. Besides being a founder and co-founder of different platforms, Absul has won several awards nationally, and globally. A few of the most recent awards and nominations are the following Top 20 youth entrepreneurs in Africa 2020 by The Anzisha Prize, 2020 winner of the Shout Project World Record Youth Winner organized by Shout My Lifestyle, 2021 Top 26 GoGettaz AgriPreneurs in Africa. He also is a fellow at the Tony Olumelo Foundation.
Njeke Egbe, Cameroon grew up experiencing the worst days of hunger in an orphanage. Because of this experience he founded PEACE CROP, a social venture, in 2019. With an MSc in Agriculture and Rural development from the Pan African Institute of Development – West Africa, his inspiration to advocate for organic farming while also using agriculture empowerment workshops as a peace building tool have handed him the opportunity to work with war affected communities, orphanages, prisons, schools and other entities, across war affected communities in Africa. Njeke is also a Kanthari 2019 Alumni and his series of peaceful environmental conservation projects carried out give him an out-standing track record which is to be proud of as he is engaged in educating communities on the causes and effects of climate change both at local and global levels.
Zoé Elkær Nicot, Denmark is a law student from the University of Copenhagen. In 2021 she obtained a bachelor’s degree in European Studies, majoring in EU law from the University of Amsterdam. She is the co-founder of the European Debate Initiative, that works to promote young people’s interest in and understanding of the European Union through debates about human rights, the rule of law, migration and more. Moreover, she is the Danish EU Youth Delegate in 9th cycle of the EU Youth Dialogue, and she is also chairperson in the Danish NGO Forum for International Cooperation Youth. Zoé is also a National Youth Leader in NGO Global Partnerships for Education, that works for removing barriers to education globally. She is also a member of Plan International Denmark’s Youth Advisory Council. Finally, Zoé works in the Danish Parliament as a Political Assistant for the Green Party “The Alternative”.
Sheyla Fonseca, Colombia is a future international business professional who knows the importance of how social innovation can change lives. She has volunteered and is part of the Partners of the América. Sheyla is Project leader at Fundación Estrategias Para La Vida where innovation involves the neediest communities of the region - exactly in those region where she has spent most of her life.
Alba Forns, Spain Young environmental professional & game changer in the clean energy space. She is co-founder, Chief Strategy Officer & Chief Climate Officer at Climatize, an environmental FinTech mobile app that allows you to invest in community energy projects & cleantech scale-ups from as little as your spare change. Alba has previous experience in the sustainability field as an Energy Consultant, engineering projects on sustainable mobility, circular economy & energy efficiency. Her background is in Industrial Technology Engineering & she holds a Double MSc in Renewable Energy (EIT-InnoEnergy) at two leading technical universities in Europe & a Business & Management course at ESADE. Alba entered the sustainability space out of passion and is an advocate of climate justice & gender equality. She loves to spend time in nature, practice outdoor sports & likes to organize & participate in Volunteering events such as beach-bay clean ups.
Irene Garofalo, Italy is a young professional specialized in European law and policy. Over the past few years, she has been working as an EU funding consultant helping clients with designing and implementing successful business strategies around public donor funding. Irene is currently working for PwC Italy where she is mostly dealing with public funding tools for green energy transition. Besides work, she is also involved in some projects aimed at fostering youth representation and engagement in public life.
Nils Handler, Germany is a Climate/Development Economist & Data Scientist with 10 years of international work experience, predominantly in energy economics, as well as green innovation & green growth. He effectively provided high level policy advice and works well under minimal supervision and across sectoral teams. He gained professional experience in project management in the field of climate change economics, green growth and innovation and delivers well under short deadlines. Nils is currently deepening his knowledge in data-science & quantitative research with an economics PhD. He is fluent in English, German, Spanish, Portuguese & French. Nils sees himself as global citizen and intercultural communicator having lived for ten years in six different countries on three continents. He is a proactive and results-oriented problem solver who has extensive leadership experience gained in a variety of extracurricular activities and has a proven record of achieving tangible results. Nils is the Founder and Co-Lead of the D\carb Future Economy Forum.
Mohamed Hegazy, Egypt is a Policy Entrepreneur focused on Applied Urban Data Science. Specialized in combining the collection, integration, and analysis of data with public policy design and implementation to improve urban systems and quality of life, and systematically work towards sustainable development. Co-founder and Director of Transport for Cairo (TfC), a consultancy specialized on urban transport in developing cities. Led the mapping of multiple transit networks in Africa. Designed and authored transport strategies and plans using the maps. Avid cyclist, rower and reader. Born in Cairo, Egypt and have cum laude degrees in Economics from the American University in Cairo (2012) and Governing the Large Metropolis from Sciences Po, Paris (2018). Received training at the Center for Sustainable Urban Development, Columbia University, New York (2018).
Johnmary Kavuma, Uganda is a change maker, and an environmentalist, a Ugandan entrepreneur. With Upcycle Africa he has won the UN scroll of honor Award 2020 as well as the IET innovation Award 2019. He is a sustainable development goals advocate, a younger world ambassador, Tony Elumelu fellow, Ocean leader, Yali fellow, Ye community fellow, Kumvana fellow and Social Innovation Academy scholar. He is passionate about uplifting the lives of marginalized groups while conserving the environment. In order to realize this, Johnmary has volunteered with several organizations. In 2015, he founded Upcycle Africa, a project which empowers communities to protect the environment while constructing affordable homes out of plastic waste. Johnmary is also the Co-Founder of Kimuli Fashionability, an initiative that is unchaining persons with disabilities from the bondage of discrimination and unemployment/underemployment by equipping them with hands-on creative tailoring skills to turn plastic waste into upcycled fashionable clothing. Through his work, he seeks to demonstrate to the world that "disability is not inability" as well as that "waste is not waste until you waste it ". Additionally, he is also a peer educator at Tech for Community, trying to bridge the digital gap by availing opportunities to everyone in rural communities starting from younger generation to youth and women. He loves passing on skills to other people so that he can help to break the barriers that keeps them in poverty.
Brianna Kerr, Australia is a social entrepreneur from Sydney, Australia. After a diverse array of experiences in the international development space, she co-founded Kua; a closed-loop coffee business that specialises in Climate Positive Coffee. She is passionate about climate justice, supply chain transparency and human connection. She holds a Master of Human Rights from the University of Sydney and a Bachelor of Arts from UNSW.
Lucas Lima, Brazil is a mechanical engineer and professor who holds a MBA in education 4.0 and is a resident of the Alemão Complex. He is a first place winner of the pop award at the Shell Young Initiative business fair, was one of the top five at the entrepreneurial youth business fair and one of the 15 entrepreneurs selected from the start acceleration program Ambev. Lucas is honored with the SDG partner award as well as by Beygood. He is a TEDx speaker, fellow Prolider and a member of the network of leaders of the Lemann foundation. Lucas is currently working as CEO of Infill.
Ester Lima Toledo, Brazil is a social entrepreneur and education activist who was born and raised in Brazil. She currently studies at Babson College with a full-ride scholarship to further develop her abilities and work with social change. She is the Co-Founder of Eductus, a Brazilian social impact organization that provides accessible and quality education to low-income students through digital technologies. Her main goal is to work on empowering low-income students and promoting youth leadership on environmental and social challenges. She has also worked in organizations such as Ashoka, besides having international education experience in institutions such as the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (Spain) and Toulouse Business School (France). Outside of work, she loves traveling, reading, writing, and learning new languages with a current focus on French, Portuguese, English, and Spanish.
Marie Mayassi, France is a Black queer woman, skater, sociologist, public speaker, decolonisation activist and workshop facilitator, in 2021 she panelled at the Good Push Summit for the Future of Social Skateboarding. Marie-Ermelinda is the founder of Skate Gals & Pals and Melanin Skate Gals & Pals, U.K. based not-for-profit skate organisations for marginalised genders, the LGBTQIA+ community and People of Colour. She gained knowledge and experience during her time in the Palestinian West Bank and Athens’ Refugee Camps, where she was teaching and working to share her love for skateboarding and the benefits that comes with it: mental and physical wellbeing, creativity, self expression and community building. She recently started a PhD in Sociology, to further theorise the practical background she gained in the past few years.
Eston McKeague, USA is the President of the Young World Federalists, a global movement fighting to give humanity a voice. YWF envisions a sustainable, just, and peaceful world through a democratic world federation. A world run by humanity, for humanity, providing equal opportunity to all on a thriving planet. As a passiontate world federalist, Eston is also a board member of Citizens for Global Solutions and has volunteered with Democracy Without Borders, and the World Federalist Movement - Institute for Global Policy. As a Youth Climate Amassador with the Center for UN Constitutional Research, Eston attended the COP26 UN Climate Conference in Glasgow. He has a BA in Global Affairs with minors in Economics and Religion & Culture, as well as, an MSc in Political Science: Public Policy and Governance from the University of Amsterdam. Orginally from Seattle, USA, Eston currently lives in Berlin, Germany where he is a tour guide and freelance graphic designer.
Muazu Modu, Nigeria is an activist with over 7 years of experience in social accountability, community organizing and advocacy. He is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Spotlight NG and Citizen-led Tracking, a data-driven social accountability initiative that uses data and leverages digital technology to empower and work with citizens at the grassroots level to demand accountability on government spending. Through this initiative over 700,000 lives in 56 rural communities in Nigeria could be reached and impacted directly. They were able to track and save the government over $4.2 million earmarked for health and education projects. His work earned numerous international recognition and awards, notable among the achievements include: Mandela Washington Fellowship, African Union's 2020 top 20 best Innovation on Democracy and Governance, Spindle's 30 Most Inspiring Digital Innovation on SDGs and finalist AfricTivites 2021 African Civic Engagement Prize.
Gopal Kumar Mohoto, Bangladesh is an engineer, entrepreneur and researcher on renewable energy. He is Co-founder and Team Leader of CASSETEX; also Research Director of Advanced Dynamics PTE. LTD. Through research and systems thinking he brings sustainable and innovative solutions for the future of energy and mobility forward. He has been creating energy solutions with just energy transition; through this he is focused on transforming the energy sector away from grid dependence to off-grid, micro-energy and community based distributed energy. With specialism in energy policy, renewable energy, energy storage and electric vehicles Gopal is working to transform to a zero-carbon future through systems innovation, enhancing climate technology adoption, women entrepreneurship and youth capacity building. As a climate activist, he is alumni Climate Ambassador at World Bank Group - GYCN. His recent involvement in environmental processes includes climate action, energy policy advocacy and youth capacity building at United Nations COP26.
Farai Mubaiwa, South Africa is the co-founder of the youth-led organization Africa Matters. Africa Matters empowers young Africans to lead through leadership skills, capacity building and community-impact projects. The organization has impacted over 27 000 young Africans through its flagship programs. Farai is also the Chief Partnerships Officer at the Youth Employment Service (YES). YES is a business-led NPO works in partnership with government and labor to initiate policy changes which incentives the creation of jobs for youth. YES has created over 70 400 work experience opportunities for unemployed youth in under 3 years. Farai is a Queen’s Young Leader for South Africa for 2017, a TEDx speaker, a One Young World Ambassador and a King’s Principal’s Global Leadership Award Recipient. In 2018 she was named as one of the top 100 Mandela’s of the future by Media24 and in 2020 she was rated as one of the top 100 Influential Young South Africans. Farai is a Dalai Lama 2019 Fellow and the 2021 recipient of the Stellenbosch University Exceptional Alumni award.
Musawwir Muhtar, Indonesia currently leads day to day operations of Octopus Indonesia, a waste management application to efficiently collect and recycle rubbish while creating a network to protect their cleaners - by this he is combining his interest in technology and economic development. Prior to Octopus, Musawwir served as the Global Innovation through Science and Technology - Technology Idea (GIST Tech-I) Alumni Mentor under the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Previously, Musawwir has been recognized as East-West Center (EWC) Alumni Leadership Impact Award Nominee, Philips Innovation Award, Young Social Entrepreneur (YSE) Singapore International Foundation and Young Leaders for Indonesia (YLI) by McKinsey & Co. He has always been interested in how communities and technology interact to solve the world's problems. He is a frequent speaker on social impact and millennial entrepreneurship.
Aniella Niyondiko, Burundi is the Founder and CEO of AHEZA IWACU, an optimized Waste Management Social Enterprise in Burundi, focused on extending the life cycle of organic, plastic, and other household waste through collection, up cycling, and recycling services; as well as building an ecologically and sustainable food system through implementation of bio- intensive agricultural practices.Through her work, she contributes to SDG 2, SDG 12, SDG 13, SDG 14 and SDG15,by converting waste into by-products and eco-friendly construction materials; by raising awareness on environmental conservation best practices through trainings on best sorting practices, and good management of natural resources by building resilience to food insecurity through bio-intensive agricultural and integrated soil management trainings provided to smallholders farmers in light of enhancing their agricultural productivity, food security and their nutritional diet.
Grace Chinenye Nkwocha, Nigeria is a teacher, community literacy & education equality advocate for 6 years. She is currently pursuing a Post Graduate Diploma in Education from Meadow Hall College of Education, Nigeria. She is the Founder of TLC Initiative (Transforming Lives & Communities Initiative) where she runs literacy and education projects so children in low income/underserved communities can have equal access to quality educational resources and technology in order to build their esteem, character and competence so they do not toe the line of crime, drugs, prostitution & other social anomalies the community is popularly known for. Grace is on a novel mission to establish Children Library and Discovery Centres within every 10-15 minutes walking distance in low-income communities across Africa towards its transformation and has started with @TransformingAjegunleProject as her model community with over 600 registered children library users. She is a Fellow of President Barrack Obama’s Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI RLC). Through her advocacies/novel projects in her community and Nigeria, she was recognized as the first Most Outstanding Young Leader in her community – Ajegunle, Top 50 Resourceful Youths by her Federal House of Representative Member – Hon. Kolawole Musbau Taiwo and 2020 Semi-Finalist of Active Citizens in Education Award, Nigeria.
Kalvince Otieno, Kenya is a Pan-African youth leader and the Founder and Managing Director of the initiative Food Security for Peace and Nutrition Africa (FSPN-Africa), a leading Regional Youthled organization which models and advances women and youth-led approaches towards sustainable development, zero hunger, and good nutrition as economic viability practices by utilizing innovative research, policy, technology & innovation and advocacy actions. He studied Business and Entrepreneurship at Young African Leadership Initiative (YALI) and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Food Nutrition and Dietetics from Kenyatta University. Kalvince is a former Youth Advisor to the MasterCard foundation’s Young Africa Works Program and winner of the Nelson Mandela Humanitarian Award. Mentor at thought for food (TFF). He’s been invited to speak at international, regional and local forums including, World Congress on Food and Nutrition2018, World Bank, AU Heads of States Summit. His interests lie in improving food and Nutrition Security, inclusive economic development, innovative, social entrepreneurship, deliberative democracy and Global sustainable partnerships. Previously served in different companies and organizations, IAAF World Athletics, Kenyatta University , Leuphana University of Germany, Mama Lucy Kibaki Hospital, and Eco finder Kenya and Human Rights Commission Kenya in different positions.
Agita Pasaribu, Indonesia is currently the Founder of Bullyid App, an online platform that is dedicated to bring equality and justice accessible for everyone by raising awareness towards mental health and law enforcement. Prior to founding Bullyid, Agita has contributed to youth empowerment initiatives both national and internationally for over a decade. She has co-founded Tweet Kuliah, Instilling Learning for Malaysian Unity, led Safer Internet Day 2020 celebrations in 11 countries and Youth IGF Movement (UN IGF recognized global youth initiative) in over 35 countries. Her biggest interests are utilizing technology to solve deep social issues worldwide and benefiting the most vulnerable in society. Agita contribution and commitment to youth empowerment has been recognized and celebrated globally, she has been advocating to the UN, ITU and WHO on how Artificial Intelligence can be used to detect early symptoms of mental health illness on social media and to reduce cyberbullying cases. Agita is the AI Ethics & Legal Advisor at the Care Innovation Corporation, expert member at the AI Policy Exchange, as well as part of working group member of WHO SDG 3.4 Global Youth, UN Major Group for Children & Youth and ITU-Indonesia Concern Forum. She received LL.B (Criminal Law) from the University of Indonesia and M.A in International Relations-ASEAN Studies focusing on open data policy, open government partnership, cyberspace in Southeast Asia from University of Malaya.
Jan Erik Praks, Estonia Estonia is a Bachelor's student of materials technology at TalTech in Tallinn with work experience in design and product development. He is passionate about applying technology that can help alleviate global issues relating to the climate crisis, with a particular focus on revaluing waste materials. With his project Wastelocker and a competitive team with expertise in project management, logistics, IT, AI/ML and legislation, he aims to make a positive impact on the world.
Tania Rosas, Colombia co-founded Fundacion El Origen in Colombia and Origin Learning fund in the USA. She then launched O-lab, an offline personalized learning app and LMS designed to facilitate educational projects for vulnerable populations with a significant gap in information technology and quality education. As a political scientist and academic researcher, Tania is committed to making digital education more inclusive and empowering for communities, working with organizations, corporations, leaders, and institutions worldwide. Some of her recognitions are: Generation Change by the United States Institute of Peace and the Office of the Dalai Lama, Young Leaders of the Americas by the United States Department of State, Social Innovator by the Obama Foundation, and one of the 17 Young Leaders for the Sustainable Development Goals by the United Nations.
Etienne Salborn, Uganda is a changemaker-maker and the founder of the Social Innovation Academy (SINA), enabling the future generation to transform into social entrepreneurs through a cost-effective and freesponsible community approach. SINA elicits untapped potentials of marginalized youth and refugee communities in Africa, who self-organize and create their own solutions, turning challenges into opportunities. Participants shift from passive recipients of aid to active drivers of their own future, one person and one community at a time. Etienne has been giving forward his experience as a lecturer for social entrepreneurship and as a facilitator and mentor for several international programs. He holds a Master’s degree in “Peace, Development, Security and International Conflict Transformation” and has been recognized as an “AACSB Influential Leader 2021” and MIT D-Lab Innovation Ecosystem Builder.
Wil Schmaltz e Silva Junior, Brazil is a lawyer, human rights activist and a social entrepreneur who was born in the countryside of São Paulo. In 2018 he founded Escola Comum, a social community based enterprise working to strengthen democracy in Brazil. Through political and environmental education that empowers vulnerable young people. He is a tireless campaigner and participated in protests to denounce police violence in the State of São Paulo; he advocates for homeless social movements and is currently completing his Master's Degree in Law & Politics at São Paulo University.
Chiranthi Senanayake, Sri Lanka is a Youth Empowerment Incubation (YEI) Advocate and an International Sustainable Development Law (ISDL) Researcher. Expanding upon eleven years of community service she ventured to establish Hype Sri Lanka which is the country's first and only youth empowerment incubator, at which she currently serves in the capacity of Founder. She was appointed as the United Nations Youth Delegate for Sri Lanka in 2016 in recognition of her community service and represented the Country at the Third General Assembly Session held at the UN Headquarters in New York. In this capacity she has worked as a Youth Focal Point to the National Youth Services Council and the Ministry of National Policies and Economic Affairs. She is a Global Student of The Year Finalist 2021, Women Deliver Young Leader of 2020, Diana Award Winner 2020 and recipient of The Young Activist of the Year Award for Sri Lanka 2020. She has also been appointed as a Youth Ambassador for YouthLead. In terms of her professional and academic background, she is an Attorney-at-Law of Sri Lanka who has completed her LLB at the University of London and her BA specializing in Development Policy and Management Economics at the University of Colombo. She is also a recipient of The Chevening Scholarship 2020 who has followed her LLM in International Economic Law, Justice and Development at Birkbeck, University of London. Her current research focuses on ISDL and Alternative Legal Thinking central post-colonial countries. Chiranthi currently serves as a Lecturer for the UOL LLB and Birmingham City University LLM programme at Horizon Campus, Sri Lanka.
Nabeel Siddiqui, Pakistan is an innovator and social entrepreneur at heart, part of the Forbes 30 under 30 list in 2021. He is currently the CEO and Co-founder of ModulusTech, a Pakistan based cleantech start-up providing affordable net-zero housing to low-income communities.
Maike Striffler, Germany is based in Kampala, Uganda and is the Co-Founder & Acceleration & Purpose Pool Lead of SINA Global with more than 3+ years of experience in developing (digital) business models for German multinational corporations and 3+ years mentoring social businesses in East Africa. As Acceleration & Purpose Pool Lead, Maike focuses on boosting startups, solving large-scale problems and setting up, together with external partners, an impact fund to finance high-potential SINA social enterprises.
Pooja Suwal, Nepal is a Co-founder of YOUTHive Nepal, a network of young people working to create equal socio-economic opportunities for young people of Nepal. She has served as a former member of Board of Director at 'We' for Change (2019-21), a youth-led NGO based in Kathmandu. She has served in the organization in different capacities since 2016. She also worked as the Partnership Activation Officer at Peace First, a global not-for-profit for young people. Pooja has been engaging herself in organizations that contribute towards socio-economic development of Nepal. Currently, she is pursuing MSc. Economics and Finance for Development at University of Bradford, England, UK as a Chevening Scholar.
Astrid Torres, Ecuador holds a degree in Social Communication, filmmaker and social activist. She firmly believes in the importance of journalism, education and art with a feminist, ecological and critical approach for social transformation. Co-founder of the Ibero-American Youth Network and was a spokeswoman for the delivery of the Youth Pact at the XXV Ibero-American Summit. She represented Ecuador at the Nairobi Summit about ICPD25. She is the director of the Effect Latam journalistic project and is the author of short films with social discourses. Her artistic job focuses on the representation of women and nature in the image. She works closely in consultancies with UNFPA on sexual and reproductive rights, gender-based violence and youth. She is also a representative student and creator of content on human rights for social media. She is part of the economics, gender and culture policy group. Her research explores informational capitalism, memory, climate change visuals, and symbolic violence. For her, the political dispute is cultural.
Will Wiseman, USA is a lifelong climate professional with experience in large scale electrical project management, AI for renewable energy power forecasting and solar development. He holds a Double MSc Renewable Energy Engineering from The Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. Located just outside the Bay Area in Santa Cruz, he is an avid scuba diver, snowboarder, and climate activist with involvement in Fridays for Future, Young Professionals in Energy and the Citizens Climate Lobby. He is Co-Founder and CEO of Climatize Eath Inc.
Mathias Charles Yabe, Ghana is a food systems hero and a technology enthusiast, working to make food systems stronger, fairer and more sustainable in local communities in Ghana. Mathias has mentored and assisted over 1,200 young people in Ghana, creating more opportunities for others to realize their dreams. Since 2018, the young entrepreneur’s mission has been help make food systems resilient through the introduction of climate-smart solutions in local communities to help improve livelihoods of smallholder farmers through his Agritech solution, AkoFresh. In September 2021, Mathias was recognized by the World Economic Forum as a winner and Top Innovator in the Generation Restoration Youth Challenge. Mathias is an awardee of the Ford Motor Company Fund Covid-19 College Challenge and the Community Prize in the 2021 TechStyle for Social Good International Competition by The Mills Fabrica in Hong Kong.
Mohammed Zaid, Libya is Goodwill Ambassador of the European Union in Libya, Content Creator and STEM Educator. A curious social entrepreneur who's reinforcing accessibility to quality STEM education through robotics applications via LYBOTICS initiative to more than 1000 students across Libya.
Esther Vongai Zimudzi, Zimbabwe is a radical human rights activist with special interest in social and transitional justice and diversity. She has growing experience in constitutional literacy, movement building and strategic advocacy. For close to a decade, she has worked with civil society organizations on issues related to youth and vulnerable populations. Esther is driven by the hope and possibilities of collaborating in building a society that is generous towards the poor, protective of children, afford women and men same opportunities, and protect human rights and enforce rule of law, while providing economic opportunities for all, which is why she is Team Leader in the initiative My Constitution My Saviour. She was trained as a marketer at the Midlands State University and is currently pursuing a law qualification from the University of Zimbabwe.