Focus: Youth
Minami Tsubouchi
Minami Tsubouchi is an entrepreneur in the field of leadership development with a particular focus on youth under adversity. She founded BEYOND Tomorrow to support young victims of the devastating earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear accident that hit the northeast coast of Japan in 2011. Believing that great leaders can rise out of adversity, she has supported more than 700 young adults suffering from traumatic experiences to overcome hardship as budding leaders who can make a difference for society. Minami worked in Afghanistan after the 9/11 terrorist attack, engaging in humanitarian assistance, and she worked in Bahrain during the Arab Spring as a member of the Kingdom’s Economic Development Board. Her…
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Muthanna Khriesat
Muthanna Khriesat is Chief Operating Officer of Questscope, an international non-governmental organization committed to social development through youth empowerment in the Middle East and North Africa region. Muthanna oversees institutional partnerships locally in Jordan, regionally in MENA, and internationally. In Jordan he guides collaboration with the Ministries of Education and Social Development and the Department of Public Security. He is responsible for strategic planning and development of technological and financial infrastructure, with special emphasis on cooperation with UN, EU, and US agencies for initiatives with Syrian refugees and vulnerable Jordan youth. Muthanna holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the Princess Sumaya University of Technology in Amman, Jordan.
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Lorna Solis
Lorna Solis is Founder & CEO of Elevate, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing continued education at world-leading universities to young women who have either been forced from their homes by conflict or climate change or are working in industries affected by climate change and looking to further education so that they can use every tool possible to stay in their country of origin. Lorna created Project SHEro as an extension of her nonprofit’s work offering scholarships to refugees – including climate refugees. Project SHEro is a global climate activism documentary series that raises awareness not only about challenges but also solutions. It explores issues such as climate adaptation, climate justice,…
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Nizam Uddin
Nizam Uddin is Chief Strategy Officer of algbra, a technology-based financial ecosystem dedicated to global financial inclusion by focusing on the underserved and underbanked. Nizam was previously the Senior Head of Mosaic and Community Integration at The Prince’s Trust and Head of the Mosaic Initiative. Nizam has a strong interest and background in overcoming the societal and economic challenges that prevent disenfranchised and minority communities from fulfilling their potential. He is a 2019 US State Department International Visitor Leadership Programme (IVLP) participant and a Trustee of: SOAS, University of London, Robert. F. Kennedy Human Rights UK, and Belong – the UK's Cohesion and Integration Network (COIN). Nizam was awarded an…
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Heather Stevens
Heather Stevens is a career civil servant, whose most recent posting was Director of Workforce Policy in the Department of Health, Northern Ireland, where she was responsible for advising government Ministers on all matters relating to the health and social care workforce including the numbers of health professionals trained, regulatory matters, and terms and conditions including pay negotiations. Prior to that she was head of the Office of the Civil Service Commissioners, the regulatory body for recruitment to the Civil Service, following a spell in the voluntary sector working as a Director in the National Youth Agency in the United Kingdom. The Agency aims to promote the voice and influence…
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Igor Shevchenko
Igor Shevchenko has played a major role in bringing the rule of law to Ukraine by founding and leading the Ukrainian Bar Association from 2002 till 2007. He is also the founder and former managing partner of Shevchenko Didkovskiy & Partners, the leading law firm in Ukraine (rebranded as Asters in 2008). Igor left his legal practice in 2008 to concentrate on politics and civil service. In 2014-2015 he served as a Minister of Environment and Natural Resources of Ukraine and was a presidential candidate in 2019 elections. He currently leads Successful Ukraine political party and heads the Institute for State Efficiency, a think tank conducting research on world’s best practices of public governance for further use in Ukraine and promoting meritocracy as the most efficient way…
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Gavin Sheppard
Gavin Sheppard is an innovative cultural entrepreneur who uses art and music as tools for youth inclusion and economic growth. The Remix Project, which he co-founded in 2006, was created in order to help level the playing field for young people from disadvantaged, marginalized, and under-served communities. The Remix Project provides top-notch alternative, creative, educational programs, facilitators and facilities to at-risk youth wanting to enter the creative industries. This program model has been replicated internationally, and Gavin has been an architect of and has helped to create a hemispheric network of youth arts organizations to promote best practices. Gavin is also Founder of Public Records, Inc., a Toronto-based record label,…
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Azizullah "Aziz" Royesh
Azizullah "Aziz" Royesh is a leading advocate for equal access to primary and secondary education and Founder of Marefat High School for Afghan refugees in Pakistan. With a focus on critical thinking and human rights, the school flourished and eventually moved to Afghanistan in 2002, where it now teaches more than 3500 Afghan students, about half of whom are girls. Marefat High School has become a highly respected and well-known model for a new approach to community-building in Afghanistan. Aziz has written textbooks on humanism, human rights, democracy, social studies, and Quranic interpretation and is a frequent speaker on the concept of a tolerant community. Aziz and his colleagues established…
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Henrique Pinto da Costa
Henrique Pinto da Costa is Director of Nexus Consulting, an organization working on land use management, watershed management, urban development, and biodiverse conservation. The organization takes a broad, integrated approach to addressing ecological issues to create new land-use policies in support of sustainable development in SĂŁo TomĂ© & PrĂncipe. Previously, he directed a non-profit organization whose mission is to engage the youth of SĂŁo TomĂ© & PrĂncipe in finding sustainable development solutions through education. He acts as an independent consultant for a number of companies and international organizations. Before that Henrique served as an advisor to the SĂŁo TomĂ© & PrĂncipe President on development policies and was director of ECO-STP,…
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Amit Wanchoo
Amit Wanchoo is Managing Director of Eaton Laboratories, the first pharmaceutical manufacturing unit of Kashmir actively involved in low cost healthcare. He is also the CEO of Space Communications, 1st Events, Sports and Film shoot Management Company of Jammu and Kashmir. He blends health and entertainment in healing, supporting, and providing employment to the people of Kashmir. Born and raised there, Amit has been actively engaged in social activism, entrepreneurship development, reviving art, culture, heritage, and tourism in the region. Amit was the President and Founder of the Rotary Club of Kashmir, which has contributed to various health and literacy initiatives. Amit also runs a documentary film company which has…
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