ABOUT THE MILLENNIUM FELLOWSHIP - CLASS OF 2025
United Nations Academic Impact and MCN are proud to partner on the Millennium Fellowship. This year, 60,000+ young leaders applied to join the Class of 2025 on 7,000+ campuses across 170 nations. 290+ campuses worldwide (less than 5%) were selected to host the 4,500+ Millennium Fellows.
UNITED NATIONS ACADEMIC IMPACT AND MCN PROUDLY PRESENT ONATADE HALIYAH OMOTARA , A MILLENNIUM FELLOW FOR THE CLASS OF 2025.
Lagos State University Ojo | Ojo, Nigeria | Advancing SDG 10, SDG 4 & UNAI 8
" Empathy, creativity, adaptability, positivity fueled by systems thinking, further boosts my grit and work. Being part of the Millennium Fellowship will enhance these skills collaboratively. The skills I gain from the Millennium Fellowship will further give me the experience I need to take on complex projects supporting inclusion and persons with disabilities. I'm excited to share and make use of the knowledge I have to take on impactful projects aligning with UNAI and SDGs. "
Millennium Fellowship Project: Empowering Inclusion through Special Needs Awareness
My Millennium Fellowship project focuses on creating awareness about special needs, inclusion, and basic sign language among students in selected schools across Lagos State. I noticed that many young people have little to no understanding of disabilities or how to communicate with deaf individuals, so I wanted to change that.
Through short, interactive sessions, I introduce students to what special needs really mean, why inclusion matters, and how they can be more supportive and respectful. I also teach them basic sign language so they can greet, interact, and connect better with deaf people around them.
The goal is to help students develop empathy, break stereotypes, and build a more inclusive mindset from a young age. My project creates a safe space for learning, asking questions, and understanding diversity in a very practical and engaging way.
About the Millennium Fellow
Onatade Haliyah Omotara is a bright and young undergraduate at the Lagos State University(Ojo, Lagos). She was born in Nigeria, resides in Nigeria, and is currently studying in Lagos State, Nigeria. Haliyah has always been passionate about impact and growth and how she can spread them to people(both privileged and the less privileged). She's someone passionate about change, and believes there can always be a change in a world where social Injustice prevails. This drive came from her grit and passion for advocating for a cause, in this context, for Persons with Special Needs. Her continuous dedication to following her grit has given her the boldness to always preach the gospel of inclusion anywhere she finds herself. To further express her grit and passion for inclusion advocacy, Haliyah has participated in the first ever project, an awareness program supporting inclusion and awareness of persons with disabilities in Lagos State University. She is also one of the pioneer members of THE VOIS, a society founded by a group of passionate special education students in the Lagos State University, in order to advocate for inclusion of persons with disabilities and to pave a road for others to join in the train of advocating.
Haliyah aspires to be a force of impact, growth and change by advocating and creating awareness on the importance of inclusion and ways to adopt them in our society. Haliyah is also a tech enthusiast, currently undergoing a course in UI/UX design and she aspires to see how tech can further impact and empower persons with disabilities in the digital(tech) world.
