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As a Class of 2019 Millennium Fellow, Kami founded Elio, a company that's now on the mission to bridge the communication gap between academia and decision-makers in companies and governments through a climate data research platform. He spoke with us about his climate work, childhood, the Millennium Fellowship and being named one of twenty 776 Fellows. Thank you for making time to connect Kami. Tell us a little bit about yourself. Who is Kami and why does he care about the things he cares about? "My name is Kami Krista and my educational background is in Bio-Engineering, but I have spent over a decade in climate, which is a roundabout way of saying I started this work very young. When I was 8 I wrote a letter to the President of Brazil explaining why it was wrong to destroy the Amazon, and this seemingly naive action kickstarted a 15-year journey in climate activism. My early childhood interest in nature developed into a deep passion for the climate. In primary school, I created a small organization to educate my peers about the dangers of global warming, and at 11 I did a TEDx talk on sustainable transportation, sharing my thoughts on what a future without pollution could look like. In my teen years, a deep intellectual curiosity took me to academia, and I spent years doing research while studying bioengineering at Harvard. I was feeling a little jaded with the state of climate action and wasn't particularly interested in working on small-scale changes anymore. I wanted to figure out what the key levers were that if pulled could lead to widespread systemic change in the way we approach climate action. Then in 2018, I read IPCC’s 1.5-degree report, and it brought me 2 sobering conclusions: First that we are all going to die. Second, even in the face of this existential threat, humanity is still unable to answer the most important question, ‘what's our plan?' We say ‘we'll be carbon neutral by 2050’, and ‘we'll drastically reduce global emissions,' but without a plan these goals are useless. According to the International Energy Agency, close to 50% of the emissions that need to be reduced by 2050 depend upon technology that is still under significant development. It's clear therefore that we need to bridge the gap between what's going on in research and development and what’s happening in climate action." Why are you so passionate about climate and as young people what part do we have to play in averting whatever disaster might be waiting for us in the near future? "To truly articulate my love for the planet and its climate, I must go back to the beginning. When you grow up in a 'developed' western country, Austria in my case, it is easy to be disconnected from the natural world and natural spaces because everything is modern and urbanised. As a child, however, I had a uniquely intimate relationship with nature. It may sound odd, but I connected with trees and plants in interesting ways, and I understood that intrinsically they were just as valuable as humans - there is no hierarchical structure of value in the ordering of nature. This is partly why I wrote that letter to the President of Brazil. Even now, I believe climate change is just a symptom of all the various disharmonious relationships we have with our planet. Climate action for me has always been inherently non-anthropogenic. It is less about purely human survival for me, and more about the moral obligation we have towards all living things, particularly those that bear no responsibility for climate change - yet severely suffer its consequences. It’s about saying ‘let's live better with this world, both with other people, as well as with other living things. It is less about human survival, and more about the moral obligation we have towards all living things, particularly those that bear no responsibility for climate change - yet severely suffer its consequences. It’s also recognizing that though we messed up significantly, things don’t need to be all doom and gloom. If we get the next few years right, we could have more liveable cities across the world, countries could be energy sovereign, we could avoid resource-related wars, and ensure we create a world with climate justice for all." Tell us a little bit about Elio. How did it start, what work are you leading in, and why is this work important? "As I stated earlier, in 2018 I realised that we did not have a good enough climate plan. Think about the moon landing. We had a strategy, put in years of meticulous planning, there was a mission control and constant data flow. Even though climate action is a more complex and bigger-scale challenge, we are not even nearly as prepared for it. This is the real moonshot, yet we have no mission control. That is the problem I wanted to solve with Elio. I applied to the Millennium Fellowship in 2019, and over that fall and the following spring I conducted over 100 interviews with climate stakeholders, activists, companies, and more to try and structure my thoughts and answer the question ‘what can this mission control look like?’ I realised that the decarbonisation strategies most companies employ are built on an outdated understanding of available innovation pipelines, and that the communication gap between R&D and decision-makers that allocate financial Capital is the biggest for companies that operate in sectors where it's harder to reduce emissions. This is because they depend heavily on technologies that are still under development. It was then that the image of Elio as a startup aiming to enable companies in technologically complicated industries to develop effective decarbonisation plans, based on state-of-the-art science, crystallised. The product we’re developing will at the first level be a data foundation and research engine that services companies, enabling them to have a common operating picture of R&D related to specific materials and the problem and solution landscape. Ultimately the vision is to build out a digital infrastructure that enables every company to have a digitised, granular, evidence-based decarbonisation strategy that updates at the pace of better understanding." How did becoming a Millennium Fellow benefit you, and how has it shaped your trajectory since graduating? "The Millennium Fellowship helped shape my trajectory in two ways. First, the community and network I was exposed to were vital in helping me access people I’d otherwise never reach. This allowed us to find our path quicker, and it brought more buy-in early on for what we were creating. The Fellowship also brought a certain level of accountability to my project building. When you’re a college student, it’s easy to push away project ideas because you’re thinking ‘I have this paper', or 'I have an exam to prepare for.’ The Fellowship gives you a certain amount of structure, and you have other members of your cohort also motivating and pushing you forward. Because of this, the wheels started turning relatively quickly for Elio. I brought it to the Harvard Startup Bootcamp accelerator in 2020, and then I decided to take a break from school and dedicate myself to this vision. The Millennium Fellowship is a fantastic opportunity, even more so for students in underserved communities or at universities where resources aren't as abundant as at Harvard where you're already privileged to have a robust social impact curriculum, and access to professors who’ve developed some of the frameworks and theories of change taught in leadership development." Lastly, tell us about the 776 Fellowship! Congratulations on being named a 2022 fellow, receiving a $100,000 grant and joining a community of climate champions! How did you find out about 776, what does this opportunity mean for you and what are you most looking forward to? "I am more than thrilled to be named a 776 Fellow. I found out about the opportunity from MCN’s Sam Vaghar who thought I was a great fit. It was exciting to learn that 776 was backed by Alexis Ohanian who has done important things for the global tech industry so getting to work with and learn from him is more than inspiring. The $100K grant will obviously be very useful for our work, but I'm even more excited about growing with the other 19 brilliant and super impressive fellows. I was absolutely blown away by each one when we met, and I am very excited about the potential synergies - especially as we’re all working in and passionate about climate. The 776 Team is also putting together amazing resources and programming, and since it's the first year I'm also glad that we'll be paying forward by helping develop the curriculum together." Thank you Kami for sharing your story with the community! Connect with Kami on LinkedIn.

In 2018, Richard Ling was instrumental in launching the Millennium Fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania. With just four days until the final deadline, Richard grew the Penn applicant pool from four to 28 applicants! Learn what motivated Richard and how he helped build such a robust cohort on campus. Richard, it is wonderful to catch up with you. Take us back to the beginning. How did you first hear about the Millennium Fellowship? “I actually found out about it on my own. I was working on hosting a competition at Penn called Sustainable Solutions that invited college students in the Philadelphia area to submit a project that addressed the SDGs. The Millennium Fellowship was the perfect way to advance the project.” What motivated you to help build a Millennium Fellowship cohort at Penn? “I applied four days before the final deadline. When I learned that we didn’t have the 8+ required applicants (and far less than more competitive cohorts), I realized I would not be a Millennium Fellow if I didn’t get other classmates to engage. I also found that the application process wasn’t too lengthy, that it could be completed in a day, and knew that there were other classmates who had an interest in the SDGs. Throughout any university, I can guarantee, there are students who are passionate about the SDGs and would want to do the Millennium Fellowship.” How did you recruit classmates to apply? “For me it was contacting the right departments and the right listservs that would blow the horn. I didn’t actually know all the specific listservs, just that departments existed. So I focused on high level departments - like the electrical engineering department and the biology department. Next, I focused on specific research centers. At Penn, for example, we have the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy and the Institute for Urban Research. And then I focused on individual classes. I also tried one or two student organizations - including EcoReps - and one other focused on sustainability. I took the draft content and compiled the information in an email to spread the application. I put what I hoped they would share directly in the body of my email so that it was all right there and they wouldn’t have to do that work. Making it convenient to share was paramount. I emailed the departments, centers, and classes asking them to share the opportunity. What happened as a result? “Some people said, ‘We will send this out tomorrow.’ Others called me to ask for more information about the Fellowship to make sure that it’s something worth sharing. After fielding several calls and explaining more about the Fellowship, I was able to get most, if not all, of the listservs that I contacted to spread the word. This took some work, but once they get it out there, that is all that matters. The applicant pool grew from four to 28 applicants in the final four days! I didn’t know most of these students and I was completely shocked and ecstatic that so many of my peers also wanted to do the Millennium Fellowship. ” How did being a Millennium Fellow benefit you? The Millennium Fellowship broadens your horizons. You learn about others’ passions and initiatives, and these lessons will tie into your future projects. It has a snowball effect. For example, I didn’t know much about cybersecurity or the challenges with menstrual equity before I joined the Fellowship. I was in a silo, as every college student is within their major or department. In the Fellowship, I learned from my remarkable peers. Claire Sliney was Executive Producer of what became an Oscar-winning documentary short. Carissa Shah with CyberSensibility. I keep in touch with some of the alumni still running these amazing initiatives. You have this cohort now that are passionate about the SDGs just as you are. That is the coolest part about the Fellowship. What are you working on today? Are there lessons from the Millennium Fellowship that you apply to your life now? “My primary job today is focused on renewable energy. It is a huge issue related to the SDGs. I work on solar energy, microgrids, and energy efficiency. After graduation, I also created a platform called SolveOpen, which open sources innovation problems from cities for anyone to tackle. Most recently I’m also launching Benefact. This was inspired in part by a Fellowship project that was consulting for non-profits. Seeing my peer doing this work during the Fellowship, I realized I could also positively impact non-profits. It inspired the work I am doing now. Through Benefact, I’m striving to help nonprofits raise money through peer-to-peer fundraising. My biggest lesson from the Millennium Fellowship: Leadership really matters. Good ideas don’t happen just because you think of the idea. Executing the idea is a whole different ball game. At every step of the Millennium Fellowship, I was challenged to make something happen. It is all about leadership, and that first mobilization is the most important. If you take the first step, then you can take the next steps. Taking that first step is what the Millennium Fellowship teaches you about, and with that, the sky's the limit with the work you can do.” What would you share with someone still weighing whether to apply? "If students are planning to try sharing the opportunity with classmates, it seems daunting, but all it is an email that you send out. All it takes is those emails to the right people and they can help find future Millennium Fellows. If students have more questions on how to draft and send out those emails, please email me at richling@sas.upenn.edu and I can help. In 30 minutes to an hour of outreach, you might inspire the next cohort of Millennium Fellows who wouldn’t be there without you." Thank you Richard for sharing your story! Student leaders: If you are inviting undergraduates on your campus to apply to the Millennium Fellowship, here is the draft content to share the opportunity - which can be shared over email, text, and social media. Final application deadline is March 31st.

It's such a pleasure to be connected today Angela! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? “Thank you. I am Angela Zhong, a Millennium Fellow, and a sophomore at the Harvard college studying Economics and Environmental policy with a language citation in Mandarin. I was born in Arizona, but I live in Houston, Texas. Living here has informed a lot of my opinions about climate change, because I can very viscerally see it happening in front of my eyes, with lots of hurricanes devastating the community, electric grid failures, flash floods and more. All of these are happening in a place that people think of as probably the energy capital of the world. And so that really gets me thinking about how fossil fuels play a role in the devastation we're facing. That's why I got involved with organizations such as MCN, the UNSSC, as well as general climate and sustainability initiatives on campus and off campus. I think climate change is one of the biggest problems our generation will have to face and so I’m committed to doing whatever I can to combat it.” That is amazing to hear! How has the Millennium Fellowship experience been for you? “The Millennium Fellowship has been a great resource! It was a very safe and enriching environment where I gained access to an amazing cohort of people who are passionate about the SDGs and local action. I appreciated the community aspect on campus where you can easily bounce ideas off of schoolmates, and this international community where you can learn from different perspectives and lived experiences. It’s been helpful for me as I tried to figure out; First what exactly I wanted to tackle, which ended up being the area of food systems and food waste; And second, how I can make a bigger impact with the resources I currently have.” Thank you for sharing! You were one of a number of Millennium Fellows at COP 26. Given your passion for Climate activism, I'm sure this was an incredible moment for you? “COP26 was sensational. It came at a perfect time as I was already in Glasgow for the UN Climate Change Conference of Youth (COY), which is a pre-summit event for young people. (I highly recommend Millennium Fellows check that one out.) It's less prominent publicly, but has just as big of an impact - particularly in getting youth involved within the climate space to brainstorm and collaborate. I spoke there on the problems with the social cost of carbon and what we can do to fix that. Then an organisation allowed me to join its delegation of servers at COP. Being there was life changing! You get immersed in impactful climate activism 24/7 and that is all you think about. Seeing all of humanity join hands even just for a few days to think about how we save the planet is so refreshing. Maybe in some ways it might get a little exhausting because there's always more people to talk to, and there's packed schedules from 9am to 9pm - but at the same time, we never get the opportunity to think exclusively about climate change and what we can do to address it. That for me was the beauty of COP. The energy was really uplifting. I remember feeling a little bit jaded before, wondering ‘what can I really do?’, curious about what part I could play, seeing so many people doing amazing things and thinking 'how come i'm not one of them?' But COP allowed me to erase a lot of that negativity and focus on our collective duty to make a difference. I loved how they kept all stakeholders involved. There was a blue zone where a lot of the High Level negotiations happened, and a green zone which was a lot more public facing, giving communities living in and around Glasgow the opportunity to stay engaged and interact with the climate technological innovations that companies are working on. If any young climate activist has the ability to go to COP - please do! There's nothing like it, and maybe there are a number of problems with it, but I don't think that deters from the kind of impact created” That's powerful! Sometimes conferences are criticised for creating only temporary impact- where people are connected to a cause because they're together, but then that excitement dies down after they separate, and status quo is restored. Did you feel this at COP? "Good question, I think it's split depending on the stakeholders. With government entities, maybe there are many other problems to address, so for them COP is just a few weeks to focus on climate change, then delegate negotiations to other people as they proceed to focus on other things. But I don't think that means governments should suddenly stop doing anything or taking steps to actualize the COP agreements. Real power, I think, is in the youth stakeholders. A lot of young people invited are those who devote their lives to these causes, and typically you find they're the ones pushing a more ambitious agenda for longer lasting change. So having that interplay between these two stakeholders is really important - youth activists with their idealism and energy, governments with the tools to make things happen." "We are inheriting the planet and will have to be stewards of it in the future, and so we should do whatever we can to make sure it's a safe and habitable place for us and the next generation" Speaking about youth involvement, why do you think it's important that young people are included in global discussions around climate change? "We are inheriting the planet and will have to be stewards of it in the future, and so we must do whatever it takes to make it safe and habitable, for us and the next generation. I also think it's important to have these multi-stakeholder voices when discussing climate, because it impacts different regions and different people differently. For example in Houston there's a lot of flooding and hurricanes, but for other areas, many of the problems have to do with industrial pollutants. All of these are important under the climate sustainability umbrella, and having many stakeholders from different backgrounds is the only way to make sure they're all covered. You need to have as many diverse perspectives as you can, and I liked that about COP because not only did it include the youth, but also indigenous communities, gender minorities, people with disabilities and more. It was cool seeing many young people speaking on public stages, but I think it would be even better to see more youth in board positions within corporations, NGOs, and more. Speaking engagements are only one time events so you finish and it's over, whereas if you're part of a board and you have voting power, that makes a difference, because people need to sway your vote, so they listen to your concerns and try to resolve them. I don’t think we see that enough. Some organisations have an entirely youth counsel, which I think is a great step. But I would love it to be integrated so we see the interplay between older people who've been in the industry longer versus young people who have a lot of energy and ideas." So powerful! There's naturally been Criticisms around COP, e.g the last minute pledge to 'phase down' rather than 'phase out' coal production. A minor change that obviously makes a big difference. What did you feel about these claims? "I think part of my view is skewed by the looming climate anxiety I have, particularly about whether anything we do will ever be enough. Even if we do get a universally agreed, ambitious policy, its impact will not be felt until a couple of years or even decades later - just because of the way that carbon capture works. More importantly, I don't think that COP alone is ever enough. One of my professors who is also part of the Harvard delegation talked about this in one of his blogs. Each COP passes a baton to the next COP, so we have a certain amount of things that we should get done. Therefore as long as that baseline level is met, it should be considered a success, because a lot of change is incremental, and it should be. As much as we naturally want ambitious and aggressive policies, sometimes a slow phase into that makes more sense especially so communities can have time to adapt. For developing countries, changes like these are even harder. Events like COP should acknowledge the history of colonialism that impacts what current developing states can really do about their energy infrastructure, while still accommodating the needs of their people. Since ultimately a lot of industrial pollution was originally from more developed countries and then offloaded to developing countries to shift blame, which is really unfortunate. Change for them must therefore be slow and measured." "Events like COP should acknowledge the history of colonialism that impacts what current developing states can really do about their energy infrastructure, while still accommodating the needs of their people." Thank you for that great answer and for taking the time to connect! Do you have any Final Remarks to share? "Certainly. For the graduating class - congratulations on a semester well spent. I hope everyone has had a rewarding and engaging journey through the Millennium Fellowship and in interacting with the sustainable development goals. I think two calls of action for all of us, including myself, to think about as we graduate are; how can we make big, lasting impact with the least amount of resources? And the second is something I see a lot within the climate movement - where there’s a lot of weight placed on being the ‘face of a movement'. Whenever you think of climate change, protests, activism, etc, you can think of certain individuals who you would associate with that. This process of clamouring to be one of the 'big faces', creates a lot of internal competition within the movement. Therefore it's important to interrogate why you want to do social impact work, and what your role is or should be. There's a big enough tent for all of us to fit in. Grassroots advocacy is important, protesting is important, and so is institutional change. We need people who are willing to do this work, even when it's less glamorous than being a high level activist." Thank you Angela for sharing your story with us! Want to share yours? Get in touch here Connect with Angela on LinkedIn.

Jasmine Amoako Agyei is a Class of 2020 Millennium Fellowship Alumni from the Arizona State University working on SDG 12: (Responsible Consumption and production). Born in the USA a first Generation American and daughter to Ghanian immigrants, she grew up a third culture kid who was keenly aware of--and frustrated by the social and environmental challenges of the world “When you are raised within the cultural context of an entirely different country - it can lead to a lot of identity confusion - and every time I was caught in this trap of helplessness and hopelessness I would wonder, what can I do to change the world?” She only fully internalized her "Americanness" as a teenager. But these feelings of attachment to her Ghanaian roots and her family history stuck with her. By embracing her own identity as that of a Global Citizen, she recognized the interconnectivity of all of our struggles across the world. When you create impact in one area, it can cause a ripple effect in several others. It was this search for meaning and a deep hunger for a better world that led her to start exploring and questioning what role she had to play in the global fight for a more just, more sustainable, and more equitable world. "Without Significant action - there may be more plastic than fish by weight in our oceans before 2050" “I came across a scary statistic - that without significant action, there may be more plastic than fish by weight in our oceans before 2050. This was very moving to me - and it brought on the sad realization that recycling as presently conceptualized simply wasn't working. Global communities have long relied on a Linear Economy model of waste management that involves collecting raw materials, transforming them into products that are then used until they are finally discarded as waste - eventually causing pollution. I noted then that the world needed better waste management ideas.” So she started her Millennium Fellowship Project ‘Countdown CES’ , a technology social enterprise aiming to create a means of transition from the Linear economy model to a Circular Economy (Make - Use - Reuse - Remake - Recycle). Starting in Ghana, the large scale vision is to make this model a reality, and at a more focused scale it is to help fight plastic pollution in Accra - first by reducing the amount of abundant plastic waste through beach and metropolitan cleanups; second by up-cycling and 3D printing eco- friendly, innovative child safety gear and furniture; third by providing skills training and creating jobs in the world of sustainable technology for young Ghanaians; and finally by hosting workshops to educate the greater public about sustainability and effective recycling practices - particularly in their work and home environment. The end goal for Countdown CES is to change the way people look at waste - give it utility and make it valuable again. In Ghana for example, only 2% of potentially recyclable waste is eventuall recycled. 73 Million kilos of PET plastic waste enters the environment annually. “We investigated what was going wrong with respect to waste management - first in Ghana and then around the world, and noted the three critical challenges faced by Global Communities in handling waste were; A lack of infrastructure to support a circular economy and healthy waste disposal practices, A lack of awareness in sustainable waste management, and A lack of access to waste management services and facilities. We therefore sought to offer a Community centered solutions approach to waste management - starting with Project Design (Upcycling) that is directed at global and local markets, creating a waste management system with incorporated technology, and offering community workshops and volunteer initiatives to raise awareness on proper waste management.” Since graduating from the Millennium Fellowship, Countdown CES has collaborated with like-minded partners to help make their sustainability model a reality - including EPICS (Engineering Projects in Community Service Program) - an award winning social entrepreneurship program at Arizona State University - working together to design recycled products that enhance learning and play. She’s also collaborated with the Luminosity Lab - an interdisciplinary research and development lab driven by a team of highly driven students, and is also working in collaboration with students at the Kwame Nkrumah University in Ghana. Countdown has recently won two grants of 1,000$ and 1,500$ to help in their work. "As you become more informed, you become more passionate about the causes you care about. That is the birth of activism." Jasmine believes in the power and potential of young people to make a difference. She has been awarded the Rising Star Award at ASU for her leadership this year and continues to work for a better world and a cleaner Ghana . She was highlighted as the Student Spotlight on Innovation at ASU through her work with Countdown - and was invited to speak to the new Arizona State University Class of 2025, an audience of 13,000 people. But though Jasmine believes in activism, she says she doesn't consider herself a youth activist. “Am I an activist? Not really. I’m a person who cares - a lot. A nerdy, artsy go getter with a really big heart. Simply put - I believe in better. Her advice to Millennium Fellows looking to get their projects off the grounds is to focus on their 'Why!' - Why they care about their projects and why they care about the Fellowship. As you become more informed, you become more passionate about the causes you care about. That is the birth of activism Connect with Jasmine on LinkedIn. Visit the Countdown CES website Millennium Fellowship Alumni, share your social impact work with us: fellowship@mcnpartners.org

Mr Kinyua Ireri, Dean of students at the University of Nairobi. He has shown keen interest in helping graduates transition into social impact and is passionate about leadership development. He shared the Millennium Fellowship application opportunity with the entire University of Nairobi student community, and continues to show support to young leaders in Kenya. We spoke with him about his passion for social change and belief in student empowerment. We are so honored to connect with you today Dean Kinyua! Could you tell us a little bit about yourself? Thank you very much. My name is Johnson Ireri Kinyua and I serve as Dean of Students at the University of Nairobi. I have worked at the university for many years, starting as Head of Alumni in 2012 where I was a liaison between the school and our alumni community, charged with student mentorship and nurturing, before I joined the Directorate of University Advancements as a director in 2015 to help mobilize resources and advance the University's mission. In 2018 I became the school’s Career officer, where I mainly helped graduates navigate careers and tried find opportunities for them, both within the national and global markets. In 2020 I accepted this new challenge as Dean of Students. Outside of work I am a proud father to 3 handsome sons and husband to my beautiful wife Mary. Thank you so much for sharing that! How does your work as Dean and at the Career Office help position students for impactful careers? At the careers office, we offer guidance to students and graduates with regard to career choices. We are therefore a link between the school and the employment industry. We try to open up employment and internship opportunities for our student body, offer career testing and placement, and keep tabs on important opportunities and potential openings. We also organize career fairs for soon to be graduates. As dean of students, I try to make the lives of our students as fulfilling as possible. We offer support to needy students and those with disabilities, both financially through scholarships and mentally through counselling and guidance sessions. An important goal for us is also to help students nurture their skills and develop their talents, so they can develop holistically as well-rounded leaders. In this modern age, it is vital that schools produce well rounded students. We also nurture political organizations and support political expression as we try to prepare students to take leadership within their communities and beyond. I’m happy that this university has historically produced the most legislators and policy makers in the country and we want to continue like this. If we are to shape the future of our country, we must first teach young leaders how to be politically conscious, and how to avoid the lure of bad politics and its immoral corruptions. We also offer spiritual mentorship and emotional assistance to the university community. How did you hear about the Millennium Fellowship and why did you think it was an important opportunity for the University of Nairobi student fraternity? As a university we are always on the lookout for platforms that enrich potential. But we know there are many many programs, some not too good, so we only want to share the best of the best. We found out about the Millennium Fellowship right around the time when the Hult Prize was running in school. Hult has been one of our favorite programs due to its focus on social issues, and so when we realized that interest for the Millennium Fellowship within our student community was as high as that for Hult Prize, we knew there was something there. The Vice Chancellor asked me to look into it and we did some background checks. I was awed by how special this fellowship was. A program that asks students to assess their communities, find social problems, create projects that answer these questions, and receive guidance through every step of the process, is something we had rarely ever seen before. I thought this Fellowship would give our students skills for the future, particularly those that weren’t taught in our classrooms. "We see potential here to stretch students’ imaginations, expand their minds beyond classroom theory and abstract knowledge, and truly turn them into leaders of the 21st century." That interaction with other students both within school and around the world can also help them become global citizens and in future, scale global heights. We also noted from MCN'S 2020 Impact Report, how much important work past cohorts from our university had done. So I took the step and shared this opportunity out to our entire student community. I also supported applicants by offering references and advice, and we remain committed to helping more students join the fellowship. I was thrilled when Sam shared that our University produced the highest number of applications this year, and we want to make sure this remains the same even in 2022 and beyond. Judging from your responses, it seems you hold student leadership development in very high regard. Why is this, and how can more universities around the world create conducive conditions for leadership development? Universities must realize that the world has changed. Now more than ever, the world needs more than just ‘professionals’. It needs people with humility, love and compassion. While schools must of course continue to offer the best classroom education, they must also focus on inculcating these character building values. So first create platforms for students to engage with each other and express themselves. Let students learn how to interact with divergent opinions with grace. Offer regular mentorship. Ask students to do the things they love most, because at the end of the day that's the point of the human experience; seeking self-fulfillment. Don’t limit them or try to fit them within a box - because then they finish their degrees but leave school lost and frustrated. Nurture them, inspire them, and mentor them. Also create spaces for political expression and intellectual fulfillment. Thank you so much Dean Kinyua. Finally, what advice do you have for young students in Africa and around the world who want to grow, learn and become impactful community champions in future? Everybody is born with something. A unique talent or a gift - you just need to find what yours is and then work on developing and perfecting it. I love giving my students the example of Dubai. It is a city built on an unforgiving desert with a vicious climate. Until the 50s, it was a poor place, dependent only on fishing and an unsustainable pearl industry - then they discovered oil. Now it's a global powerhouse! That simple discovery changed the whole course of Dubai's history. So take steps to Discover who you are, Develop that inner you, and then try to Demonstrate that to the world. These are what I like to call the 3D’s of leadership development. Remember also that potential is nothing if it isn't put into practice. Another example here is the egg, which only has the potential to breed life, but must first be incubated or else it will never hatch. Leadership potential therefore is an egg not yet incubated.. This is why it is so important for students to chase opportunities such as these ones, those that sharpen their character, add value and teach hard skills. "Leadership potential is nothing if it is not put into practice" Lastly, and most importantly, remember that character is what defines you. The saying goes, that if you lose money you’ve lost nothing, if you lose health you’ve lost something, but lose character and you’ve lost everything! If the 3D’s (Discover-Develop-Demonstrate) are the ‘hardware’ of leadership development, then the 3C’s (Character-Competence-Commitment) are the software. Competence refers to the skills one needs in their leadership journey, and Commitment refers to their hard work, their discipline and perseverance. Merge the 3D's and the 3C's, and you have the perfect, well rounded young leader. Ice this 'cake' with real passion and you should be ready to conquer the world. Wonderful! Any last thoughts? I'd just like to urge Sam Vaghar and Team MCN to help us set up a Leadership Academy within the university, where outstanding Millennium Fellowship alumni from the University will come back to mentor and inspire younger students. We've seen some incredible fellows with some wonderful projects, and the knowledge and skills they've gained would be invaluable for the younger generation. Thank you Dean Kinyua for sharing your story with us! Connect with him on LinkedIn.

Every year, Shaastra, the annual technical festival of Indian Institute of Technology(IIT) Madras, strives to play its part in giving back to society. She Can is a Shaastra initiative, led by a team of 14 students sharing a common goal, that is, to make our country a better place to live in. We believe that education and mentorship have the power to push young people in the right direction, especially in India where many young people still remain uneducated. This has always been our north star. There’s an empowering quote by Maya Angelou which says “You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” This quote perfectly sums up our situation in the beginning of last year. We wanted to start a social campaign for our fellowship project as part of the annual technical festival of IIT Madras, but the Covid-19 outbreak uprooted the lives we knew, and in the process totally spoiled our Millennium Fellowship project plans. But, in Maya Angelou’s words, we could not let these events reduce us. And so all 14 of us brainstormed about how we could make the most of this situation, and that is how "She Can", came to life. An SDG 4, (Quality Education) and SDG 5, (Gender Equality) project, She Can is a movement centered around women empowerment through education and upskilling by giving them access to information about the many opportunities available to them. We hope to motivate women and girls in India to explore, to figure out their dreams, then create ideal conditions to enable them make these dreams a reality. The point is to show the world that woman is not limited. That She is not less than a man. That whatever “She Can” dream, she can become. "The point is to show the world that woman is not limited. That She is not less than a man. That whatever “She Can” dream, she can become." The spirit of the sustainable goals is to create a world with equality of opportunity to all people regardless of background. For far too long, women and girls have been marginalized and sidelined by our societies. This must change. We believe that every girl should know about all opportunities available at her disposal and not consider her gender as a disqualification or a hindrance. So we implemented career counselling sessions for young school girls to give them exposure to various career options and, more importantly, to hear from trailblazing women; those who are shaking up the corporate status quo by conquering previously male dominated spaces, and those that took up jobs considered ‘unconventional’. We also noticed the wide gap between the number of men and women entrepreneurs in India, and therefore decided to initiate entrepreneurship enlightenment sessions for college girls to motivate them to start their own ventures. On top of this we also conducted financial literacy sessions for working women to make them understand the importance of proper financial management. So far, we’ve impacted the lives of 600+ women through career counseling sessions, entrepreneurship talks and financial literacy sessions. Since its founding, ‘She Can’ has been featured on various national media platforms such as the Hindu, Times Now and NDTV. We’ve also been recognized by the Indian Ministry of Education and the Hon. Education Minister, Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal. While we remain proud of the progress we’ve made and the goals we’ve achieved, we realize that there’s still a long way to go. This is true especially in developing countries, where women are still marginalized and underrepresented. In places like these, where patriarchy and its systems have taken root, young people must go above and beyond to empower women through education and upskilling. "In places like these, where patriarchy and its systems have taken root, young people must go above and beyond to empower women through education and upskilling." Even in India, this war is far from won. Statistics say that only 13% of Indian women have gone past primary education. We are laying concrete plans for the project and hope to expand it across various age groups and social strata. Still, for how far we’ve come, we owe deep gratitude to the Millennium Campus Network! Our project being accepted into the Millennium Fellowship strengthened our belief and hardened our resolve. The continuous guidance and assessment of the project throughout those 4 months laid the groundwork for us. The skills and values taught provided the springboard upon which we built this movement. "The continuous guidance and assessment of the project throughout those 4 months laid the groundwork for us. The skills and values taught provided the springboard upon which we built this movement" Thank you for believing in this vision, and for helping us mold it to respond to the needs of our communities. Thank you also for providing the platform, the transformative curriculum, and the connections that allowed us to get in touch with like-minded fellows from all over the world who are also passionate about the SDGs. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for making all this possible. She Can Website, She Can Campaign Video Thank you "She Can" for sharing your inspiring story. Millennium Fellows, if you have a story you feel our community should hear, please reach us here: fellowship@mcnpartners.org Connect with Aditi Waykode on Linked In. Connect with Nitish Gupta on Linked In.

Hello Lara! So happy to meet with you, please tell us a bit about yourself. My name is Lara Starck and I was a 2020 Millennium Fellow at the University College London. I just graduated with a bachelors in International Relations and will soon be starting a Masters Degree in Management at ESSEC. I chose to go there because, as you may know, it has a strong focus on social impact. I’m currently pursuing a summer internship program here in Paris, and will soon be starting a new challenge as a 180 degrees consultancy branch founder. I have been involved in Social work since I was little. It always came automatically for me, trying to find solutions for social problems around my community. But I never really considered it as a potential career path, until I got really serious with it during my bachelor's degree. I worked at an Incubator affiliated with the University of Bologna called Almacube, where I learnt about Social enterprise & initiative. But I found my north star when I volunteered to help mentor refugees at an NGO called Salusbury World in London. My time there really opened my eyes to the plight many refugees in England and around Europe face, particularly on the question of access to education. you find that many aren’t able to apply to higher education institutions because they don’t have access to the right resources, like someone helping them write a personal statement, and so are unable to improve their situations. I then had this vision to bring university students together to help refugees in London access higher education and learn English, but I did not know where to start or how to proceed with the idea. That is when I applied to the Millennium Fellowship to learn how to actualize this social impact vision. "I applied to the millennium fellowship to learn how to actualize my social impact vision" Amazing! Could you please share how you came to learn about the fellowship, why you chose to apply, and how it has impacted you? Honestly, I just saw the fellowship and immediately applied! I thought it was a wonderful concept, and turns out it was also wonderfully executed. I really appreciate how fellows are guided and accompanied through every step of their project building and social impact planning, because personally I really needed it. Sometimes you just need someone to believe in your vision, to assure you that it makes sense, and to hold your hand through every step of the way. But the most amazing part for me was the community and networking! I know you get this a lot, but the idea of meeting like-minded people, creating a positive community and forming a common bond that is held together by shared ideas of social impact is so powerful. I’d finally found people with whom I could interact, ask questions, share insecurities, and sometimes even speak endlessly about my dreams without feeling like I was a bore. It’s so important for young people to have such spaces. It also allows space for people to draw inspiration from each other and to create potentially lifelong bonds. I remember one thing that really inspired me was watching how people were able to adapt their projects to conform to a Covid-19 world, even though most were actually created in non-covid realities. My schoolmate Alex, for example, adapted quickly and created a beautiful project where he interviewed local shopkeepers in London, asking how the pandemic had affected their lives. It was all just really awesome. You're taught not only to create projects, but also to focus on responding to concrete community needs. I also deeply appreciated the focus on values. I can't stress enough just how important it is to stay humble, especially for young people who are just about to start their careers. This world needs empathy, kindness and inclusion and the fellowship curriculum stressed this a lot. Awesome! Tell us about your new challenge at 180 Degrees. Yes! I’ll be starting a 180 Degrees consultancy branch at my school! 180 provides consultancy services for nonprofits and social organizations by leveraging young people’s social impact knowledge, training them in consultancy, then sending them out to assist social organizations and NGOs within their communities. It felt natural to take on this challenge so soon after the millennium fellowship, because they are two very complimentary programs. Imagine how impactful it would be if Millennium Fellows were able to get assistance on areas such as feasibility development for projects, sharpening their strategic missions, capabilities development and impact measurement during or after the fellowship? I've made it my long term goal to try to make this possible. External help is always so useful, and I know many young changemakers need it. I would love to create an optional service for fellows who are stuck with their projects to get consulting services. Thank you so much Lara! Having gained all these lessons, how do you plan to use them at 180 Degrees and in your future social impact work? Learning the power of a network was lifechanging for me! There’s a lot of good ideas out there - so many projects, but not enough collaboration. But I think we can only achieve the Sustainable Goals if we work together. In London for example, there’s over 100 education oriented refugee projects, so imagine how overwhelming it must be for refugees trying to find information. "Learning the power of a network was lifechanging for me!" I realized that if there was a way to connect NGOs working in near-similar areas, helping redirect innovative projects to work with organizations with similar objectives, would hugely benefit people in need easily find organizations or projects that work best for them. That idea of a reference in social impact is what the fellowship does for young undergrad projects. I then realized that though my passion remains in social impact, my next logical step should be consulting. I’d like to use this “behind the scenes” knowledge to help NGOs find solutions. Lastly, what advice do you have for any young undergrad looking to go into social impact? The first thing is don’t be afraid to get started! When I started my fellowship project, I honestly didn’t know what in the world I was doing! (we were laughing about this with my friends). But you try this, you try that, and suddenly you are on the right path. Also just surround yourself with the right people - those that nourish you and get the best out of you. Our organization has only 10-12 people and they're all so great! Without them we’d be nowhere. Lastly, please reach out! Look for people you could learn from and contact them-ask lots of questions, even when they seem obvious. It’s scary at first but it builds you exponentially. I remember after starting my project, I was messaging 3 people everyday on LinkedIn. Many didn’t reply, and that’s fine. But the ones that did gave me the most priceless guidance/advice. So stay curious, because you’ll always have something to learn! Thank you Lara for sharing your story with us! Alumni, tell us how your post fellowship impact work is going: fellowship@mcnpartners.org Connect with Lara on LinkedIn Follow her Impact Initiative Project on Instagram.

We had a chat with Millennium Fellowship alumni Toluwalashe Soyemi from Nigeria and Kendi Juma from Kenya, who have both been selected to be among the fifteen-member Born This Way Foundation Advisory Board. Born This Way is a foundation co-founded by Lady Gaga and led by her mother Cynthia Germonatta that is aimed at demonstrating the power of kindness to impact well-being, validating the emotions of young people everywhere, and eliminating the stigma surrounding mental health. The advisory board plays a pivotal role in the planning and execution of programs, campaigns, and projects core to the foundation’s mission. Kendi and Tolu are 2020 and 2018 Millennium Fellowship alumni respectively. We asked them a few questions about their time during the Fellowship, their experiences since graduation, and their new adventure at Born This Way: Tolu and Kendi, so great to connect with both of you! Please tell us a little bit about yourselves. KENDI: “Thank you. My name is Kendi Juma, a 2020 Millennium Fellow and a final year law student at the University of Nairobi. My Fellowship project was a campaign titled "Heights and Depths", which started partly in response to the increasing numbers of mental health issues caused by the pandemic, and partly from the need to provide necessary pandemic essentials to struggling families within my community. First, we organized online fundraisers that enabled us to donate face masks to over 100 poor school going children, then we initiated physical and online conversations centered around mental health, creating safe spaces for young people to open up, be heard, and find community.” TOLU: “My name is Soyemi Toluwalashe, a 5th year medical student from the Lagos State University, and a 2018 Millennium Fellow and Campus Director. I am a Mental health advocate with particular interest in the wellbeing of young people in Nigeria. I have made it a personal mission to try and fight the stigma and discrimination associated with mental unwellness in Nigeria. I am also passionate about personal development, having been in the development space for 6 years now. My goal is to help young leaders bridge the gap between potential and performance by providing them with training and access to opportunities and resources.” "The Millennium Fellowship helped me discover my passion for change." Kendi Awesome! How has life been for both of you since you graduated from the Millennium Fellowship? KENDI: "The Millennium Fellowship helped me discover my passion for change, and gave me the realization that social impact has always been my calling. Since I graduated I’ve been able to navigate the social entrepreneurship space better. I’m also glad to share that I have discovered my passion for climate action. Before the Fellowship, I did not fully understand the issue of climate change, because you never hear much about that in Africa, but after interacting with the community of Fellows from around the world, and attending SDG conversation hours, Goal 13 piqued my interest! I realized how important and urgent climate action is and have not turned back since. I’ve since been selected as a Global Champion for Climate action, and just recently won a $1,000 grant from BYLC to assist my climate work. I’ve also joined the Foundation for Climate Restoration where I get to learn more about what we can do as the young generation to save our planet.” TOLU: “Life has been an adventure! The Millennium Fellowship was by far the best organized and most impactful program I have ever been involved in. It gave me the right opportunities and resources to jump into my next phase of leadership. Since I graduated, I have gone through a long journey of learning. I’ve enjoyed many successes and I’ve faced many failures. But the transformative Fellowship curriculum prepared me for all this and more. I have recently won the Diana Award, and continue to walk into more opening doors.” Congratulations on your appointment to the Born This Way Advisory Board! Can you both tell us a little bit about the foundation an why this is so important to you? KENDI: “Thank you! Born This Way was co-founded by Lady Gaga as a mental health platform that tries to spread love, warmth and kindness to all people around the world. It also teaches the need to appreciate diversity and embrace differences. I learnt about this opportunity through the Millennium Fellowship and thought it resonated so I applied. Honestly, when the response came I was totally surprised, in a good way of course, because I simply didn’t think I was going to make it. But I took the leap of faith and now here I am! I guess there’s a lesson there, on self confidence and self belief! I’m just completely honored and humbled to be representing the African girl and to be able to voice her cry.” TOLU: “Thank you very much. Born this way is aligned with my personal vision of a warmer, happier continent. It promotes bravery and supports kindness and these are what Nigeria and the rest of Africa need the most right now. I thought it was a very unique opportunity that would help me help my community and so applying was a no-brainer. Now I want to use this opportunity to reach out to my peers across Nigeria, to scale my work and lay foundations for a long impactful career. Thank you Team MCN for the recommendation and for helping alumni find these doors.” How did the training, connections and credentials gained during the Fellowship help you as you went into these new challenges and adventures? KENDI: "I have always been a shy girl, and though it's not necessarily a bad trait, sometimes this timidity made me miss out on opportunities. But after the Millennium Fellowship I have been able to approach openings and opportunities with courage and self belief. In terms of practical skills, the lessons on pitching and approaching donors have helped me win grants to implement my projects. I also learnt from my cohort the value in teams, and the beauty in working together to chase goals bigger than each of us. Also just having the Millennium Fellowship credential on my CV has given me an upper hand I believe. So I’m now more equipped for a long leadership journey and hopefully a fruitful career in social impact. TOLU: The Millennium Fellowship gave me great self confidence. But more importantly, it gave me the relevant knowledge to back that up. The curriculum is very insightful, it builds you and sharpens you. It helped me narrow my interests, find my voice and identify my passion. Sometimes as a young leader you can be clouded by the idealism of change without taking time to figure out what exactly you are best equipped to change, so the Fellowship definitely helped me with that. I have also found friendship and support in my cohort mates, and have opened up new networks that I otherwise would never have found. I also appreciated the willingness by Sam and the team to write recommendations for promising former Fellows. The recommendation provided by him helped me secure the Born this way foundation opportunity.” "The Fellowship helped me narrow my interests, find my voice and identify my passion." Toluwalashe Anything you'd like to share with prospective fellows, alumni and young leaders around Africa? KENDI: “I would encourage them to think beyond borders and their countries and start considering themselves global citizens, because Africa can be one big beautiful community if we all just pull together. I want young Africans to embrace this world and realize that it can be theirs. They should believe in themselves, never sell themselves short and aggressively chase opportunities for growth. For 2021 Fellows, make sure to value this platform! Your cohort mates might end up being lifelong friends and partners, so learn teamwork! Improve your organizing and leadership, and remember in everything you do you cannot separate compassion from impact, so let love guide everything you do. Most importantly, take good care of your mental health. It is easy for young social activists to get overwhelmed, isolated and end up disappearing into dark places. So spread love and ensure you stay around people that share theirs with you” TOLU: “I know this will sound cliché, but I'd just tell them to never give up! Embrace the frustration, learn from the fear, but never stop moving. I’d tell them to find ways to motivate themselves, even in the face of failure, even in the face of defeat. Realize the importance of community. Create support groups with friends and colleagues. Share your pain and celebrate your success. Find mentors who have been there and done that, because it is important to stand on the shoulders of giants. Above all, I’d urge all of them to be mindful of their mental health. At a time when a mental health crisis is ravaging African youth, we must all learn to care for ourselves and for the people around us.” Thank you Kendi and Tolu for sharing your story with us! Alumni, if you have a story that you think our community needs to hear, email us: fellowship@mcnpartners.org Connect with Kendi on Linkedin. Connect with Tolu on LinkedIn.

Millennium Fellows at National Institute of Technology Karnataka Surathkal share their Millennium Fellowship project, Nurture, a project that aims to provide mother-child kits to provide antenatal care for mothers and to inculcate the importance of education and immunization for children. “If the poor cannot come to Education, Education must go to him.” - Swami Vivekananda What makes a sustainable system of development? Is it a system that enables the complete eradication of oppressiveness of marginalized communities? Or is it the idea of striving towards the end goal of empowerment and creating a long term self-sustaining system? Our cohort consists of 8 diverse students, joining together with one motive, that was to create a change in any way that we can. For our cause to be recognized to be a part of the Millennium Fellowship Program only strengthened our need and passion for making a difference. As part of advancing towards SDG-3, ‘Good Health and Well-being’, our team initiated a project named ‘Nurture’. The focus of this initiative pivots around the holistic development of women and children by focusing on the grassroots of their various issues. Financial barriers and a lack of awareness can deter children from pursuing their goals and can likewise prevent women from the work they wish to do or even taking care of their well-being. We want to nurture the community that nurtures us and work towards a more wholesome future for all. From tackling issues such as Menstrual Health and Financial Literacy, we aim to empower women through education and also support underprivileged children’s learning endeavors. This led us to organize our first on-ground operation: a​ sanitary kit drive.​ Located in Bangalore, Periyar Nagar in Devarajeevana Halli is an area with many underprivileged communities residing there. Unfortunately, proper sanitation and personal hygiene are not easily accessible to women in that area, and there is a lack of awareness regarding the same. This being our first self-funded project, we learned a lot of important lessons. We supplied the women with 4000 oxo-Biodegradable pads, 100 Dettol bottles and 100 tissue packs, all distributed in eco-friendly cloth bags, ensuring 100 kits in total. Reflecting upon our goals and progress in this initiative so far, our focus is now directed towards our various upcoming projects. As one of our projects, we aim to emphasize ​Mother-Child care​ by raising awareness regarding antenatal care for mothers and instilling the significance of immunisation of the child after birth. The percentage of Mothers in India implementing proper antenatal care is on a low, and women in rural communities are unaware of the same. We seek to provide Mother-Child kits, consisting of books, sanitary napkins, the essential information in regional languages regarding immunisation of the child and guidance in the various stages of pregnancy for the Mother. We are working towards forming a more definite structure for this project and towards hopefully widening our social impact outreach. Educating Children and helping in providing them with a better future and more opportunities in their lives is a goal that is close to all of our hearts in Nurture. For most underprivileged families, education is not a priority as compared to different aspects of their life and is also not easily accessible. Our goal is to encourage education as well as providing them clear guidance on the next step in their life, in accordance with their needs and financial situation. Researching in-depth about educational schemes and Scholarship programs, we aim to provide more affordable, accessible alternatives to underprivileged students that they can avail and utilise for further opportunities and Higher Studies. We also aim to implement a ​peer-mentoring program w​ here students educate other students through regular peer-to-peer engagement. The Millennium Fellowship has provided us with the nudge to bring our goals and dreams to action. We made new friends, connected globally, learned what it means to be inclusive, compassionate and the importance of education and the lasting impact it has. Having the necessary tools and getting educated on the leadership traits we have to acquire to accomplish what we wish to achieve through the project was a valuable addition, something that we will carry forward in both our personal and professional journeys. “Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much” - Helen Keller. Partcipating Millennium Fellows: Adithya Lhs, Liz George, Nishchith Sriram, Prajna Hebbar, Supritha Harishankar Suraj Jagannath, Vageesha Mishra, Yash Gupta

Millennium Fellow Simran Gulati and Muskan Shah from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University walk us through how they launched their Millennium Fellowship project, Rethinking Fashion to promote sustainable fashion.

Millennium Fellow Lunanga Michel Ushindi and Mkilania Esther Isack partnered to launch their Millennium Fellowship project, Life Through Arts. This initiative encourages and advocates for creative cultural activity in all its forms. In this article, Michel and Esther share what inspired them to start this project and how Life Through Arts became a resource for children to cope with traumatic events and learn that they are not alone. Walking Through Untold Stories Written by: Michel Lunanga & Esther Mkilania Esther interviewed Kataliko Jean, an eleven year old boy in Mbezi town in Dar Es Salaam Tanzania. His positive attitude and contagious smile towards everything stood out more than his ragged clothes. He always saw the good even when things went wrong. With intense curiosity, Esther asked him how he does it? How does he always stay positive even when things fall apart? He said, "I don't allow myself to be victimized by bad thoughts. If it ever gets too much, then I take a deep breath and thank God. After that, I always feel better." This stands out to us because we also experienced traumatic events. Michel was born in conflict due to the ongoing strife in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He grew up with uncertainties of whether he will go back home safely or lose his family due to the chaos. This led to physical, financial and emotional trauma. On the other hand, Esther is a rape survivor. The single night has affected Esther in all aspects of her life - often leading her to feel nervous and discouraged. The continuous struggle and mental trauma made recovery a battle. For us both, art and creative work helped us slowly recover and cope with the daily post-traumatic stress and struggles we experienced. Through writing and blogging, Esther was able to reach and connect with people who shared similar stories which helped her realize that she is not alone. For Michel, media and photography helped him take his struggles and use it to empower other at-risk young people. In addition to being International Business Administration students at the United States International University in Kenya, our passion for art and shared vision brought us together to launch the initiative, Life through Arts, promoting pertinent issues such as human rights protection, gender equality, and supporting disadvantaged and marginalized groups of people by reviving arts in all its forms. Our goal is to support children and young people in rural communities in Congo and Tanzania through arts and encourage them to use art as a medium for self-expression. Throughout the Millennium Fellowship program, we learned the power of having a vision, which supports our core values of empowerment, integrity and passion. We believe in a world that embraces all forms of art and highlights the local or international challenges such as poverty, unemployment or human right violations. Art provides a sense of hope to people when they're lost and struggling by seeing the world through a different angle and exploring different perspectives in life. As leaders, we need to understand that we are not protagonists, but we are sidekicks. Kataliko Jean was one of the twenty kids we supported over the past few months. Each child we met was unique in their own way. Michel recently met a young girl, Laura Ntumba, who was going through psychological disorder after witnessing the slaughtering of her family in the Beni region in Congo. After spending time with her, Michel learned that she enjoyed drawing and painting using imagery. Through Life through Arts, we provided Laura with the tools to help her continue drawing. For Laura, drawing helps her deal with anxiety and think about something else other than memories of war. Through painting and drawing, she was able to dream of a new world - different from the one she witnessed. A world where she feels loved and protected. We are confident that by time, art will be able to heal her and allow her to look at the world positively. We have just concluded our Millennium Fellowship program, but our journey is not over. We are excited to continue our work and support more children. As we reflect on our experience through the Fellowship, one advice we would like to give other Millennium Fellows and young leaders working towards social change to be be honest and passionate. Make sure you put yourself out there, build connections with others, and keep impacting the world most of all. As the late Nelson Mandela said “What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. ... It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead.” About our Millennium Fellowship project: Life Through Arts is an organization that encourages and advocates for creative cultural activity in all its forms by joining everything from traditional amateur arts and crafts to digital format. This project was carried out by Lunanga Michel Ushindi and Mkilania Esther Isack, powered by Millennium Fellowship Class of 2020.

“Sometimes as a leader you have to be willing to take a step back in order for the team to move forward” Serving as Campus Directors at Griffith University has been an invaluable learning journey for us both. This opportunity has allowed us to better recognise our strengths and understand how we can put these values into practice. Every meeting we start by asking ourselves “What can we do to make this a rich and engaging experience for our Millennium Fellowship cohort?” This has forced us (in the best possible way) to get creative with our training sessions by going beyond to offer our Millennium Fellows unique experiences, such as professional networking with industry mentors and emerging youth leaders. From the beginning we both shared what we hoped to achieve as Campus Directors and the different skillsets we possess. For example, Rachel is an absolute powerhouse with using our communications platform on Teams (including troubleshooting which is no small feat) and Kimberley enjoys putting together graphic design content for our announcements. It has been great to learn from one another during this process and setting aside time for us to build a shared vision as Campus Directors has made this experience all the more rewarding. Tips that we have for other Campus Directors include setting up a regular meeting time to prepare content and communications with the team. Once we fell into our rhythm, we were able to utilise this time to plan ahead and get more creative. If you have not already done so, we encourage you to look to your university networks to see if you can find additional support through professional mentorship. We were extremely grateful to Griffith University for allowing us to collaborate with Faculty Advisors through our Griffith Honours College and our Sustainability Office. One of the biggest challenges we faced, yet were able to work through together, was adapting to different learning styles. As avid students of psychology, we utilised visual, auditory, and reading/writing exercises to accommodate for different preferences. Transforming content into interactive activities was also a great way for everyone to participate in thought- provoking discussion. Keeping everyone engaged and finding a time that worked for everyone was also challenging in the beginning. Our advice is to try and keep an open mind and be willing to be flexible. Sometimes this means checking in more frequently, being receptive to feedback and revising your plan to better suit the needs of the team. As Campus Directors we realised that when we took a step back from our schedule and listened to the concerns of our team, we were able to move forward together. The Millennium Fellowship has sparked in us, as Campus Directors and Millennium Fellows, the ability to lead and find courage in turning our ideas into action. It really is a privilege to work alongside a group of amazing like-minded youth from around the world as we step into the role as facilitators with a dream to support and empower others.