Indigenous Council

In January 2024, One Young World formed its inaugural Indigenous Council to engage directly with Indigenous young leaders to ensure a fair representation of their interests and the interests of young Indigenous people around the world. 

The central responsibility of the Council is to provide an outline of strategic objectives for One Young World's engagement with Indigenous young leaders. The Council's function is critical in ensuring that One Young World's work is culturally sensitive, respectful, and impactful but also that any activities are sustainable and effective. 

A selection panel of expert One Young World Ambassadors reviewed applications and selected the Council members in collaboration with One Young World.

Meet the council members

Prince Ahumuza Ignatius

Banyoro Tribe

Prince Ahumuza Ignatius

Prince Ahumuza Ignatius

Banyoro Tribe

Ahumuza Ignatius, a proud member of Uganda's Banyoro tribe, co-founded Art Planet Academy, now Agri Planet Africa. His vision centres on preserving and promoting the traditional farming wisdom of the Banyoro people.
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Alexis Rubiel Alfaro Jiménez

Tojolabal

Alexis Rubiel Alfaro Jiménez

Alexis Rubiel Alfaro Jiménez

Tojolabal

Alexis Alfaro collaborates with Ch'ieltik's, a civil society organisation that seeks through its intervention model “Fortaleciendo Jóvenes” cultivate the skills of the Mayan youth of Chiapas, Mexico, so that young people develop the necessary tools to play an active role in the transformation of their lives and communities, preserving their cultural richness.
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Amelia Kami

Pacific Islander

Amelia Kami

Amelia Kami

Pacific Islander

With over a decade’s worth of experience in climate activism, Amelia has incorporated storytelling into her activism, most notably through song.
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Diwigdi Rodrigo Valiente Abrego

Guna

Diwigdi Rodrigo Valiente Abrego

Diwigdi Rodrigo Valiente Abrego

Guna

They founded the Burwigan Project, an art collective that inspires actions against climate change and plastic pollution within the Panamanian population and Indigenous Communities.
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Lisa Rapley

Gumbaynggirr

Lisa Rapley

Lisa Rapley

Gumbaynggirr

Lisa empowers young Indigenous people through system disruption, capacity building, and ecosystem development. She is passionate about using systems thinking, Indigenous knowledge and co-design principles to address complex problems.
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Martha Lidia Oxí Chuy

Co-Executive Director, MAIA Impact School

Martha Lidia Oxí Chuy

Martha Lidia Oxí Chuy

Co-Executive Director, MAIA Impact School

The MAIA Impact School, of which Vilma Saloj is Director, and Martha Lidia is Co-Executive Director, is an educational organisation in Guatemala led by Indigenous women that supports Indigenous girls' access to quality secondary education. MAIA began in 2008 by providing Indigenous girls the opportunity to attend further education through scholarships. The MAIA team founded the Impact School in 2017 with an original cohort of 50 Girl Pioneers.

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Mathew Siliga Amituanai

Pacific islander

Mathew Siliga Amituanai

Mathew Siliga Amituanai

Pacific islander

In 2018, Mathew founded the Thrive Initiative, primarily focusing on providing comprehensive sexual health education and testing for LGBTQI+ out of multiple sites that are not hospitals or clinics.
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Noor Azizah

Rohingya, Arakan State, Myanmar

Noor Azizah

Noor Azizah

Rohingya, Arakan State, Myanmar

Noor Azizah is the co-founder and director of the Rohingya Maìyafuìnor Collaborative Network, which is a women-led, Rohingya-led and refugee-led organisation working on Rohingya human rights issues, SGBV, education and trans-local solidarity with a focus on women, peace and security.
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Vanessa Turnbull-Roberts

Bundjalung Widubul Wiabul - First Nations

Vanessa Turnbull-Roberts

Vanessa Turnbull-Roberts

Bundjalung Widubul Wiabul - First Nations

Vanessa is proud Bundjalung Widubul-Wiabul woman, advocate, lawyer, writer and researcher at Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous education and research, and the Law faculty at the University of Technology dedicating her work to transforming the forced removal practices of First Nations child removal and empowering Indigenous self-determination and Justice for First Nations people and children both in Australia and globally.
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Winter Dawn Kent Lipscombe

Anishinaabe of Wauzhuzhk Onigum - First Nations

Winter Dawn Kent Lipscombe

Winter Dawn Kent Lipscombe

Anishinaabe of Wauzhuzhk Onigum - First Nations

Winter is a member of several official boards and councils in Canada, including the Treaty #3 Youth Executive Council (T3YEC), the Assembly of First Nations National Youth Council and the Ontario First Nations Young People’s Council.
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Kananish McKenzie

Spokesperson for the Youth Network of First Nations of Quebec

Kananish McKenzie

Kananish McKenzie

Spokesperson for the Youth Network of First Nations of Quebec

Kananish is a young Indigenous woman from the Innu Nation of Matimekush Lac-John, located in northern Quebec. She was elected as a spokesperson for the Youth Network of First Nations of Quebec and Labrador in 2023 and is actively involved in various councils and organisations.
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