Zambia has come a long way since independence. Since 1964, we have had five presidents serve, three of whom have passed and two as sitting presidents: President Levy Mwanawasa and President Michael Sata. Both were great Presidents with a remarkable vision for the country; both contributed to the development of Zambia in their own right.

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“People who live in informal settlements are some of the most creative people in the world.” 

One Young World Ambassador and Founder of Ubuntu Design Group, Wandile Mthiyane, founded Ubuntu Design Group to maximise the creative energy and spirit of these people, and works with them to design sustainable housing that retains the community and culture that they share.

“People who live in informal settlements are some of the most creative people in the world,” says Wandile Mthiyane, One Young World Ambassador and Founder of Ubuntu Design Group. “Ubuntu Design Group exists to maximise the creative energy and spirit of these people, working with them to design sustainable housing that retains the community and culture that they share.”

It is pretty easy to tell vague anecdotes that depict glowing solutions, smooth processes, and smiling faces. I am speaking to you, blissful, passionate, newly minted social entrepreneurs in the non-profit sector. You are my people.

It is much harder to convey our long-term commitment to communities, prove that the work we do is impacting its intended audience in a meaningful way, and design programming with scalability in mind. We tend to rush this part.

Indy Hothi is a social activist who was selected to represent the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS) at the 2015 One Young World Summit in recognition of his dedication to affecting change. He currently holds the position of Senior Economic Strategy Consultant at EY and has established a number of key diversity initiatives at the firm, including running successful Graduate Insight Days for black and ethnic minority students.

Today, for the first time, I gave money to a Syrian girl who was begging on the street.

She was maybe 5 or 6 years old and had pretty, big green eyes and golden hair. I was waiting at the traffic light in my car when I noticed there was another girl standing near my car. Same age, but just a regular girl.

This girl knocked on my window, but didn’t show a lot of interest. She didn’t wait for a response, she just ran towards another car in the line. I’m not very engaging with kids; they don’t usually call for my attention.