One Young World has partnered with USAID to help develop young leaders who are positively impacting their communities through service, activism, advocacy, education and entrepreneurship. The USAID YouthLead Scholarship launched in 2023, giving young leaders the opportunity to develop their leadership skills and promote their work through a one-year programme, connecting people, ideas and resources to tackle critical issues affecting young people around the world.
USAID selected five exceptional young leaders to become a part of the 2023 USAID YouthLead Scholarship.
2023 USAID YouthLead Scholars Speaker Highlights
USAID YouthLead Scholar: Anxhela Bruci
USAID YouthLead Scholar: Nandini Tanya Lallmon
USAID Agency Youth Coordinator Sarah Sladen and YouthLead Scholar’s Anxhela Bruci ...
One Young World in Belfast 2023
USAID YouthLead Scholars participated in four transformative days in Belfast, attending speeches and discussions from high-level speakers across different sectors. Sarah Sladen (Agency Youth Coordinator for USAID) spoke on the topic ‘How Young Leaders Can Shape International Development’ with two USAID Scholars Anxela Bruci and Nandini Tanya Lallmon.
Other highlights included Anxela Bruci speaking on the Presentation Stage on the Plenary Challenge Peace and Reconciliation. Scholars attended workshops, networking sessions and mentorship sessions where they were able to expand their knowledge on key development challenges of this time.
USAID YouthLead Scholarship Spotlights
Say hello to #OYW23 @USAID Scholar, human rights researcher, law student, and creator of the “Vote for Her Fortaleza” project, Fernanda Ribeiro. 👋 When Fernanda joins us at the One Young World Summit Belfast 2023, she wants to learn from professionals and fellow activists to… pic.twitter.com/pD6eDYqHgW
— One Young World (@OneYoungWorld) August 10, 2023
Say hello to #OYW23 @USAID @youthleadglobal Scholar, agroindustrial engineer, and Co-founder of Macizo Agroindustria, @suavech. 👋 When Sebastian joins us at the One Young World Summit Belfast, 2023, he wants to network with other young leaders in the hopes of opening new… pic.twitter.com/MCT70FXvxe
— One Young World (@OneYoungWorld) August 11, 2023
Say hello to #OYW23 @USAID @youthleadglobal Scholar, youth advocate, and Founder of @youths_inspire, @ngosong_clement. 👋 When Clement joins us at the One Young World Summit Belfast, 2023, he wants to shed light on the importance of investing in youth by sharing his insights… pic.twitter.com/Yn0BFMzgb7
— One Young World (@OneYoungWorld) August 12, 2023
2023 USAID YouthLead Ambassadors
Anxhela Bruci
Founder of EmpowerFULL
Albania
Bio
Anxhela is a social justice mission-driven advocate, committed to the fight against human trafficking by empowering survivors in their reintegration path. Driven by this mission, she has founded "EmpowerFULL" www.empowerfull.org, a socio-economic model that supports the economic reintegration of survivors of human trafficking.
She holds an MA in Global Crime and Justice from the University of York, United Kingdom, and an MSc in Administration of Social Services.
She is also a member of the YP2LE Youth Advisory Group (YAG), part of the YouthPower2: Learning and Evaluation activity funded by USAID. In her role, she aims to advocate for youth inclusion in all phases of policy and program-making, by also including the perspectives of vulnerable youth at risk of exploitation.
Expertise
Modern Slavery / Human Trafficking
Maria Fernanda Montes Ribeiro
Creator of Vote for Her Fortaleza project
Brazil
Bio
Maria Fernanda Montes Ribeiro (Fernanda Ribeiro) is an advocate for women’s rights, peace, and democracy. She created the “Vote for Her Fortaleza,” a project to increase female participation in local politics and inspire young girls to participate actively in the electoral process.
She is also a human rights researcher, focusing on gender-based violence in Latin America and the political participation of minority groups in the Americas.
Currently, she is developing a project at the University of Quebec at Chicoutimi, Canada, concerning the challenges to implementing democracy in the American continent.
Further, Fernanda is a law student focused on alternative dispute resolution, seeking peaceful solutions to conflicts and facilitating access to justice in marginalized communities. She is a former YouthLead Ambassador, a program under the YouthPower2: Learning and Evaluation activity funded by USAID.
Expertise
Women's Rights, Politics
Johan Sebastian Chavez Mosquera
Co-founder of BEFLY
Colombia
Bio
Johan Sebastian, is from the department of Cauca in southern Colombia. He is 25 years old and a young farmer of flowers and coffee, passionate about agriculture and research.
He is currently an agroindustrial engineer from the University of Cauca and a technological specialist in hygiene and food safety at SENA. He is also a social entrepreneur with the aim of making an impact on agriculture and the environment. Johan is the co-founder of BEFLY, an organization committed to transforming organic waste into animal feed using insects and the founder of BLUECROPS, an organization focused on the implementation of biological control in agricultural crops.
Johan has experience in events and programs at national and international level, with the aim of gaining skills and knowledge to empower other young people. In 2021, he was a delegate for Colombia at the Youth Ag Summit 2021 organized by Bayer, an incubator of ideas, and in 2022 participated with a team in UNLEASH PLUS, organized by Chemonics International, an incubator of projects.
His experience as a young researcher, entrepreneur, mentor and more led him to become a YouthLead Ambassador, a program under the YouthPower2: Learning and Evaluation activity funded by USAID, with the goal to support ideas and projects led by young people by listening to and connecting them with resources, opportunities and mentoring.
Expertise
Agriculture
Nandini Tanya Lallmon
Legal Lead
Mauritius
Bio
Nandini Tanya Lallmon (Tanya Lallmon) is a research scholar at the University of Malta, where she is developing methodologies to bridge the gap between policy and practice pertaining to LGBTQIA+ rights. Appointed as African Youth Charter Hustler for Mauritius by the African Union Office of the Youth Envoy, she fosters the active appropriation by LGBTQIA+ youth of their rights by adopting a decolonial perspective on SOGIESC.
As UN Religion Fellow at OutRight International, she harnesses the international law system to protect LGBTQIA+ people from religion-based violence.
As a KAICIID Fellow, she challenges hate crimes against LGBTQIA+ people through interreligious and intercultural dialogue. Through the #Reform53 campaign, she lobbies against discriminatory laws on behalf of the Commonwealth Youth Gender and Equality Network under the Royal Commonwealth Society.
As a Diversity and Inclusion Fellow at the United Nations Office for Project Services, she advocates for increased accountability for discrimination, harassment and abuse of authority.
As Community Leader for Internet Health at Digital Grassroots, she empowers LGBTQIA+ individuals to protect their rights to privacy and security in the virtual and physical worlds.
As part of the Youth Sounding Board at the European Commission for International Partnerships, she empowers LGBTQIA+ youth through access to learning, dialogue and development spaces that are diverse, inclusive and transformative.
She is also a former member of the YP2LE Youth Advisory Group (YAG), part of the YouthPower2: Learning and Evaluation activity funded by USAID.
Expertise
LGBT+ Rights
Clement Ngosong
Founder of Youths Inspiration
Cameroon
Bio
Clement Ngosong is a dedicated youth advocate, driven by a passion for empowering young people to make a difference in their communities and the world at large. With experience spanning international development, education, and youth engagement, Clement has a proven track record of creating meaningful impact.
As a member of YouthLead’s Youth Advisory Group, part of the YouthPower2: Learning and Evaluation activity funded by USAID, Clement has played a pivotal role in shaping development initiatives for thousands of young people. Through his engagement with the European Union Youth Sounding Board, he has contributed to policy recommendations focused on young people, ensuring youth voices are heard at the highest levels of decision- making.
At Youths Inspiration, a Cameroon-based non-profit that Clement founded, his work has directly impacted the lives of over 500 young people, providing mentorship, support, and opportunities for personal and professional growth. As an inspiring leader and changemaker, Clement Ngosong is committed to engaging global stakeholders to design and execute programs that empower youth to create a more equitable and sustainable world.
USAID YouthLead Scholars in the News
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Clement Ngosong named a 2023 Kofi Annan Changemaker by the Kofi Annan Foundation
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One Young World and USAID-funded YouthLead platform collaborate to support young leaders
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Jhoan Chávez creó una comunidad digital para conectar a jóvenes caucanos con oportunidades
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Anxhela Bruci features in the fourth cohort of the Vital Voices Visionaries program in partnership with the #EsteeLauderEmergingLeaders Fund
Youth Policy Partnership
"The future is yours, and you should have the future that you want."
On May 6th, at the "Generation 2030: USAID Celebrates Youth Partnerships" event, USAID launched its updated Youth in Development Policy with a vision of a world in which young people have agency, rights, influence, and opportunities to pursue their life goals, and contribute to the development of their communities. The Policy aims to improve youth access, increase youth participation, and strengthen youth collective action to bring about change.
One Young World is proud to partner with USAID on this policy, alongside partners including UNICEF, Restless Development and Generation Unlimited.
Kate Robertson, Co-Founder of One Young World, announces its partnership with USAID
What is the USAID Youth in Development Policy?
Today, @USAID announced our new Youth Policy. We have a vision for Generation 2030: we’re mobilizing young people to help lead inclusive & innovative development. Thank you to partners @UNICEF, @RestlessDev, @_GenUnlimited, & @OneYoungWorld for celebrating this launch! pic.twitter.com/6vFJwNTd4M
— Samantha Power (@PowerUSAID) May 6, 2022
What is the USAID Youth in Development Policy?
Engaging youth and emerging leaders in development is essential to achieving the United States’ most important foreign policy objectives. The voices and skills of 2.4 billion youth between the ages of 10 and 29 are critical to development work. Youth engagement and partnership offer leaders a chance to fully understand what it is like to grow up in today’s rapidly changing world.
Instead of viewing youth as passive recipients, young people should be viewed as agents of their own development. USAID must invest in youth so that they are actively involved in shaping development interventions. Through youth engagement, USAID and their development partners can do a better job of creating the services, opportunities, and support young people need to develop in healthy ways.