A native of Haiti, Jean Paul arrived in the United States in 2004 with a suitcase and a dream to excel. Since his arrivival, he has taken charge of his academic and professional development while remaining committed to achieving his dream. Jean Paul’s approach to addressing the challenges facing Haiti after the earthquake is to combine his training in dental care with his need to give back. He was immediately struck by the children’s persistent smiles in the face of overwhelming hardship and soon realized that behind each smile hid an unspoken story waiting to be told – a thought that became the seed of Unspoken Smiles Foundation.

Jean Paul's strong leadership and successful track record for delivery of care have attracted investors who partner with him to help the children of Haiti, and his philanthropic achievements have garnered recognition from a variety of prestigious organizations. Jean Paul is working on an MPA in Advance Management and Finance at Columbia University - School of International and Public Affairs, holds a B.S in Health Service Administration from City Tech, an AAS in Dental Hygiene from NYU College of Dentistry, and an AS in Liberal Arts from Rockland Community College.

Jean Paul Laurent - Doing Good is in Our DNA

Sahadev Yangmali Rai is a Founder and President of the Yang-Ward Foundation. He completed his schooling from the National School of Nepal. He then went to United World College of India to finish his International Baccalaureate diploma. Yangmali completed his undergraduate degrees from  Westminster College, USA graduating with honors in International Relations and Diplomacy, International Business and Transnational Studies. He then went onto complete his postgraduate degree from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and graduated with Msc in International Relations.

Sahadev Yangmali Rai - Ambition Against All Odds

Ubah Ali is social activist and feminist from Somaliland, an internationally unrecognized country. She graduated from Abaarso School 2015, Miss Hall's 2016, and currently doing her Bachelor degree in Politics and Human Rights at American University of Beirut. At the age of 18, Ali has started her own organization in 2015 called Rajo:Hope for Somaliland Community, which educates orphans and Somali unprivileged students. From 2012-2015, she was a tutor at Hargeisa Orphanage Center. Her dedication and had work inspired orphans to learn despite the daily problems they face. Some of the orphans that she taught are studying schools in the USA. After her college graduation, she is committed to go back home and rebuild her country. Ali and her team were among the MasterCard Foundation scholars who won the 2018-2019 Resolution Project, and their goal is to eradicate all forms of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) across communities in Somaliland.

Ubah Ali - We Can Narrate Our Own Story

Abiy Shimelis is a leader in Development Communication; a Sustainability Advocate and Civil-Environmental Engineer by training. He is interested in the convergence of media, digital content creation and creative enterprising in mobilizing efforts towards sustainable development practices in Ethiopia.

Abiy Shimelis - Peace Through Creative Arts

Pumla Maswanganyi is a 21-year-old South African citizen, that is passionate about African development. She has embraced her status as a global citizen and would like to see Africa claim its place as an equal partner in the global trade, economically and culturally. She is dedicated to building infrastructure that can assist youth in contributing to Africa’s economic, political and social development. Pumla currently serves as the youngest executive leader and strategist in three social impact focused organisations. She serves as the Chief Strategy Officer at Jara (an organisation creating an IoT device to provide emergency education to IDPs, asylum seeking / refugee children affected by conflicts and natural disasters). She is also the Head of Strategy and Operations at Baobab Consulting (a firm that creates equitable inter-cultural and inter-continental collaboration with a focus on Africa), leading the strategy and operations for the 6 operating countries. Finally, she holds an executive seat, as the Vice-Chair of the International Youth Coalition for Education (IYCE), the only youth-led organisation dedicated to uniting young actors innovating and reshaping education.

Pumla Maswanganyi - Taking Chances and Making a Difference

Ying Zhang is a student at McGill University, Macdonald campus in Montreal. She is majoring in Nutritional Science. Inspired by the involvement of students in the community and the developed food aid systems in Montreal, she is excited to use the knowledge and experience gained on campus to provide food aid to those in need. Raised in China, Ying travels often and sees both the beauty and fragility of China. It is a country with a huge landmass and abundant resources, yet millions of people are hungry. With the experiences in Montreal, she is ready to share her experience with the university and community and, furthermore, to feed more people with the redistribution of surplus food.

Young Leaders Now

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