Youth x youth
Learning Festival

Mohini is from Gqeberha, South Africa. Their exploration of alternative learning started in 2017 when they officially left traditional school and embarked on their journey of unschooling. Since being unschooled, they have actively worked with and for various social justice organizations (Fridays for Future, Extinction Rebellion, The African Climate Alliance, and now YouthxYouth). As a young person who had the privilege of following their passions unapologetically, leading to working in wonderful social justice spaces, mostly intergenerationally, Mohini is left with what feels like a plethora of invaluable experiences that would have never happened if they had attended a traditional school. They have had the rare opportunity to plant seeds of their wildest imaginings at a young age and to nurture them through these years of unschooling - seeds such as; mental health, activism, and liberatory learning. At the 2023 YxY Learning Festival, they will be sharing their journey with unschooling, how they became unschooled, and where unschooling has brought them.

Amachree is a creative, a media personality, an entertainment enthusiast and a Teach for Nigeria Fellow. Obsessed with making a difference and leading positive Change in Education and every area of life in general.

I’m a Colombian anthropologist and agroecologist with comprehensive education in transdisciplinary projects, regenerative thinking and community development. My purpose is to help us transition to ways of life that generate universal wellbeing, and nurture people and places' capacity to grow and preserve life. To this end, I co-founded Arare Co., an organization that fosters regenerative development of primary production systems in Colombia and Mexico. I've collaborated in public policy design for indigenous peoples, and have devoted myself to conducting applied research in regeneration, education, rural and sustainable development, participation and group engagement, amongst other subjects.

Natasha (she/her) is an intersectional feminist. As the Lead of Youth Movements and Feminist Leadership at the UN Girls' Education Initiative, Natasha works to shift the power dynamics for young feminists to meaningfully partner in all processes in progressing gender equality in and through education. Natasha is a fierce believer of facilitating brave intergenerational spaces for collaboration, learning and unlearning and dismantling patriarchal structures. As the co-lead of Chalk Back, a global young feminist artivist led-non profit, Natasha coordinates a group of activists globally in campaigning against gender based violence. Natasha is currently completing her Masters in Philanthropy and Nonprofit leadership at Carleton University.

I am Kinlo; my friends generally call me Professor. I come from Cameroon but live and study in Germany at Constructor University. I love creating a positive impact and building solutions to problems that resonate with me.

A medical scientist doubling up as a leadership development coach and co-founder of a youth development initiative (Pearlitas of Wisdom), Pearl works on co-creating, co-designing and collaborating with like-minded organisations to propel social impact. This is done through promoting the essence of Ubuntu, reigniting imagination in various circles of life, implementing alternate education forms and connecting with the concept of interbeing. Her multi-faceted interest range, in tandem with servant leadership, orientate her passions towards science, combating education inequity, youth development as well as promoting psycho-social and emotional support systems to those on the African continent.

Amana is a visionary for an inclusive and empathy driven world, striving to achieve this through mentorship, accessibility, and advocacy initiatives. Amana has worked with 18 impact driven organizations and is a graduate in development studies from SOAS, University of London. Amana is the founder of Enabling Access, an initiative to bridge the gap that exists for the youth in India to access knowledge regarding career development in social impact. She has a background in Political Science (Hons, University of Delhi) and holds a diploma in Women Empowerment and Development. Her experiences in the impact space as a strategic implementation professional for the past five years include working in gender equity, livelihoods, vaccine equity, women empowerment, sustainability, and youth and professional development.

Psychiatrist/teacher/supervisor in Washington DC currently working on establishing a program that encourages and trains mental health clinicians to apply their skills used in a private office to a community setting.

Hanna Negusie is a multifaceted campaign builder, researcher, and advocate that has worked across public health, education, research, and social work sectors. Through her work in the world, she aims to illuminate social issues and imagine alternative futures that are based in well-being, creativity, and critical awareness. Currently, Hanna is the Communications Lead with the Academy for the Love of Learning, a learning organization in Santa Fe, NM, where she directs communications strategy and creates the organization’s unique stories of community-based learning. Hanna is also co-creating #TheLearningSpirit Youth Summit with young change-makers, leaders, and artists. The Summit is a youth-led learning experience, supporting young people in ushering in a new era of collective leadership.

RUPHIN KUNGWA is originally from Democratic Republic of Congo. However, for the past several years, he had called Uganda his home, residing as a refugee in Nakivale Refugee Settlement located in Isingiro District/ Western Uganda. One of the greatest passion in his life is peace education. He had had the privilege of developing and demonstrating his passion by joining YouthxYouth in 2022 and dedicating his time and energy to this cause as a volunteering teacher and local organisations. Fostering a deep understanding of peace is just a vocation and calling. He believes that educating individuals about the principles of peace is the cornerstone of building a harmonious society of justice. From a young age, he dreamt of becoming a lawyer. His dream was driven by a desire to represent, defend voiceless people and echo cries of undermined communities. That is why he chose to study law at the Official university of Bukavu/ DRC from 2015 to 2018. He always considers legal studies as one of the major ways to promote justice. While his path may have led him down the road of education, his commitment to justice and well-being of others remains steadfast. Through peace education he aspires to contribute to a world where conflicts are resolved through dialogue and understanding, and where rights of all individuals, regardless of their circumstances, are upheld.

Ude, Ugo Anna is passionate about education activism, academics, and art. She is an English Major at the University of Lagos who divides her time between learning, providing support for a small group of first-year students, and volunteering with social impact projects. Ude leads The Book Drive Bayelsa, a nonprofit providing books to children in educationally disadvantaged communities in Nigeria. She also supports Book O Clock, a nonprofit amplifying African literature, as its Creative Director. Within YouthxYouth, she cohosts the Community-based Learning Global Action Circle. As she learns to weave people and projects for the betterment of education, she asks, “Will activists and educators serve better in communities where their wellness is prioritised?”

Sumit is a creative educator who has an ardent interest in education, capacity building and TVET. He has worked for more than 4 years in education with underprivileged communities where he focused on building voice and expression for the students.

A being from a patchwork of worlds and life experiences, I love weaving together people, stories and ideas from different spaces, and my commitment is to work in service of people and organisations taking action to make the world fairer, kinder, safer, and healthier for all.

Dominic Regester is director of education and director of the Center for Education Transformation at Salzburg Global Seminar, where he is responsible for designing, developing and implementing programs on the futures of education, with a particular focus on social and emotional learning, education leadership, regenerative education, and education transformation. Prior to this he worked for the British Council for 14 years on global citizenship education, teacher professional development, and education collaboration. He works on a broad range of projects across education policy, practice, transformation, and international development, including as a director at the Amal Alliance, as a senior editor for Diplomatic Courier, and as an advisor to the Learning Economy Foundation, and the Power of Zero. Since 2021 he has also served as the executive director of Karanga: the Global Alliance for Social Emotional Learning and Life Skills. He holds master's degrees in Chinese studies from the School of Oriental and African studies in London, and in education and international development from the Institute of Education at University College London.

Ila Malhotra Gregory is Ecosystem Weaver and Gardener at YouthxYouth. They are exploring how we might organise, in ways that are both effective and beautiful, by growing meaningful relationships with one another. Ila has a strong commitment to care for all beings and is exploring kincentric ways of being, doing, leading and working informed by deep resonance with the values of reciprocity and relationality.

Pavel Luksha is a global thinker, change catalyst, and facilitator, founder of Global Education Futures and cofounder of the Weaving Lab and Living Cities Earth, connecting future visioning and system transformation across various sectors

I am a facilitator and community development worker. I believe in the power of community to make change and heal many of our collective wounds. I am interested in how the role of community plays out across different countries and cultures and I am invested in bringing community practices back into my country of the UK where we have lost touch with what I believe is most important; community and land connection. I am looking to embark on a PhD exploring these ideas more widely.

Oda is a 16 year old student of a traditional grammar school (founded in 1528) in Bavaria/Germany. She believes that many of the traditional teaching methods are outdated and there is an urgent need for a significant change. As a member of international projects like Inspired Youth Summit, Global Talent Mentoring, CyberMentor and World Hope Project she stands up for modern teaching and learning worldwide, to the benefit of everyone in the third millennium.

Hammed is a Social Entrepreneur, 2x Author, and Educator with 12 years of active citizenship and volunteering experience. He completed his Masters degree in Africa and International Development at the University of Edinburgh. He currently works as the West London Educational Mentoring Coordinator at Refugee Education (UK), where he connects young refugees/asylum seekers to mentors for educational support.

I am a Master's student of Educational Technology at the University of Buea and an SDG4 advocate. Founder and director of the youth-led organisation Brilliant Redemption, my mission in life is to make quality education accessible to all free of charge, especially for the less previleged. I am the winner of the ELS EEDIFICATION PLUS International Young Humanitarian Award 2020 and I've volunteered on several occasions to help equip youths with the necessary skills for positive change, turning them into ethical problem solvers. I am equally an executive member of the Anti-corruption club in my university.

He has two bachelors, in Law and Economics, from UC3M and a MA of Economics from the College of Europe, studied under a grant from the Spanish Foreign Ministry. Máximo also studied a M.Ed of Human Development and Psychology at Harvard University thanks to Fulbright and RCC Scholarships. Previously, Máximo was a risk advisory consultant for Deloitte, and for the Ministry of Education of Côte d’Ivoire through the Harvard Ministerial Leadership Program. He was a fellow of a number of programs such as the World Innovation Summit for Education and the Atlantic Dialogues Emerging Leaders Program. Máximo facilitates the Climate Action Workshop with MIT’s En-Roads Simulator and he also facilitates workshops on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, social impact careers and other topics. He collaborates with a number of networks, such as the Weaving Lab, United People Global, Nova Talent and Climate Interactive. Máximo speaks fluently English, French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Galician and has been selected, in the vertical of Social Impact, as part of the Nova 111 list, which gathers the 111 Spanish top talent under 35.

Olatomiwa is a development practitioner and Afro-optimist with over 5 years experience in Nonprofit management and grassroots project design. Olatomiwa strongly believes in the power of young people to change the world and is deeply committed to this cause. He works to recruit, mentor and inspire young people to start up changemaking projects in their communities.

I am Asma'u Sagir from Nigeria. I am a passionate advocate for quality education working different stakeholders at the grassroots community. I joined the YxY community in January 2022 through the Learning Festival. I am presently a Host Ally at Climate and Nature Education of 2023 Global Action Circle (GAC).