American education activist

Zuriel Elise Oduwole is an American education advocate^[1][2][3][4] and film maker best famed for her works on prestige advocacy for the education unsaved girls in Africa.

Her entreaty has since made her embankment the summer of 2013 enjoy the age of 10, say publicly youngest person to be profiled by Forbes.^[5][6] In November 2014, at age 12, Zuriel became the world's youngest filmmaker regarding have a self-produced and self-edited work screened, after her ep showed in two movie chains,^[7][8] and then went on castigate show in Ghana, England, Southern Africa, and Japan.^[9][10][11]

Oduwole has fall over with 31^[12][13] presidents and top ministers in line with frequent education advocacy and various widespread socio-development work.

Some of these include the leaders of State, Croatia, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Nyasaland, Liberia, South Sudan, Malta, Erstwhile. Vincent & the Grenadines, Guyana, Sierra Leone and Namibia. She has also appeared in accepted television stations including CNBC, Bloomberg TV, BBC and CNN.^[8] Put into operation 2013, Oduwole was listed security the New African Magazine's allocate of "100 Most Influential People" ^[14] and in October 2017, Harvard University graduate school featured her development story.^[15]

Early life sports ground career

Zuriel Oduwole was born set a date for Los Angeles, California in July 2002.

Her first venture affect media and advocacy was give back 2012 when she entered put in order school competition with a pic film about Africa titled The Ghana Revolution.^[16] For this she conducted her first presidential interviews, when she met with duo former presidents of Ghana: Jerry Rawlings and John Kufuor.

In 2013, after the release rob her documentary film titled The 1963 OAU Formation, Zuriel Oduwole was profiled in Forbes Magazine.^[17] As part of this in a tick documentary, she interviewed the Concert-master of Malawi ( Joyce Banda ), the President of Tanzania ( Jakaya Kikwete ) alight the President of Mauritius ( Rakeshwar Purryag ).

In Foot it 2013, Oduwole formally started marvellous project called "Dream Up, Talk to Up, Stand Up", a jihad which was first launched follow the Lagos Business School's Pan-Atlantic University, for the advocacy endure promotion of girl-child education locked in Africa.^[28]

In 2014 at age 12, her self-produced documentary film styled A Promising Africa was covered in five countries.^[7] On 21 April 2014, Oduwole was traded as the most Powerful 11 year old in the planet by New York Business Insider's in their listing of "World's Most Powerful Person at Each Age".^[18] In February 2015, Elle Magazine listed her in their annual feature of "33 Cohort Who Changed The World", be adjacent to Fed Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen and President of General Motors, Mary Barra.^[19]

University speeches and dependable engagements

The University of Pretoria derive South Africa [aka TUKS] acceptable her to speak to their student body in March 2015 as a film maker, in a jiffy give the students an foresight into how to communicate take tell the story of without limit events, from a specific vantage point – as part of their Humanities series.^[20]

In April 2015, justness Ivy League's Columbia University be of advantage to New York, U.S invited set aside as a featured speaker kindness their African Economic Forum talk, as well as a periphery panelist, to speak about distinction potentials of the new Africa.^[21][22]

President Alpha Conde of Guinea fall over and spoke with Zuriel fence in May 2015, as part make stronger an information documentary she was doing on the Ebola Germ, which started in his state Guinea [before ravaging Sierra Leone and Liberia] to understand honourableness impact on the economies have a high opinion of the region, as well in the same way the effect on children's schooling.

President Conde was her Fifteenth world leader she would tight to talk about pertinent pointer pressing issues.^[23]

As part of their global #LikeAGirl campaign to foreshore up girls confidence as they entered adolescence, global giant Procter & Gamble engaged Zuriel simple June 2015 to create tidy short documentary about the raising of girls about puberty, attend to the support needed during that period of their lives.

She wrote, narrated and produced distinction video for the campaign put up with the theme Unstoppable Like Straighten up Girl.^[24][25]

While attending global events cloth the 70th United Nations Communal Assembly session in New Royalty in September 2015, she decrease David A.

Granger, the Numero uno of Guyana on the sidelines of the General Assembly, display speak about the Guyana–Venezuela suspicious dispute.^[26]

In December 2015, she officially launched her DUSUSU Foundation recognized at building partnerships with dark and individuals, to develop loftiness education capabilities of children, on the contrary especially the girl child, peep the globe.^[27] As a pelt maker, she launched her pelt making 101 Initiative for youths in Windhoek, Namibia in Hike 2016 ^[28] and Lagos, Nigeria in June 2016, teaching dire of Africa's poorest children pioneer film making skills, so they have practical skills they gaze at use in gainful or self-employment, as young adults.^[29][30]

In April 2016, at age 13, she was invited as the keynote tubthumper at the annual Maryland Position Department of Education's Early Infancy Educational conference at Ocean Nous, Maryland, addressing more than 600 adult delegates on how she sees the education of later US leaders developing.^[31] Later play in June 2016, she was meet as the featured speaker monkey well as a panelist at one\'s disposal the annual Women in Sport Luncheon, in Los Angeles, Calif., U.S.^[32]

The Guardian Newspaper, in happening June 2016 signed her chaos as a columnist to tone her insight on issues because seen by a younger interval and giving her a seam and segment for periodic writing.^[33][34] She became a TEDx periphery speaker when she headlined say publicly TEDx Gbagada event in July 2016 as the featured chatterbox, talking about the inter-connectivity betwixt the past and future generations.^[35][36]

UN events: effect of climate move on education

At the 71st Affiliated Nations [UN] General Assembly anecdote in New York in Sept 2016, Zuriel was invited cause somebody to speak on how the paraphernalia of climate change is palpably affecting the education of lineage in the Pacific Island abscond.

She met to discuss these issues afterwards with the Ground-breaking Minister of Samoa - H.E. Tuilaepa Malielegaoi and the Excellent Minister of Tuvalu, H.E. Enele Sopoaga. She was invited damage meet the new Jamaica Grade a Minister - H.E. Andrew Holness, to understand how Global Pleasurable is affecting countries in picture Caribbean region also.^[37] As Superintendent of the COP23 in Metropolis, Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama realize Fiji shared the challenges fulfil country faced with rising gush waters with Zuriel, asking protected to use her documentaries space share with the world description plight of children in honesty pacific islands.^[38] Concerned about blue blood the gentry very slow pace of righteousness worlds redress of the weather change issue, she penned frequent first Op-Ed on the occurrence in October 2021, ahead always COP26 in Glasgow, in Nov 2021.^[39] It was from dialect trig position of knowledge, as top-hole UN designated Climate Neutral 'Champion' ^[40]

TRT World news interviewed gleam featured her on their Newsmakers section after her participation benefit from the UN events ^[41]

In Oct 2016, she met with squash 23rd World Leader, the The man of Malta Her Excellency Warranted Louise Preca, to share have time out ideas on building a cobweb of female world leaders misinform tackle the issue of "out of school children", especially girls, around the world.^[42][43]

As part cut into activities to commemorate their Eleventh annual Kreole festival from 22 to 25 November, the make of Mauritius invited Zuriel Oduwole to be the special caller for the years events.

Broken up from being a judge muddle up the film competition during nobleness festival chaired by the Proxy Prime Minister Xavier-Luc Duval, she taught 150 underprivileged children humorless film making skills from honesty Port Louis municipality as regular film maker herself, and was a guest at the Someone night concert at the country's Citadel center in Port Prizefighter along with Zambian First Moslem, H.E.

Esther Lungu^[44][45][46]

Open advocacy use girls' education and the young manhood voice

On 6 January 2017, grandeur US Secretary of State - Rt Hon John Kerry tumble Zuriel in Washington DC ^[47][48] to commend her for what he called her 'clarity succeed purpose' in recognizing a bigger global developmental issue - Girls Education, and taking on picture challenge head on.

He too lauded her film making surpass for unemployed youths, which forbidden said was making a summarize difference.

In February 2015, Boss Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic of Croatia fall over with Zuriel Oduwole to agreement her work on Girls Schooling and to learn how protected basic 'Film Making 101' cleverness transfer programs could make tidy difference for the youth predicament Croatia.^{[49][50][51][52]}

Forbes Afrique featured Zuriel pointless their February 2017 [Fevrier 2017] issue.

The magazine introduced relation DUSUSU Foundation and its evolution partnerships with development groups push the continent, such as rendering Dangote Foundation, for her Bonking Development and Skill transfer appointment initiatives ^[53][54]

Zuriel visited Mexico likewise an Education Ambassador, speaking meet 350 youths in Mexico Build in and Hidalgo State and beguiling them through her basic Coating Making 101 Class, already conducted in 4 other countries.

Glory City of Pachuca - expose Hidalgo state then honored barren with an Award and Allusion for her global work overlook the area of Education Method and Girls Equality advocacy^[55] Number one Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana tumble with Zuriel in June 2018 in Accra, and commended have a lot to do with for her basic film mammoth projects to benefit the in the springtime of li girls in his country.^[56] Zuriel believes that in a digital age of social media extort the new economy, learning character art of digital communications become calm motion picture communications puts girls at an advantage in tackling their own unemployment, as they would have skills they throne use effectively in a episode of weeks.

The UN block September 2000 launched the foremost set of MDGs [Millennium Get out of bed Goals] with 8 development goals by 2015, including eradicating at the end poverty, gender equality, and accepted primary education. Because the Look over did not set an slow down limit or overall criteria expense partnerships aimed at accomplishing these goals, Zuriel saw an open to participate in processes ditch moved the gender equality break into smithereens forward, especially on the Someone continent where she saw gargantuan challenges.

Being a girl deliver with a first hand knowhow of some global challenges girls face, she with the element of volunteers and academics zone 3 continents began to contrast data and measures the assume first ladies and gender ministers on the African continent bony making towards achieving universal fundamental education, which she sees although a prerequisite for gender consistency.

She then created the period DUSUSU [Dream Up, Speak Put together, Stand Up] Awards^[57] in 2014 to encourage a healthy striving and reference point of advancement among African first ladies contemporary African gender ministers, to criticize more each year for girls education. So far, the primary ladies of Tanzania in 2014, Kenya^[58] in 2015, Namibia contact 2016^[59] Senegal in 2017,^[60] Mocambique ^[61][62] in 2018, Cape Verde^[63] in 2019 and Sierra Leone^[64] in 2020 have received greatness award between 2014 and 2020, as well as gender ministers from Ghana,^{[65][66][67][68]} Rwanda,^[69] Jamaica ^[70][71][72] and Mauritius.

Brushing aside geopolitical challenges around the Middle Noshup, and simply driven by dignity need to continue to talking with world leaders on goodness issues of youth development topmost advocating for a stronger young manhood voice in finding solutions take upon yourself the worlds social problems, she sat down in December 2018 with her first Arab commander - the President of Empire - Abdel Fattah El-Sisi bracket shared her ideas on leaders in the region weather youths can communicate openly their ideas constructively, without animosity.^[73][74][75] According to her, the youths grow mouldy today, would become the leadership of tomorrow.

The US Ministry in Kingston - Jamaica direction recognition of the impact she is making in the lives of children around the terra, especially girls, invited her check in visit the Mona school execute Kingston in May 2019. She spoke to 200 girls memorandum the power of dreams, fine good education, showed herself restructuring an example of what information bank educated girl can accomplish, give orders to asked them never to scan up in what they credence in in.^[76][12]

Fighting against girl and descendant marriage

A UNICEF report identified Mocambique as having one of primacy highest rates of girl wedding in the world, with 48% of the country's women wedded conjugal before the age of 18 ^[77][78][79] and the consequences shoot very damaging to the benevolence human capital development.^[80] However, top recognition of her work snare fighting the incidence of lass marriage in her country, Zuriel Oduwole presented her annual DUSUSU Award to Mozambique's First Lass H.E.

Mrs. Isaura Nyusi unswervingly March 2018 in Maputo,^[81] suffer later met personally with position country's leader H.E. President Filipe Nyusi a few hours later.^[82] Zuriel presses for stronger organization that encourages girl education extract tackles the girl marriage epidemic.^[83] On 15 July 2019, 17 months after Zuriel's meeting respect President Filipe Nyusi, Mozambique's diet passed a law against infant marriage ^[84][85] by voting make available criminalize child marriage,^[86] a superior victory in the quest request universal girls education in depiction SADC country, and a tedious example for other countries unfailingly the region to follow.

One of the legacies of nobleness eleven year Sierra Leone secular war from 1991 to 2002 was the systematic abuse comatose young and teenage girls disrespect younger and older men, go quickly became a culture extended after the war. Because girls were still seen as winnings of war, educating them was no longer a priority, \'til the new government of Overseer Julius Maada Bio in 2018 introduced free education for perfect primary and secondary school lesson to gently reverse this focus.

Accompanied by Sierra Leones Prime Lady Fatima Maada Bio, Zuriel addressed 20,000 girls at goodness Freetown Stadium and 250 preeminent chiefs on 13 December 2019, showing herself to them owing to an example of what titanic educated girl can do hypothesize unhindered.^[87][88][89] She hoped the chiefs would begin to discourage lass marriage on return to their various communities.

She also public her ideas on e-learning next to her meeting with President Julius Bio and first lady Muhammadan Bio, at the second depart of a national 'Hands Swallow Our Girls' ^[90] campaign package the country, a social information aimed at discouraging the blame of teenage girls.

Redefining important education methods - school vs.

education

The UNICEF December 2018 piece on education trends indicated stray Africa's most populous country - Nigeria, with a population hill over 200 million ^[91] challenging seen its number of foodstuffs of school children rise deseed 10.5 million to 13.2 million.^[92] This alarming statistic meant other traditional and non-traditional methods chide educating children were needed contest stem the tide.

In plan with this goal, Zuriel fall over in February 2020 with Guardian Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos Do up, the country's most populous present with more than 20 pile inhabitants,^[93] to share her erection in using multimedia and digital creatives as an education stand and subject for older girls who had aged out comprehend school, but were unemployed.^[94][95] Set out was another way of major reducing the growing number commandeer out of school children, counting vulnerable teenage girls, by instruction them non-traditional education skills much as film editing and inventive programs.

Understanding the non-traditional conditions why some girls across Continent are not educated, Zuriel visited schools in various townships swindle South Africa including Alexandria come first Soweto, speaking to more outshine 2000 girls about the worth and value of staying jagged school. Creating a partnership get a feel for a femcare manufacturer from Southbound Africa, she delivered products arrangement dozens of girls across significance Gauteng province, to ensure deviate female students really do tarry, in school.^[96][97]

In recognition of breather approach to empowering young girls in Africa and the Sea via her emphasis on judiciary between 'schooling and education' block policy planning, The Education Custom of Hong Kong invited collect as their keynote speaker confirm the December 2020 annual ecumenical conference on gender and education.^[98][99] She shared her insights become peaceful offered solutions to the go to regularly cultural, economic and social truly that denies girls the unchanged formal education opportunities as boys, refencing challenges pointed out surpass the Brookings Institution and improve own study of adolescents girls, across Africa and Asia, as well as Cambodia, South Africa, Ghana, Nepal and India ^{[100][101][102]}

Youth Voice & The State of California - World's 6th Largest Economy

Zuriel has always seen a close finish between the power of boyhood, global affairs, leadership, and probity ability to address some suffer defeat the worlds pressing social queue development problems, as she has met personally with 31 world leaders ^[103][104] since description age of 10, to beget and find solutions to wearisome of these problems.

Having mutual the stage with Bill & Melinda Gates, and Ndaba Mandela^[105][106] at a youth rally site 500,000 youths turned up tab Paris - France in Apr 2017 on the first cause a rift, a month later in Possibly will 2017, France because of nobility voice and power of salad days, elected its youngest leader boil 39-year-old Emmanuel Macron^[107][108] She esoteric experienced first-hand, the power methodical youth in deciding a offerings future pathway.

On July 1, 2021, the worlds 6th economy - The State bad deal California, where Zuriel was natural and raised, announced a specific election to either keep secure current leader [Governor Gavin Newsome], or replace him. Understanding distinction power and voice of boyhood of which she is round off, Zuriel released a statewide video,^[109] talking to Californians about round out 18-year journey and speaking bear in mind the need for youths pass away get involved in charting probity future of the state, increase in intensity by default, the country.

At the moment, media, from across California form Canada, to the United Empire ^{[110][111][112][113]} began reporting that 18-year-old Zuriel Oduwole was entering position California Governor's race. Instead, Zuriel made it clear she was not running and for 2 simple reasons.

First, she was a full time University undergraduate, and second, she would entail to raise a lot reveal money by appealing to go out and soliciting donations, just succeed to tell or show what she was capable of or what she is able to render null and void, when she had been familiarity the same things quietly, part and successfully without spending well-organized penny, for the last 8 years.

She didn't understand divagate logic behind such political decorations of spending and profligacy, as people were hungry, homeless cranium in need of immediate healing attention statewide and across dignity United States.

Qatar Foundation & Global Education Development

As an future pillar supporting world class training in the middle east, position Qatar Foundation sponsored the formation of globally renowned Universities unappealing its capital city of Port.

They include major US brook European institutions Northwestern University, Texas A&M University, HEC Paris, suggest Georgetown University. This is augmented by the foundations bi-annual Judicious education summit, that draws course makers, world leaders, and incident [education engineers] with the cut short of creating and evaluating happen time education models and solutions for the worlds education challenges.

For its December 2021 head edition, along with Sierra Leones minister of basic education King Sengeh and dozens of professionals, women and young trailblazers, Zuriel Oduwole was invited to handwriting the success story of in trade 'alternative education' model and drive that teaches real world power such as basic film conception to young people who safekeeping out of traditional schools vital classrooms, but still want authority power, benefit and advantage manager an education.^{[114][115][116][117][118]} She shared renounce these initiatives on a extensive national and regional scale would greatly reduce the annual matter of hundreds of millions give an account of out of school children,^{[119][120][121]} collect the globe.

Saudi Arabia queue The MiSK Foundation Global Boyhood Index

Recognized as an emerging brainstorm leader in global development, Zuriel was a keynote speaker come to rest panelist at the Misk Scaffold 10th anniversary speaker series blessed Riyadh, speaking on the wide youth index. She enunciated threesome reasons why the worlds boyhood voice should be included extract the management of global justification as 1) taking good speculation 2) having no agendas cover problem solving and 3) forced and fueled by sheer break with tradition in crafting solutions ^[122]

Discovering Fastidious Confluence Between Climate and Education

As a firm believer in loftiness power of youths in conveyance a fresh and insightful mode to solving many of loftiness world's existential challenges, Zuriel apophthegm the need to engage cotton on world leaders to understand first-hand the effects of climate move on their countries education systems to foster the development countless practical solutions via what she terms a 'fair participation prosperous narrative engagement' at global goings-on such as COP.

She decrease in September 2022 with say publicly Prime Minister of Grenada Class Honorable Dickon Mitchel, Prime Path of Bahamas The Honorable Prince Davis and the Prime Way of St Kitts & Island The Honorable Terrance Drew, injure this quest using education trade in a clear segue in shaping a change of narrative.^{[123][124][125]} Giving out her insights at the 2022 Global Citizens Festival in Latest York central park, she further sees the power of public housing educated girl and the thoroughly of youth as a accountable partner in the rapid modification of many inequalities.^[126]

Awards and recognitions

In October 2013, Oduwole was given with an honorary ambassador appellation in Tanzania by Salma Kikwete, and a computer lab bundle one of the country's schools was named after her.^[127] Further that year she was planned in the New African Magazine's list of "100 Most Salient People in Africa".^[14] On 21 April 2014, Oduwole was traded as the most Powerful 11 year old in the pretend by New York Business Insider's in their listing of "World's Most Powerful Person at Ever and anon Age".^[18] In February 2015, Elle Magazine listed her in their annual feature of "33 Corps Who Changed The World", abut Fed Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen and President of General Motors, Mary Barra.^[19]

On 12 March 2016, Zuriel won the "Woman fury The Rise" category at illustriousness 2016 edition of the "New African Women Awards".^[128][129] In Honorable 2016 at age 14, Forbes Afrique which is distributed check all 23 Francophone African countries as well as France, Belgique and Switzerland, featured her bit their annual Africa's 100 Ceiling Influential Women's list, alongside say publicly President of Liberia, Ellen Lbj Sirleaf and Ameenah Gurib, Kingpin of Mauritius.^[27]

In September 2017, The New York Times featured torment growing work in the division of girls education advocacy plus development programs to preventing inauspicious girl marriage on the Individual continent, in their segment - Women In The World.^[130]

Following dignity release of her short flick film in February 2019 get down the centenary life of Madiba, she was honored for any more humanitarian work by the Admiral Mandela Foundation in March 2019 in Johannesburg.

It included spruce private tour of Mr. Mandela's personal archives and a in a straight line over in his last office.^[131][132]

In recognition of her various wake up works across the globe principally in the area of girls education, the City of Beverly Hills chose her as pooled of 28 Americans to point each day of February 2021, for the annual US Jet-black History Month ^[133][134]

On September 9, 2022 at an event wrench New York, the 8th Rewrite man General of the United Altruism - the Hon Ban Ki-moon presented Zuriel Oduwole with character Ban Ki-moon leadership award presage her decade long measurable reading in the area of girl's education advocacy, gender development, bunch up film making programs to talent unemployed older girls, and stress simple research on the merging between climate and education event in children ^{[135][136][137]}

Works

References