Ludovic-Grosjean-Meet-young-leaders-United-Nations

our clubs

Meet 6 trailblazing young leaders Six members of Rotary and Rotaract were honored in November as “People of Action: Young Innovators” during Rotary Day at the United Nations in Nairobi, Kenya. These men and women — all under age 35 — were recognized for their commitment to solving problems and for connecting local issues with global concerns.

— ARNOLD R. GRAHL

Charlie Ruth Castro CLUB:

Rotary E-Club of Sogamoso Global, Colombia INNOVATION:

Teaching vocational and business skills to incarcerated women Using her digital communications expertise, Castro leads a program that teaches textile skills to 170 incarcerated women in Colombia; it also shows them how to assemble personal wellness kits with products developed from herbal plants grown on an organic farm. The kits are sold online through the brand Alas de Libertad (Wings of Freedom). The women also attend empowerment workshops to reduce their sentences. Castro, a lawyer, has led largescale events in Colombia and Mexico to promote women’s and children’s rights.

She co-founded Digitally Connected, which unites 430 Latin American experts who are studying the challenges that children and young people face online.

Paul Mushaho CLUB:

Rotaract Club of Nakivale, Uganda INNOVATION:

Organizing a Rotaract club in a Ugandan refugee settlement Fleeing conflict in his homeland of the Democratic Republic of

Congo, Mushaho arrived at the Nakivale refugee settlement in 2016. The same year, he entered a business proposal into a competition sponsored by the American Refugee Committee and the Ugandan government. His winning proposal — a beekeeping and honey enterprise — was presented to a wider audience in Kampala, where it was seen by Rotary members from Kampala and Minnesota. Recognizing Mushaho’s leadership and charisma, the Rotarians worked with him to charter the Rotaract Club of Nakivale. The Rotaractors have taught farming skills, provided sewing machines for women’s groups, volunteered in maternity wards, organized tree planting and poultry projects, and mentored young people in the settlement.

58

| The Rotarian January 2019

jan19-58-59-OC_UN_Honorees-v5.indd 58

11/14/18 4:30 PM

Christina Hassan

Shadrack Nyawa CLUB:

CLUB:

Rotary Club of Calgary Fish Creek, Alberta

Rotary Club of Kilifi, Kenya INNOVATION:

INNOVATION:

Providing toilets and hygiene education at schools in Kenya

Training midwives and supplying safe, sterile childbirth equipment to hospitals in Uganda

Waiting in long lines to use inadequate toilet facilities

Hassan, who holds a master’s in public health, launched

FullSoul to address the lack of facilities for safe and sterile childbirth in parts of Uganda. The program provides hospitals with medical instruments — such as artery forceps, scissors, and needle holders — that can be sterilized and reused. The program also gives training in using those instruments. Positive outcomes include safer births and decreased HIV transmission.

interferes with children’s learning in the more than 70 primary schools in the Ganze area of Kenya. Nyawa travels to remote areas to conduct assessments for district and global grants that help his Rotary club select schools to receive new toilets and hand-washing stations. He works with local contractors to ensure that construction is completed and documented properly.

Albert Kafka CLUBS:

Rotaract Club of Wien-Stadtpark and Rotary Club of Wien-Oper, Austria INNOVATION:

Pairing members of different generations in one-year mentoring relationships

Ludovic Grosjean CLUB:

Rotaract Club of Melbourne City, Australia INNOVATION:

Founding a pioneering company to develop technology that monitors pollution and removes it from waterways

Working with Rotary clubs in Austria and Bosnia-Herzegovina,

Kafka launched an online program that pairs Rotarians with members of Interact or Rotaract. (It also pairs some Interactors with Rotaractors.) The effort includes leadership training, scholarships, social activities, and hands-on service projects.

For one project, the generations worked side-by-side to build houses for survivors of the Bosnian War.

Every year, millions of tons of plastic waste get into the oceans, putting marine species at risk of extinction. Grosjean, a 29-year-old engineer, launched Ocean CleanX to develop automated pollution monitoring and removal tools that use artificial intelligence and drones to remove plastics and other pollution from waterways, while also detecting their source.

Grosjean, who has 12 years of experience in oceanography and mechatronics engineering, has persuaded Rotary clubs to support the effort by providing financial contributions and promoting and volunteering for river cleanup events.

jan19-58-59-OC_UN_Honorees-v5.indd 59

11/14/18 4:30 PM