Agent of sustainable change
View(s):Husni Mohammed went from from knowing very little about the diplomatic world to participating in UN conferences. Here, he tells the Mirror Magazine about his experience
By Shaveen Jeewandara
A few years ago Husni Mohamed’s would look up and eagerly gaze at the regal United Nations compound at Thummulla as he passed it everyday in a tuk-tuk. Not knowing much about the United Nations back then, Husni thought it housed diplomats well over their forties, sitting at a round table, chugging tea and signing resolutions that would never see the light of day. It took active involvement for this notion to fade and it was replaced with an outlook that defined ‘sustainable change’.
Husni by Indika Handuwala
“Only when I started getting involved did I see the amount of change that we as youth can initiate,” he says. Husni is no stranger to the field of diplomacy and youth empowerment; in fact he’s one of the foremost youth pioneers in Sri Lanka. In 2005 he was selected as one among the 225 delegates at the Sri Lankan Youth Parliament (SLYP). He then became involved with the United Nations Environment Programme, eventually starting up his own voluntary movement ‘Eco Care Sri Lanka’. Husni then partnered with British Council Sri Lanka who have been sponsoring and supporting him on every venture.
Having participated in many conferences, such as Rio+20, Husni’s latest travels took him to the UN High Level Panel Event, which was held in London. “The High Level Panel event is the first time that youth consultation has been given this amount of prominence”, he mentions. “We were given an opportunity to influence the real decision makers, and that is a great privilege and serves a purpose.”
The panel meetings have been derived from the root of the Post-2015 agenda, which saw the Millennium Development Goals being assessed. The meetings, co-chaired by the British Prime Minister David Cameron, featured many other premiers and eminent personalities from across academia and civil society. “The UN has made a formal commitment to facilitate a global conversion through which the shaping of the post-2015 agenda will take place and they have been specific about getting youth feedback,” Husni says.
He adds that discussions were stimulated amongst the very young delegates and the premiers of governments around the world, leading way for an informal but highly effective dialogue.
“It was on a very personal scale. The ‘big guns’ and us were brought to the same level,” he adds with much enthusiasm.
Husni tells us that this experience has been like none other. “Eight of the 15 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have been met. It’s true that there’s only three years left for its completion and the world is only halfway through it, but at least we’re halfway through it. Half the work is done, the rest is up to us.”
When asked if he believed that youth have what it takes to eradicate poverty, Husni answers in one motion that we do. “I believe in it. I have seen the impact that active engagement can make and I have seen many people being helped up the ladder of life. It is imperative that we act in whatever way we can rather than waiting for big policy changes to take place, but at the same time the policy changes are fundamentals that should be just around the corner.”
The London meetings resulted in the outcome of many youth centred decisions being made on improving health, education and employment and is heralding many good things to come, hopefully by 2015. Husni Mohamed thanks the British Council, primarily for giving him the opportunity to bask in diplomacy and also to help him empower lives.
With plans of starting up a ‘Global engagement forum’ that would pave the way for inter-generational dialogue, social entrepreneurship and most importantly active volunteerism, Husni Mohamed believes that the youth of Sri Lanka can be real agents of change all around the world.
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