What inspires you?

My life and the world around me is all a source of inspiration to me. I see good and bad, all of which inspires me to enhance the social and economic well being of young people. My dreams are an inspiration; I know I was born to bring a smile on someone's face, give someone a reason to live and make someone feel loved and cared for.

Tell us about an issue that matters to you and how you became aware and involved.

When I was 12 years old, at my basic school level, I became interested in environmental problems, studying its causes and effects. That was when I involved myself in youth groups that addressed these issues, using them as an catalyst for action programs. Being member of the Evergreen Club of Ghana still reminds me of one statement that my patron made; “when the last tree dies, the last man dies” .By this I think that a tree planting and a clean up exercise that was organized by the organization for which I participated in, helped me to save the world and its inhabitants. I think issues that pertain to the environment are very important and must be addressed because it becomes absurd when one destroys the environment that he or she depends on. Because if the world and whatever it has for us is not treated with care, we the inhabitants will bear the brunt of our actions.

At the age of 18 when I was about to complete high school I attended a seminar on 'Building the Capacity of Youth for the 21st Century'. At the event, I realized that most young people whom I have met and interacted with did not know the real meaning of 'Education' in its comprehensive sense. I believe that a global education needs to be something more than just classes and lessons learned. It's about researching, discussing, and taking action on some important issues that can be dealt with using minimal resources. For some people whom I met the challenge for them was that they did not have the information and the platform to enable them to take action. As a result of this experience, having completed my secondary school education, I decided to take a year off before attending university to pursue my dream of creating a youth-led programme that would inform, educate and empower youth to change the world.With little or no funding, and despite many saying it would be impossible, I set up Young People We Care (YPWC) - www.ypwc.org .

Share your perspectives on what makes a good leader.

A good leader is also a good follower and he/she takes time to listen to others and ensures an inclusive decision making process. Moreover good leaders, never quit when there are challenges like financial and non-financial in an organization. They stay true to realizing their vision and dream.

Do you think TakingITGlobal can help you achieve some of your goals? Have we already? Please tell us how.

I must acknowledge that my participation in various non-profit organizations prior to establishing YPWC allowed me to work on my own personal development. I was able to incorporate new knowledge, plan activities and events, share time with friends and meet people who make a daily effort to make those changes that we all wish to see. I was nominated by Global Youth Action Network for the UN Millennium Campaign as a Millennium Campaign Advocate (though this initiative of the Millennium Campaign Advocate was cancelled later on). I had also been very active in discussions on consultations on TIG; these engagements exposed me to a number of issues and how young people can take action. More importantly I benefited from a number of TIG online courses on Grant Writing and Project Management which also contributed to building my organizational capacity. I have also found the MDG Youth Action Guide and the Guide to Action tools of TIG useful in the establishment of YPWC.