Editors Letter – Summer 2019/2020

Here is a well known quote that has been attributed to Gandhi: “Be the change that you want to see in the world.”

Unfortunately, Gandhi didn’t quite say those exact words, but regardless of how the quote came about, I think it is still an important one.

Government, local governments, organisations, companies, systems, and so on, are constantly under pressure for all sorts of change, from environmental impact to social issues. This is understandable as these bodies go a long way to influencing the world around us. It is also easy to look at environmental and social issues and just shrug your shoulders about the sort of individual impact one could make. Surely this is a drop in the ocean right?

One person who isn’t waiting around for the world to change without her is Nurain Janah. Despite having spent most of her life here after immigrating from the small island nation of the Maldives, Nurain says that New Zealand constantly reminds her that she is not Kiwi. Imagine that? She describes experiencing a spectrum of barriers and challenges that migrants, women of colour and young people face. Instead of complaining about it and doing nothing else, Nurain has turned herself into an embodiment of the change that will not only make New Zealand a better place but also the world.

As well as working full-time, Nurain somehow manages to carve out a mind boggling amount of time as a volunteer speaker, facilitator and social entrepreneur. She dedicates her times to initiatives like the UpsideDowns Education Trust, 350 Aotearoa, the New Zealand arm of a global climate movement, and Junior Chamber International (JCI) amongst many other things. Nurain is only 28 and has already represented New Zealand at the 2017 UN Commission on the Status of Women advocating for young women of colour in the workplace, has been awarded the Waitematā Local Board Good Citizens Award for her work establishing the Waitematā Youth Collective in 2015, and was recognised as a finalist in the 2017 Women of Influence Awards.
It’s one thing to look at the world and talk about what needs to change, but it’s also important to celebrate the amazing people that help to make the world great.