Thandiwe Chama: A Leader for All

https://bit.ly/3FfEL81

Thandiwe Chama is a Zambian educational rights activist, who got her start when her school closed down due to a lack of teachers. Though she was only eight years old at the time, Thandiwe helped lead her classmates in the search for a new school, and she has persisted in her activism ever since. At sixteen years old, she was awarded the International Children’s Peace Prize for her efforts to help more and more children gain access to education. She also advocates for the rights of African individuals living with AIDS and HIV. Through her activism, she has gained international recognition and has brought more awareness to these diseases as well as to educational issues in her home country.

“…I love knowing my rights and my responsibility as a child.”

—Thandiwe Chama

This excerpt is from The Book of Awesome Girls by Becca Anderson which is available now through Amazon and Mango Media.

AUTUMN PELTIER: PLANET PROTECTOR

Photo by Linda Roy of Ireva Photography
https://www.womenofinfluence.ca/2019/11/05/meet-autumn-peltier-14-year-old-internationally-recognized-clean-water-advocate-and-the-anishinabek-nation-chief-water-commissioner/

Teenage activist Autumn is from Ontario’s Wiikwemkoong First Nation. While she may not be fully grown yet, she is an important figure in Canada’s indigenous water protection movement. She has spoken out in front of the United Nations to project her vision where everyone has access to fresh water. Her list of accomplishments is stacked at such a young age. At the Global Landscapes Forum, a knowledge-led platform dedicated to sustainable landscapes backed by the United Nations Environment Programme, she has addressed prominent, world-renowned guests. She has even called out Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at an Assembly of First Nations meeting for breaking promises for climate change. She has spread her message for climate change across the globe at hundreds of events and was nominated for the 2019 International Children’s Peace Prize. She will continue to advocate for clean water and other environmental issues.

“This is our future we’re trying to protect and take care of, because it’s being basically destroyed.”

—Autumn Peltier

This excerpt is from The Book of Awesome Girls by Becca Anderson, which is available now through Amazon and Mango Media.