Posted by Jorge LeClair in Saeed Selvam and Valerie Fernandes are the inspired leaders behind Change12 – an entirely youth led organization dedicated to realizing youth focused social change.
Change12 was born in 2007 from Saeed’s vision of starting an organization that would bring about youth led change by empowering other youth, inspiring them to recognize their potential and combat apathy by being civically engaged.
Like any start up organization, Change12 faced a myriad of challenges – building organizational capacity, recruiting talent, fundraising, finding support, incorporating and obtaining charity status, etc. Adding to the challenges was that as an entirely youth run organization, its members were not in a financial position to strongly contribute to Change12.
Nonetheless Change12 prevailed. It was able to fundraise tens of thousands in donations and in-kind support. Since 2007, it has met weekly to plan projects strategically geared towards social change. Using money from donors and fundraising events Change12 created 2 powerful programs. In 2008, Change12 implemented project 1 MIC which involved 100 participants over 8 weeks in a program that promoted public speaking and leadership skills as well as a vision that one youth with just one microphone could change the world. In 2008-2009 Change12 worked with the CBC to create a program called Change It Up TV that showcased stories of Canadian youth achieving social change and better their communities; the program aired on TV with a viewership of 27 000 and distributed many DVD copies of the program.
These results demonstrated the passion of the team and were a clear indicator of what a few dedicated young people could do to make a difference.
Saeed is passionate about fostering a more youth friendly world. He has personally seen the negative consequences that result when society fails its youth. Saeed believes that in every youth is the potential for greatness and that access to opportunities as well as role models are major factors in helping youth self-actualize. Saeed continues to enjoy being an active member of the communities around him. He is currently an advisor to the Toronto Police Services, Chief of Police on youth matters and initiated “Youth Speak Out to Youth” press conference in response to the 2005 “Boxing Day Shootings”. Equity and tolerance are close to Saeed’s heart. Prior to his work with Change12, Saeed created 4 innovative projects tackling youth poverty, apathy, marginalization and disenfranchisement.
Valerie is one who believes in the power of love. She defines love as both the desire to help others and the passion to dream. This phrase certainly permeates everything she stands for. She decided to engage herself in Change12 to empower youth to achieve their goals, persuade them to get involved in contemporary political issues, and ultimately spread a positive message: small changes can make big differences. With this organization she will change attitudes, mindsets, and actions. She is passionate about youth engagement and she aspires to create a more inclusive society one step at a time.
Saeed and Valerie are currently University of Toronto students completing an Honours Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Equity Studies.
