Today’s episode is a real treat for everyone passionate about the environment and taking climate action. Our guest is Laur Hesse Fisher, Program Director at MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative (ESI). MIT ESI is a Knowledge Partner for our Youth Assembly this year, spearheading great program content in the climate track. Laur talked to us about how to avoid hopelessness in climate work, the intersections of policy, technology and humanitarian crises with climate change, and many other things she is excited about in advance of the AFS Youth Assembly.

Find out what’s new with the AFS Youth Assembly! In this episode, we’re joined by Yumna Khan, a true leader and champion of empowering other young people. Today, Yumna serves as the Director of The Youth Assembly & Strategic Youth Initiatives at AFS Intercultural Programs. But her involvement with this event is a very long standing one, and this will be the 11th Youth Assembly that she attends.

Yumna joins our podcast to give us a glimpse into this year’s event, the 20-year-long legacy that we are building on, and to provide some excellent advice on how to make the best of your AFS Youth Assembly experience.

Join us at the AFS Youth Assembly this August in New York City. Visit youthassembly.org to apply now.

Alumni of the AFS Youth Assembly are incredible young changemakers making a positive difference in their communities around the world. Hear more from Ilan Enverga, a young educator and SDG advocate from the Philippines. Ilan is a teacher, and a member of UNESCO’s SDG4 Youth & Student Network. Ilan attended the AFS Youth Assembly in 2023, where he won the 2nd place at the AFS Award for Young Global Citizens, and he has since become a member of our Youth Advisory Council.