Combining Passion with Political Impact
This panel explored how young people can channel their passion for change into tangible political impact. Whether through diplomacy, activism or holding office, this session discusses the different pathways available to influence policy-making, and how to navigate them effectively.
Speakers
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Brigitta GunawanFounderBrigitta Gunawan
Founder
30x30 Indonesia and DiverseasBrigitta Gunawan is an ocean-climate advocate who has engaged over 17,000 people through environmental education initiatives using immersive media, policy advocacy, and collaborations with diving communities to restore coral reefs. Her journey in conservation began at 17 years old when she witnessed the potential of protected areas to foster a world where people and planet prosper. She serves in the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) and the Asia Youth Network for Protected Areas (AYNPA). Brigitta is the founder of 30x30 Indonesia and Diverseas where she has been recognised as a Generation17 Young Leader by the United Nations Development Program and Samsung, National Geographic Young Explorer, IUCN Changemaker, Millennium Oceans Prize Winner, Global Citizen Youth Leader Awardee, Ocean Awards Young Initiative Winner, and 30 Under 30 for Environmental Education – among other awards. She is a certified scientific scuba diver with a background in ecology and conservation biology.
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Mohammed AlharthiRhodes ScholarMohammed Alharthi
Rhodes Scholar
University of OxfordMohammed Alharthi is a Rhodes Scholar of foreign policy at the University of Oxford and a returning associate at McKinsey & Company, specialising in governments. He served in the UN’s Departments of Political & Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations, and founded a UN interns committee to address youth priorities with Ambassadors of member states. At UCLA, he earned a B.A. in Political Science and a B.S. in Mathematics & Economics with the highest honors, completing an award-winning thesis on the economic statecraft of Arab Gulf States using AI and LLMs. His early experience also includes working in strategy at the Saudi Industrial Development Fund. Mohammed currently consults California-based startups on Middle Eastern markets in the realms of AI, data, robotics, and Industry 4.0. He co-founded Furas to build an internship ecosystem in Saudi Arabia, sits on the General Assembly of Nuqsh, and is a fellow at the Misk Foundation, Qimam, and Project1932.
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Erick SablichInstitutional Relations ManagerErick Sablich
Institutional Relations Manager
Credicorp -
Michael MøllerFormer Under-Secretary-General, United NationsMichael Møller
Counsellor
Former Under-Secretary-General, United Nations
Michael Møller is a former Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and in his last post served as Director-General of the United Nations Office in Geneva and Secretary-General of the Conference of Disarmament, and has over 40 years of experience as an international civil servant. He served as the Executive Director of the Kofi Annan Foundation from 2008 to 2011. He is now member of the Board of the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator Foundation, Senior Adviser to Macro Advisory Partners, Distinguished Fellow at the Geneva Graduate Institute in Geneva, Member of the Executive Board of the Kofi Annan Foundation, Member of the Board of One Young World, Honorary President of Art for the World, Honorary Chairman of Greycells and member of the Advisory Boards of a number of other Foundations. Born in 1952 in Copenhagen, Denmark, Mr. Møller earned a Master’s degree in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University, United States, and a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from the University of Sussex, United Kingdom.