Bio

Hey,

Thanks for checking this page out. I’m a 21 year old student from Guelph, Ontario, born March 21, 1990. Since I was quite young, I showed a sincere interest in learning about where my parents came from. My Mom and Dad immigrated to Canada from Uganda when Idi Amin Dada ruled. Forced out of the country, my father stayed with a foster home in England while my mother found refuge at a camp in Italy. In the fall of 2005, frustrated with the amount of negativity in the world, I began posting on an online blog about world issues. After deciding to reach out, Ashley Bondad and I started a high school club with the purpose of sponsoring children overseas.

As the project was successful, in 2007, Ashley and I gathered a group of students and founded Student Reach International, an organization fully dedicated to providing students humanitarian opportunities. In 2010, SRI transitioned into a charitable organization called I Have Hope In The Fight Against AIDS. The project that spearheaded the organization was called Reach Lesotho, which we developed a curriculum for and engaged multiple high schools in. Part of the project was a documentary, which I had the honour of directing alongside Jake Chirico. Our film will be premiering at the Harbourfront Centre on World AIDS Day, 2011. I Have Hope is currently developing new programs, which will be announced on December 1st, at the premier.

As a speaker and writer, I try to share a message of how students have the ability to make positive and sustainable change in the world. I’m also a bit of a business junkie, and love speaking about new models of business/charity. Speaking to students of all ages, from elementary years to post-secondary years, I try to inspire youth to take action and to follow their passion. I do my best to share personal experiences from my travels in Africa. I’ve been lucky to have shared the podium with many speakers, including Craig Kielburger, Dr. Anne-Marie Zajdlik, Mayor Brenda Halloran, and a serious superstar Gracen Johnson (mastermind behind the votemob movement). My written work work has been published in the Ontarion newspaper, the Guelph Mercury, and the Canadian Speak Up For Change blog. I am also currently writing a book titled, “Finding hope in a scary world.” Been writing it for a long time, but it’s coming along!

I have been blessed to receive many accolades over the years, including the Rotary Youth Citizenship Award, the Guelph and District Multicultural Award, Guelph Mercury’s Top 40 Under 40 Award, the National TD Canada Trust Award of Merit for Outstanding Community Leadership and, most recently, the Canadian Top 20 Under 20 Award. I am currently perusing a Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Guelph. I have been featured by various local and regional media, as well as profiled by YouthConnect, a youth project run by the Government of Ontario. Nationally, I have been recognized through media outlets that include CTV, The Canadian Immigrant and The Globe and Mail. You can view my LinkedIn profile by clicking here.

YouthConnect.ca Interview: “Surround yourself with family, friends and positive individuals. Rejections and negativity will find their way to you, so it is important to be surrounded by positivity. Follow your passion and work harder than you thought you could.”