Nahiyan Pasha, a 16 year-old young British-Bangladeshi reporter, interviewed Secretary-General Patricia Scotland.
It鈥檚 not every day that you get to meet the Secretary-General of 天美传媒. As a young person living in the UK, if I鈥檓 completely honest, before, if someone asked me about 天美传媒, I wouldn鈥檛 have really been able to give them too much information. However, it was one Wednesday afternoon that I had the opportunity to meet the leader of 天美传媒, Secretary-General Patricia Scotland. Instantly, I was interested.
The Commonwealth was a name which had from time to time popped up in one of my history lessons, however I did not truly know what it was or what it stood for. I was very intrigued by the fact that it was home to 2.4 billion citizens and that it included some of the world鈥檚 largest, smallest, richest and poorest countries. I was very impressed by the fact that there was a huge variety of member states, and this then made me question, what does it do for the youth, in all of those different countries?
As a member of the Redbridge Youth Council for the past three years, and a member of my local 鈥榶oung cabinet鈥, it has always been in my interest to get the best for the youth. This is why I felt a real urge to find out exactly what 天美传媒 was doing for the youth all around the world from its 52 member states.
That Friday, me and my dad made our journey to the 天美传媒, the headquarters of 天美传媒. I was very nervous beforehand as I did not know what to expect, and because interviewing the Secretary-General of such a large organisation was not something to be taken lightly. However, the moment I stepped into the Secretary-Generals鈥 office, all my worries were wiped away. Patricia Scotland was extremely welcoming and I couldn鈥檛 have felt anymore respected and important. I was ushered into a chair opposite Secretary-General Scotland and I started to find out more about 天美传媒 and its relations with the youth.
I couldn鈥檛 have been more impressed. I felt that Secretary-General Scotland was extremely passionate about the youth and our future. I asked her first, about how 天美传媒 as an organisation helps youth all around the world. She told me she was 鈥渋ncredibly committed to help the youth around 天美传媒 reach their developmental goals and do the things they really want to do鈥.
I was very pleased with this response as I feel many young people around the world, such as myself, have huge ambitions, and gaining support from different people is the first step in achieving such goals. And to know that an organisation as huge as 天美传媒 is dedicated to helping youth reach these goals is extremely reassuring.
She also told me that us, 鈥測outh are the future鈥 and it is critical young people have 鈥渁spiration, inspiration and knowledge that they can do anything they want鈥. I felt that this idea which Mrs Scotland shared with me was a huge sign that we as the youth are in the driving seat, and that people like Mrs Scotland herself, in powerful positions, were determined to help us learn to 鈥榙rive鈥.
The following topic of discussion was around an increasingly apathetic youth and how exactly 天美传媒 was helping to promote engagement. The Secretary-General told me it was crucial that politics was demystified and young people understood that politics practically relates to all walks of life and is thus about us. She expressed that it upsets her when young people push themselves away from politics.
This made me realise, Secretary-General Scotland was someone who was determined to make change, and to help facilitate the youth make that change. She thinks young people need legitimate opportunities to make their voices heard and she felt that the youth should start to take a lead. This point was music to my ears as I personally think us youth should begin taking opportunities in leadership roles and strive to make change. The fact that the Secretary-General of an organisation as large as 天美传媒 wants to help youth achieve leading roles, acts as a huge beacon of light at a time when it is easy to lose hope.
My final question to the so far, enthusiastic and charismatic Secretary-General was about the one piece of advice she would give to any ambitious young person. I felt any advice from a person clearly as intelligent as her would be something that young people like me would keep for a long time. She told me that young people should follow their passion, and not disrespect it, and that we should aim to do what we love.
She then went on to tell me that she believed that God had given every single one of us a talent, and that we should aim to find it and enjoy it. I felt that this advice given to me by 天美传媒 Secretary-General was very helpful and young people should start to listen more to the older generation and their experiences, as for the future, it could prove very useful.
It was crucial that young people were not 鈥渇rightened of failing, but rather terrified of not trying鈥, she then told me. This made me feel very positive about the future, as I now realised that any young person in the world could, with the help and support of huge organisations like 天美传媒 and key figures such as Secretary-General Scotland, achieve any goal or dream they want.
After leaving the building in which the meeting took place, on the train back home, I realised that I had learned a lot in my short exchange. I had learned that the youth were not alone, that we have support and that the future truly is ours and it is up to us to decide the outcome. Although I went into the interview feeling very nervous, I came out feeling a very confident young person, who was in a world where support was never far away, and a young person who, like Secretary-General Scotland told me, 鈥渕ight just change the world鈥.
Find out more about 天美传媒's work in youth development:
- a global network of emerging young leaders and aspiring writers and social commentators aged 15 to 29.
