YOUTH who are inspired, motivated and filled with passion can become individuals who can accomplish just about anything. Here in the Sultanate, there are quite a number who can prove just that and The Brunei Times had the privileged of retelling some of their journey to greatness.   Inspirational youth   Ambitious, determined and passionate would be some words that come to mind upon meeting Khairunnisa Ash’ari, an advocate for youth development and climate change action and the co-founder of Green Brunei, who has won the Youth Service Award in 2013, ASEAN Youth Day Award in 2014 and the Queen’s Young Leaders Award in June this year. Based on its website, the prestigious UK-based award recognises and celebrates youth from the Commonwealth, aged 18 t0 29, who are examples in…

SOME 20 youths from various environmental organisations and different educational backgrounds, including pre-university students, participated in a national consultation on issues pertaining to climate change and its effects on the country. The event, which was organised by Green Brunei with support from the Department of Environment, Parks and Recreation (JASTRe) and held at the Ministry of Development’s Bertabur Hall, was aimed at coming up with a plan for a position paper on climate change by collating ideas and opinions that in turn will be forwarded to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Power Shift, scheduled for July 24-26 in Singapore. A student, Abdul Muqsit bin Haji Jafari, from Sayyidina Ali Secondary School (SMSA) in Kuala Belait, said, “It was an interesting discussion with youth representatives from various environmental groups.…

FOUR students from Sayyidina Ali Secondary School (SMSA) participated in a national consultation to discuss climate change issues within the country with other youths from various environmental organisations. It was the first time the pre-university students - Abdul Muqsit Hj Jafari, Asila Hanum Hj Ahad, Muhd Zulqarnain Hj Zulaihi and Nur Hanis Nazihah Ideris - participated in such discussion, where they shared their insights and ideas on the matter. According to Abdul Muqsit, it was an interesting discussion with 16 other youth representatives from different environmental groups in Brunei, which gave them a valuable learning experience and golden opportunity for those unfamiliar with the issue. “We hope what has been discussed will help solve the issue, not only locally but internationally,” he said. As the `other participants are on a…

GREEN Brunei is hoping to become a full-time social enterprise so that their efforts will be more sustainable in the long run. The non-profit organisation – established in August 2012 – promotes environmental education and conservation. It currently operates as a volunteer organisation that is dependant on sponsorships but it is now looking towards generating revenue by becoming a social enterprise. Khairunnisa Ash’ari, President of Green Brunei, said profits made will be used to support more environmental initiatives and help them be more sustainable. She told The Brunei Times that she believed community-led initiatives are important and Green Brunei hopes to be the platform to initiate that while contributing to the sustainable development of the country. Khairunnisa is currently in London and is one of the recipients who will be…