Juhi Kore
2016 MCN Conference | Undergraduate University: The University of Tampa | Place of Origin: South Asia
Student Leadership:
"A time that I was most effective as a student leader was when I organized the ONE Vote ‘16 Campaign event at my university. My university's student body was, unfortunately, more disengaged during this recent election- I wanted to turn that around, so I and my dedicated ONE team used our planning and event management skills to mobilize participation. To me and my team's joy, our event was hailed as a success from the team at the ONE headquarters in Florida; they told us, that compared to other events all over the country, this was one of the most engaged events they'd been to.
A time that I made a mistake as a student leader was this past year when I overloaded myself with courses and multiple leadership roles in multiple organizations. I was doing so many things at once that I couldn't dedicate my full attention and time to any of my interests, one of which was my student leadership roles. And since being a leader requires devotion and commitment, as it involves working with and leading other people, I've learned that it is crucial to prioritize; it is so important to be your whole and fullest self when going through your endeavors.
In my opinion, the one characteristic that a young leader should absolutely have is open-mindedness. As a student leader or any leader in the world, you are going to have to deal with people from various different backgrounds, ethnicities, and life experiences. If you are a close-minded individual and do not respect the opinions of other people, you are going to have a really hard time mobilizing people and getting people to agree with you or stand for the same issues that you stand for. In the divided world that we live in today, it is more important than ever to be respectful of other people's perspectives, which means not judging them on a surface level and/or invalidating their opinions just because they differ from yours. This is why I truly believe that open-mindedness is the most important characteristic that a young leader should have."
Today:
"I will be graduating from the University of Tampa at the end of this coming spring semester and am currently preparing to study abroad at the University of Oxford the following fall semester.
This summer I've been keeping myself busy before school and have been involved with three big projects. The first is a new YouTube series that I created, titled #JuhiApproved, where I talk about things/people that have inspired me and what I would recommend to people. Along with my youtube series, I will be launching a weekly live show on Facebook about Social Entrepreneurship. I'll be interviewing and highlighting social entrepreneurs and local entrepreneurs who are socially aware and conscious and are actively working towards solving social problems.
The second project that I'm involved with is called Case for Youth. I am a research team member for the project and got connected with the research team through MCN. Lastly, I'm involved with a project called Coalition of Leaders for Sustainable Development. This initiative works closely with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, as we are trying to implement programs for raising awareness for the sustainable development goals. For this initiative, I am involved with the core planning team.
The reason that I want to create a career out of active citizenship and social impact is because I truly believe in unifying people and using social entrepreneurship as a means to solve the world's problems."
*The "quotes" above have been edited for clarity and concision.