Activist - Sagarika Sriram

In this series, we highlight activists, innovators, and leaders who prove that meaningful change often begins with a single idea and the courage to act on it. These stories are meant to inspire you, because no matter how small your beginnings seem, your voice and actions can ripple outward and create real impact. Today’s guest is someone whose story truly embodies this idea through multiple components of her life. Without further ado, I’m thrilled to welcome Sagarika Sriram.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hey everyone, and welcome back to another episode of our Change Starts Small series on Positive World, Positive People. In this series, we highlight activists, innovators, and leaders who prove that change often begins with a single idea and the courage to act on it. These stories are meant to inspire you because no matter how small your beginnings might seem, your voice and actions can ripple outward and create a real impact in our world. But before we dive in, I want to introduce myself again. I am Sadie Sunaborn Malachy, your host. I'm a 15-year-old girl from Southern California, and I'm so glad you're joining me for another conversation about leadership, purpose, and youth action. Whether you're a turning listener or new here, welcome. And thank you for being a part of this community. Today's guest is someone whose story truly embodies that idea change starts small, but can influence the world right now. I'm thrilled to welcome Sagarika Shiron. Sagarika began her journey as a climate advocate at an early age and founded Kids for a Better World, a youth-centered platform that connects young people around the globe to share ideas, collaborate on environmental solutions, and take action in their communities. Through her work, she has empowered thousands of young people that think creatively about climate solutions and the power of collective action. So, Sagarika, thank you so much for being here today with me and welcome to Positive World Positive People.

SPEAKER_00 1:21

Thank you so much for having me, Sadie. It sounds so lovely, and I'm looking forward to speaking with you today.

SPEAKER_01 1:27

Okay, let's jump right in. Let's start at your beginning. What first inspired you to become involved in climate activism? Was there a moment or an experience that made you realize that this was something you wanted to dedicate your time and energy to?

SPEAKER_00 1:40

So I've always been doing a lot of climate action work. My parents always raised me very sustainably. I've always led a very zero-waste type of lifestyle. And I think when I was about 10 or 11 years old, I just started learning a lot about it in school and started feeling like my school education wasn't really cutting it, and that I really wanted to educate people on my own and become a climate activist and educator in the UAE. So that's when I developed Kids for a Better World, an HTML coding-based website that focused on children and youth and how you can initiate sustainable action through a unique incentive scheme, which I'd adopted at the time. And just from there, I sort of expanded. I started working with a lot of local organizations, getting into youth policy and things like that. And a while after that, I started working with the UN. I was a child's rights advisor for the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and helped to draft the General Common 26, which was essentially a global charter that focused on children's rights in the climate space, for which I went to Switzerland during my gap year, and I had the opportunity to publicly release that, which is such a lovely experience that I had. But yeah, that was a little bit more than what you asked for, but I think it gave you a little bit of a timeline of what I've done. So yeah.

SPEAKER_01 2:57

That is incredible going to the UN at such a young age and just speaking out, but it actually all resonated from just observing your environment and realizing that, okay, there's these kind of missing pieces. I want to learn more. And what can I do? And that really resonates with all of what we're going to be talking about today and this idea that change can start somewhere and it can grow into this awesome, beautiful thing. So even though that was alluding to a little bit more than I just wanted in the beginning, that it gives such a beautiful background into you can go places in across the globe just from like one single thought. And especially working with top organizations such as the UN is just so incredible to hear, especially for just youth members that might be noticing little things in their environment today. So you mentioned Kids for a Better World, and you founded it off this idea that connecting and empowering youth from all over the globe can really be empowering. So what first inspired that platform and what and what need were you trying to address in that?

SPEAKER_00 4:02

So I think for me, like there wasn't one specific thing that sort of hit. It was all like a combination of maybe like school at the time that I wasn't really hearing about climate change in. It was also sort of around the phase where I started hearing a lot about like environmental issues and how animals like turtles and stuff like that were getting affected by climate change. Um and at like 10 or 11 years old, there was a lot of that climate anxiety sort of going through my head. Um, the idea that, you know, in like when I'm 30 or 45 years old, the world might end. And I think that's a lot for a teenager to sort of take on board. And I sort of decided that my way of dealing with it was to use my skills and to use my platform to go and expand on climate education and really create this system through which children can become educators and teach other people. And yeah, I think it sort of just started over there and adapted from that point onwards, to which I sort of use Kids for a Better World as a method to connect with people and change makers globally. Um and it still kind of holds that place right now.

SPEAKER_01 5:07

But yeah, that's so cool. I think that yet again, at this young age or just this adolescent year, you hear a lot of things, you see a lot of things on the news. And a lot of the time it is negative and you're overwhelmed by this all of these what if questions. What is gonna happen? What if I don't do something now? But what can I do? All of these what questions are very consuming. And like you said for yourself, it was consuming at the time. I know for myself, those questions have invaded my thoughts sometimes, and I don't always know how to react to them because really, what can you do? But going off of that and showing that change can happen from that point, and you yourself went into this thing kind of with all of these what if questions, but came out with such a beautiful product. Is it's truly inspiring to just show that, yeah, it can be sometimes super negative and sad to see. And into the future, we don't really know what's gonna happen. But if we start making little changes now and start implementing ourselves in new different ways into our environment and into our surrounding society, change can really happen. And those what if questions might fade away. So I like showing that you yourself experience that at some point along your journey. So when you first started your work, did you ever imagine that your efforts would grow into such a global community? We just talked about connection and bridging these gaps between around the world. But what was your vision early on and how has it evolved since that point?

SPEAKER_00 6:36

I think that's a fantastic question, actually. I think to me, I never expected it to get this big. I always knew that what I was doing was sort of for myself and to sort of be within my community and, you know, really make that ground change within the UAE and within my local community. But I would have never thought that it would have reached this large of a scale. For a really long time, it was about me figuring out myself and how I sort of interact within our environment. And I think the reason it grew so large was because a lot of what I was doing wasn't necessarily for like any other goal. It was under the idea that I really wanted to shape the way the world surrounded me and have my input and what was happening to our planet. And I really loved that. And I kind of just discovered throughout the whole process that what I want to do is environmental policy. And I think that joy and that satisfaction that I found in making my impact to the planet is what pushed me to do more. Yeah. And that's what helped kids for a better world grow. And um, yeah, I've been so grateful for that.

SPEAKER_01 7:34

So if we're talking about that growth in like in particular, how big is it now? How many countries has it reached? How many participants are there in your platform at this point?

SPEAKER_00 7:44

I have been working with children mainly in the Middle East, mainly in India. I've done some work across Europe. Obviously, through my climate work and working with the UN, that was a lot more directed at me specifically, not Kids for a Better World, but I connected with so many people throughout the whole process. And we've partnered with a ton of organizations from Lush to Unilever to Prompter and Gramble. So I would say it's grown quite a lot. I would say that personally, to me, I've started focusing a lot more on what I can do individually because obviously being at university, it's so hard to manage everything. Um, since I'm based in the US now, so it's a lot harder, but it's certainly something that I'm looking at as a stepping stone, and I'd love to get back into working into it full-time potentially after university and stuff like that, and constantly growing it.

SPEAKER_01 8:32

Um that's really interesting. So right now you're in university. How are you balancing all of these different things? And how did you balance founding this whole thing when you were just in high school? What really kind of helped you through that whole process?

SPEAKER_00 8:48

I'd say it's all been quite a lot. In high school, I would say with my A levels, my school was always very supportive. And they sort of gave me the time and the space to take it off whenever I needed to and sort of work around my schedule because obviously it's a lot to handle. In university, it's the same. I just think with university, it's a lot more work. You're kind of just dealing with a whole new environment and stuff like that. So it can get a lot harder. Um, but I'm very grateful for the fact that obviously Boston College is a fantastic institution and they've been so, so supportive with all my work and things like that. And I'm an environmental studies major as well. So I'm doing what I love in every aspect of my life. So incredibly grateful for that. That's great.

SPEAKER_01 9:28

I'm glad that you got to kind of bridge what you were working on before and realize that's what you want to do in your life. And now you've taken that into university, which 100%. Which really just shows that you can have these, all these cool different interests. And if you want to work on the environment, there are so many different fields you can go into. You can go to college and do these things. You don't always have to be stuck on this one trajectory mind of like, okay, I like this thing, but am I gonna be able to do that in the future? And many circumstances, you can do that. It's just discovering how you're gonna do that and where you're gonna do that. And I think your example of I I continued my trajectory of working with kids for a better world and working with the UN and working with the environment while doing this in college. And afterwards, you're gonna expand that even more. So just showing that perspective is really, really cool. Earlier, we talked about bridging all of these different gaps and kind of this worldwide platform. Because of this, your work involves bringing people, young people in specific, together from different backgrounds, cultures, and countries. What do you think young people uniquely bring to climate conversations that older generations might overlook a little bit?

SPEAKER_00 10:38

I think the climate crisis is a very youth-centered issue where it affects the next generation more than it affects the past ones. And I think because of that, we have a lot more of a personal connection to it and we're a lot more affected by it. And therefore, getting our perspective is essential to discussing how the climate crisis will affect us in the future. Um I also think children uniquely experience the climate crisis through health effects, mental health effects, education, a lot of things that people in the workplace don't necessarily see. I think when you're a child, you see things from a lot more of a personal aspect and an emotional aspect, which I think brings a sort of youthful aspect to discussions, which a lot of policymakers and speakers need when it comes to decision making. And I think children being involved in that discussion is pivotal towards understanding how the climate space can develop and understanding how people can learn um the true impact of the climate crisis.

SPEAKER_01 11:43

Yeah. And I think that as we said before, all of these different climate things can be very consuming sometimes. And it's not just the actual environmental effects that are affecting our mental health, but actually just thinking about it can be super detrimental. And like we said, it could be consuming and all of these different things. But that emotional aspect that kids have and that we're experiencing all of these challenges face to face, and it is our future as well, really just makes us so much more ambitious to try to get change out there and try to seek change in our world. When we're faced with, oh my gosh, what is our future going to look like? What is our kids' future gonna look like? All of these questions, again, like we mentioned earlier, these what questions really drive a lot of activists and leaders to try to make change and should hopefully impact a lot of individuals, especially adolescents, to try to make change in their society because we need that. We need that for our future. And because of that emotional side that we're seeing it day to day, it's really, really important for, like you said, policymakers to have us in conversations, to show that side of things, especially when we're fighting for our future. And that's something that's so crucial to all of us. And that relates to challenges, but we're also going to talk about your challenges. So, what have been some of the biggest challenges you've faced as a young climate advocate? And how have you learned to navigate through those challenges over the course of your development?

SPEAKER_00 13:07

I think the standard challenge that youth face in the climate space is the idea that they're sort of seen as tokens when it comes to the climate discussion by policymakers and adults. A lot of the time, children are either ignored in policy discussions or adults sort of use them as an aspect of just mentioning that you have youth involved in the climate space. And I think understanding that and figuring out where you're actually being involved and consulted versus where you're just being used as a representation of involvement is key to being an active speaker within the climate space. I think that was a very big issue for me with the working in the UAE, is that it's quite hard to sort of fade into that. And after I think working with the UN and working at COP27 and COP28, I sort of understood where I was actually valued and where my perspective was being brought into the climate discussion and how to build off that as well. Um, and I would say that was the biggest issue I ever faced. But I can imagine that for children who don't have access to a lot of the main resources that I was privileged to have, such as technology, finances, that that would be a much larger issue for them. Um I think it's also uniquely dependent on where you live and where you're based in the world.

SPEAKER_01 14:22

Yeah, and I think that challenges, like you said, they can be so unique to any individual, especially in their own journey through activism and innovation and leadership. It's it's such an individual thing that really just happen one step at a time. And it happens to us personally. And sometimes we can relate to one another and showing that I maybe went through this hard thing. Can you relate to that? And showing, okay, how can I grow from that? And as you said, once you started pursuing all of these things, once you started working with the UN and these bigger corporations, it really helped you in that world. And sometimes maybe in the beginning it did feel consuming and like, oh, what am I gonna do with this? I'm not adequately being represented in this, in this conversation right now. But as time continued on, you worked up and showing that resilience and that perseverance through these tough moments is really, really important, important for all of our listeners just to show that, okay, maybe sometimes you're not always gonna be at the top. Maybe sometimes you're gonna be thrown down and not know what to do and be being stuck in this kind of T zone where you don't know which direction to go in. However, as time continues on, you found a way, you found a way to work with those challenges and kind of grow for them, grow from them. And you've made such an impact on the world with those different things. And I think a lot of the time our challenges and our faults in everything that we do really build us up and build our character around everything. So just showing that you yourself had those things and faced those, but kind of worked from it is so important. We talked about you reaching out to individuals, but you are also working with individuals through this whole process. Collaboration is truly a central component of your mission. Can you talk about a specific project or partnership through Kids for a Better World that really made you proud or surprised to with what was possible?

SPEAKER_00 16:08

I think for me, like I would have said that just in terms of working with a lot of the schools I worked with, with Kids for a Better World and both individually, was just such a game changer. I spoke to children who were maybe five or six years old, children in schools of disabilities and things like that. And just sort of seeing the amount of power youth have was so inspiring to me as well. I've sort of seen the UAE specifically over the past 10 years and how it's grown in climate consciousness, and sort of just understanding how children themselves really do want to contribute and they're always so eager and they do have that hope. I think with the youth, one thing you can always rely on is their ability to dream and their ability to have a vision for the future of the planet. I think that's so beautiful and seeing the amount of children that were so inclined to work with me was really something that I constantly count on, and I love it when children email me saying that they were so inspired by my work and they want to know how to grow. And I think that was sort of just the little things that I really counted on. I've had a lot of experiences either with that or with organizations that are youth focused, where I can understand how reliant they are on direction and how reliant they are on having a mentor who can guide them towards really making that difference. And I find myself so grateful to know where I can play a part in that.

SPEAKER_01 17:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 17:24

In understanding how I can help change their discussion and interaction with the planet.

SPEAKER_01 17:29

That's so very special. And I really want to emphasize that you said five-year-olds. You're talking to these young, very, very young kids. However, teaching our younger generation, not just older adolescent members, is so crucial as well. And just showing that you interacted with these people and they reach back out to you and just working with them and starting to educate them because education, especially about things like environmental climate change, is so crucial because we cannot deny that it's happening. We have to face it head on. But by doing that, we also need to educate those who are younger than us so that they go into the real world with also this open-minded idea of attempting to make this change. So I love that you talk with such young kids about these things because starting really from the baseline and just starting from a young age and discussing all of these different things is really, really crucial. And I love that you represent that as your collaboration as well as all these bigger corporations and the UN. The current state of our society, technology, and social media is ever changing. And with that comes all of us, especially adolescent members, seeing climate change now right in front of our eyes, almost 24-7 on TikTok, Instagram, or whatever platform we're on. Social media and digital platforms have played a big role in connecting our youth voices and also showing us what is happening in the world. How do you think digital engagement can be harnessed for positive environmental action? And what are the cautions you have about it as well?

SPEAKER_00 18:58

I think social media is has always been a superpower to me, at least, because I've sort of seen the aspect through which you can really mobilize change to millions of people globally. And I think that sort of just shows you both aspects of it. I think we're also aware of all the mental health issues you can have with social media, online bullying, things like that, and really how it can be used to either harness your education or in a negative aspect. And I think when it comes to social media, you really have to understand the way to conduct interacting with children across it. I think you can be a very sensitive thing in terms of whether you overwhelm children with information or whether you understand how they can be educated through the power of the internet. And I think with things like TikTok and stuff like that, we almost overlook how useful it can be when it comes to discussions. And I think that's something I've always looked at towards educating more people throughout global interactions through the use of social media. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 19:56

And I think that social media, as I said before, if we find this kind of like equilibrium of showing all of these things, and it can be super insightful in times and it is a platform for connection. Us adolescent members go on there and we're connecting with one another. We're seeing these things, but we're also bonding over them. And I think giving that idea of, yeah, we're gonna use it as a positive thing, we're gonna use it as outreach, teaching people all these different things and finding this balance of it is a really, really good tool in many situations. So I like that perspective that it can be used for a great, great thing. So you briefly mentioned about your goals in the future and how you're in college at the moment. But looking ahead, what are some of your goals or dreams that you have for your work, both with kids for a better world and personally as you continue to grow as a leader?

SPEAKER_00 20:45

So I want to look into doing environmental policy once I graduate college and potentially looking at environmental law, either in the US or internationally. And I think for me, like that's a space I would love to enter. I've realized that I love the whole aspect of defending the one, defending the people who are undefended and protecting those who need justice for the way they've been affected by the climate crisis. I think that would be a journey I would love to step into with kids for a better world. I would love to expand on the climate crisis and just understanding specifically how it's getting adapted with the way we evolve as society. I think for things like AI and Chat GDT, they're also new. And I would love to do more research on that and sort of understand how that can be harnessed ethically towards the climate crisis and sustainability, um, and how it can be used to educate children in a positive manner rather than negatively. So that's definitely an aspect I would love to get into.

SPEAKER_01 21:45

I love that. Again, using those tools and technology, it's gonna be a thing that we're interacting with every single day, no matter where we are currently in society, as we continue to go in the future and as we look into the past. Now, technology. Has only been changing and it keeps growing. And as you mentioned, Chat GPT, OpenAI, all of these different platforms, they can be harnessed for good. And if you yourself go into this field with this open mindset, okay, what are the positive sides of these things? This whole platform is about positivity. Yes, there's always going to be negative things and there's going to be cautious sides of no matter what you're in. And online, it's especially very, very crucial to realize that. However, if we all look at it from this kind of, okay, what can we learn from it? What can we grow from it? How are you yourself going to teach all of these kids and these adolescent members how to harness the power that it truly has? I like that perspective a lot because we can't always look at it from this kind of reluctant point of view. And you also mentioned going into environmental law and advocacy and that side. And it really just shows that you can have a wide range of things. You can be an activist and you yourself can also be participating in this policy and law side of things and just showing your voice on all of these different levels and this wide range of things that you're doing at the moment just gives more into yeah, you can do what you love and you can pursue all these different things and they can totally come from all of these different fields. However, it loops back into what you love doing and what you love being around and this whole idea of climate activism and change. So I love, again, that perspective of all of these different components that you're going to be pursuing in your life really connect back to who you are deep down. So finally, if a young person listening right now feels passionate about the climate or community impact, but doesn't know where to start, what advice would you give to them? What small first step would you suggest for any of our listeners right now?

SPEAKER_00 23:42

I would say get in touch with as many local and global organizations that you can. I think in the climate space, networking and your power of speech is probably the most important thing you have. Get completely ingrained in the climate space. I think for me, the biggest thing I did that changed the way I was interacting with the climate discussion was genuinely emailing and chatting and LinkedIn connecting with tons of people in the climate space and understanding how they could help support me and support my journey in helping our planet. And I think that was a foundation that I learned very late in. So I think for anyone who really does want to join in, really make that step and change the way you interact with people. Um, and I think apart from that, like everything counts. Get involved in everything you do step by step, whether it's in your own unique aspect. You were mentioning earlier that you can kind of just get involved in the climate space through whatever industry. And it's not like you don't particularly need to see it from like a biological aspect. There's always so many different ways you can interact with our climate. And I think that understanding is sort of pivotal to seeing that climate change and sustainability is in every aspect of your life. And I think that that's sort of the way I would look at it and go about it. I think one thing that you must understand is sort of the idea that climate change affects all of us, whether you're in like an engineering industry, whether you're in education, whether you're in sciences, whether you're in well, you want to be a doctor. I think the climate crisis is eventually gonna hit all of us. And I think that's a way you should look at it to understand that we should all really make that difference. Yeah. But yes, that's it.

SPEAKER_01 25:25

It is a worldwide issue. It is a climate crisis of a global crisis. And as you said, no matter the industry you're in, whether it is engineering or being a doctor or like a lawyer, you're gonna deal with these things. It's impacting all of us from the age of zero to a hundred. So giving this whole widespread idea of, yeah, you yourself, you're one individual. Maybe you can't do all these things, but taking the steps, as you said, and just emailing out and interviewing people and trying to get in touch with your community and just starting with those small steps, so crucial. And it's so important to show that perspective because it did start somewhere small for you and it's grown into this big thing that is so impactful for our world. So, yet again, like the title of this whole series, change starts small and embracing it and going for it and just taking that chance, being willing to fail sometimes and maybe you reach out to someone they don't answer. But think about all the positives that can come from it, this other side of things. It's a whole rainbow. It's all of these different things that can happen, but you're looking for the side of it. I love that so much. So, Sagarika, thank you so much for sharing your voice, your experience, and your insights with us today. Your journey reminds us that passion paired with action, no matter how young you are, can inspire others and create a community of change makers.

SPEAKER_00 26:49

Perfect. Thank you so, so much for having me. It was so lovely speaking with you. Um, and if anyone has any questions, please do get in contact with me. It was so lovely again connecting with you and your listeners. And yeah, thank you for having me.

SPEAKER_01 27:04

I love that. So to everyone listening, I hope Sagarika's story shows you that you don't have to wait to make a difference. Whether you start with a small idea, a conversation with a friend, or a community project, every step towards a positive change is meaningful. Change truly does start small with curiosity, courage, and the willingness to act. So thank you all for tuning in to this episode of Change Starts Small on Positive World Positive People. I'm so excited for what's ahead, and I hope you'll join me next time for another inspiring conversation. Until then, stay bold, stay compassionate, and keep working to build the kind of world you want to see. Signing off with loads of positivity, your host, Sadie Son of Born Malachy.