Amir’s journey to becoming Chair of Trustees

When asked the other day as part of an event what I was most proud of at work, I did not hesitate to say that it was seeing young people that I worked with when I first joined Global Generation 15 years ago now take up leadership roles both within Global Generation and beyond, and to be able to reflect together with them on the impact their involvement with Global Generation has had in the choices they have made.  

One of those moments recently was when Amir Miah, who joined our Generator programme as a 15 year old 15 years ago, became our Chair of Trustees. Amir and my journey at Global Generation have been intertwined. I joined in the same year that Amir joined, and my first day at work was to take that year’s Generators camping at Pertwood Farm, our little piece of wilderness in Wiltshire where we took young people camping every year. I was thrown in the deep end and within 3 days I felt a deep connection to the values of the work, to the natural world and especially to the group of young people, of which Amir was one. From those first days, Amir continued to grow with the organisation, he then went off to university and to start his own enterprise, and for the past 5 years has come back as a Trustee, to help us guide our work.

Last year, as part of Global Generation’s 20 year anniversary, we held a fundraising event at Rotunda, and Amir spoke of his journey, which we share here …

“Hello everyone, I’m Amir. I’m someone who experienced the incredible work that Global Generation does with young people firsthand 15 years ago when I was part of one of the early Generator programmes.

Today, I’m now our Chair Treasurer and I have the great pleasure of still being involved with the charity with my exceptional trustee colleagues.

It’s been a long while since I’ve spoken in public – but this used to be a regular thing when I was a generator – in fact, Global Generation gave us many sessions of expert public speaking classes.

I grew up in Kentish Town on the Peckwater Estate and attended South Camden Community School in Somers Town, located just behind St Pancras Station. Back then, it was a pretty tough school – I’m sure it’s changed a lot since.

I was a very energetic young person and I’d often use the energy I had in the wrong ways – sometimes getting myself into a little bit of trouble. I feel I’ve been very lucky to have stayed on a good path.

The two projects in Camden that allowed me to positively channel that energy I had was the youth club I attended – Surma centre – which is a minute walk from Euston station and Global Generation. Both the projects allowed me to learn new skills, expand my horizons from the very small Camden bubble I was in and benefit from fantastic mentoring.

Mentoring is something that I’m deeply passionate about as I think having good mentors is the most impactful for young people.

I’m grateful that many of my mentors remain in my life even now, as I approach 30 years old. In my spare time I try my best to mentor bright young people from a similar background to me to go to uni and help them break into rewarding careers. I feel there’s very limited support out there for people that come from a similar background to me.

Specifically, around GG I was incredibly lucky to be able to spend time with Dr. Jane Riddiford our founder and Nicole our CEO, among others. They spent the time to nurture the generators to become great thoughtful leaders in their own right. Through various projects and unique experiences, we developed skills that school simply couldn’t offer but which were essential for personal growth.

For example, Global Generation gave me many “firsts” – the first time I used a power tool, the first time I went camping, the first time I spoke to a group of people in corporate jobs. Years ago, we even toured this very building, gaining insight into the work of journalists at The Guardian.

Although it may seem as if GG is just a garden - the charity is much more than that for the young people that are involved. From my personal perspective I feel GG is an organisation that grows purposeful young leaders, creates a safe and unique environment for young people to grow and intersect with community and local business and provides inner city young people an opportunity to connect with nature.

Participating in the Generator programme left a lasting impact on me and helped shape who I am today.

Since my time as a generator – I went on to co-found a social enterprise, was the first in my family to complete my undergraduate and masters, and now work as a chartered wealth manager - doing my best to help young people from unconventional backgrounds break into that space which lacks diversity.

Through Global Generation’s work, I hope we can continue to grow thoughtful young leaders for years to come.”

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Notes from the Garden