One Young World – Karuna Rana

My name is Karuna Rana and I’ll be representing the beautiful small island of Mauritius, also fondly known as “The pearl of the Indian Ocean”, at the Inaugural Summit of One Young World.

Now 22, and born in the Mauritian town of Reduit, I left Mauritius at the age of 5 to spend most of my childhood in the cosmopolitan city of Mumbai for 8 years. I ultimately returned to Mauritius to complete my  education. I’m currently a final year undergraduate student in the field of Chemical and Environmental Engineering at the University of Mauritius.

I have been brought up in a multicultural society due to the fact that I come from a mixed ethnic background of Indian, French and African. Moreover, my past travelling experiences and the enriching experience gathered from living in one of the biggest and fastest developing nation like India and eventually in a small developing island like Mauritius, have enabled me to develop a broader insight of the global issues to be debated at the Summit.

Amongst the different global issues, one of my major concerns is the impacts of Climate Change which has already been felt over the past few decades and the worse is to come if no immediate remedial action is taken. Small Island Developing States (SIDS) like Mauritius are already vulnerable due to their size, geographic remoteness and reliance on imports. Sea level rise might eventually threaten its very existence.

On a personal basis, I do my best to protect the environment and spread awareness in my little actions. From daily small “green” practices, to setting up a local environmental organization – Every action counts. Through my organization, I undertook a paper use optimisation project in my community whereby we collected paper used only one side and sent it for subsequent reutilisation in places such as pre-primary schools.

I was also involved in the promotion of the UN-led ‘Seal the Deal’ campaign in line with the Climate Change conference in Copenhagen in December 2009 and an environmental ‘350.org’ teach-in activity at one of the largest orphanages in Mauritius for the International Day of Climate Action in October 2009.

Through One Young World, I have read several of the delegate and counsellor profiles which only make me feel privileged to be part of this ambitious team and to meet other future leaders. It is amazing how the global youth of today are already acting as agents of change in their small and big ways, through different actions in different countries. Thus, through this Summit, I’m expecting to share lots of projects and experiences and learn yet more in return. We need less talk and more ACTION. One Young World has all it takes to bring about this switch.