THE UN YOUTH ASSEMBLY ENVOY USES HER PODIUM TO HELP SAVE THE PLANET
Jawaher Al Muhairi tells Caline Malek of her pride in representing the UAE on the global stage
At 25, most people are still figuring out what they want to do in life, or working in an entrylevel position at their first job. But Jawaher Al Muhairi is not most people.
The Emirati from Dubai has many achievements to her name. Chief among them was being appointed UAE Campuses Ambassador to the Youth Assembly at the UN last year.
As the first Emirati to hold such a position, she was responsible for promoting the platform in the UAE and recruiting other young nationals to represent their community at the UN.
Ms Al Muhairi chose five young Emiratis and they all flew to New York and Washington to join the programme. She says the experience changed her.
“It was the first time I had to fly alone to the United States,” she says. “I thought I’d be alone and not be able to communicate, but it turned out to be a different experience. I found out that I can socialise with others and I’ve grown a lot from that.”
The Youth Assembly is a platform to educate young people about the UN’s sustainable development goals and to learn about what the other 2,000 members are doing to contribute to their countries.
Ms Al Muhairi says the opportunity allowed her to convey the UAE’s message, speak of its leaders and explain how the country’s youths are giving back to their community.
Her journey to the UN began in an unlikely place for a future diplomat – aviation science and management. She worked at Emirates airline’s engineering centre and interned in environmental and air transport studies at the General Civil Aviation Authority.
The work experience inspired her to pursue a double major in environmental management studies at Hamdan bin Mohammed Smart University in Dubai.
“Aviation was a dream since childhood and I always thought I would be an aeronautical engineer one day,” Ms Al Muhairi says.
“I was told it was tough so I shifted to the environment, which interested me, and I also pursued a post-graduate diploma in UAE diplomacy and external affairs at the Emirates Diplomatic Academy in Abu Dhabi.”
She was one of three students from her university nominated to Dubai’s Executive Council to be a member of the Emirates Youth Council – one of 14 in the whole emirate.
“That’s when the whole shift started in my life because we had to work with the government and the youth to convey all the things the young population required from them. We were bridging a gap that was there,” Ms Al Muhairi says.
She also worked with the Emirates Foundation and National Media Council, representing the UAE at Expo 2015 in Milan – a placement that allowed her to use some of the six languages she speaks.
“I speak basic Italian and it pushed me to learn other languages, including Russian and French, on top of Urdu, Arabic and English.”
As a member of the Youth Council, she grew to love working for society and being able to give back to her country.
“I started standing up for causes and became a member of the Young Future Energy Leaders,” Ms Al Muhairi says.
She took part in Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week as a UAE diplomat – a moment she describes as one of her best.
“It was like a dream come true because it was the first time I represented my country inside my country. I want to make a career out of this.
“My presence on these platforms was a coincidence at first but I noticed it’s very necessary because our country needs people who are well aware of what society and the community needs.”
Her parents, who did not finish their education, are proud of her for doing what they could not.
“They see everything they wanted to do in life in my siblings – who pursued biotechnology, law, nursing and aeronautical engineering – and myself,” Ms Al Muhairi says.
“The moment you start realising how capable you are, you’ll be aware of the gaps and things that need to be improved. You can learn from others and, in this globalised world, you don’t want to be closed off.”
Her goal is to one day become a minister of state in the UAE.
“I want to carry the UAE’s message to the world,” she says. “We might be a young country, but we are not behind.”