Earth Day 2016 & Earn your #YALIGoesGreen Badge!

Hurray! It's Earth Day! Celebrate by joining #YALIGoesGreen today (April 22), start by educating yourself about climate change by taking the YALI Network Online Course, Understanding Climate Change, then take your knowledge further by hosting a climate event in your community to earn a #YALIGoesGreen Earth Day badge!

To earn your badge you must complete the following steps:

1. Select an activity for your event from the list on yali.state.gov/climate.
2. Create an event on the YALI Network Face2Face page to advertise your event to the Network.
3. After your event is complete post pictures in Face2Face to let everyone know how it went.
4. Tell us about your event here by May 15, 2016 to get your personalized badge!

Together we can all do our part to protect our world and if each of us take one action imagine the impact we could have.

P.S. Listen to my special Earth Day interview with YALI Network member Catherine Constantinides to learn about what she is doing to address climate change.

Sincerely,
Macon Phillips
Coordinator, International Information Programs
U.S. Department of State

"How To Be A Nigerian" by Peter Enahoro

I discovered this piece during one of my trips back to Abuja, early this year. It was standing on a shelf and beaming at me from a bookstore inside the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja (Local Arrival Wing);

Its price was a bit on the high side compared to other "story books" of its size and category. But I've learned that no amount of money is worth the value of knowledge, so I bought.

"How To Be A Nigerian" by Peter Enahoro was first published in 1966. For the sake of people like me, who were too busy with heavenly installations back then, it was republished in 2013.

"How To Be A Nigerian" is an 88-page book written when Nigeria had just 5 Universities (now we've 141), population was just 55.6 million (now we're 185+ million) and the currency was Great Britain Pound (GBP) but now it's the Nigerian Naira (NGN) and Kobo; Even with the population and economic explosions, the specific natures of the Nigerian hasn't changed that much.

Apart from being a renowned journalist and a one-time Editor of the popular Daily Times Newspaper, Peter Enahoro is also a well-read and well-traveled individual;

I found out some very strange but true facts about Nigeria and Nigerians; I also discovered the roots of many odd things and anomalies we experience in our society today. Interesting enough to me is the Then-Now contrast of our statistical figures;

While I enjoyed and learned reading this, I do not agree with all the scenarios painted in the book. Given my over 2.3 million minutes experience of being Nigerian, I feel some of those scenarios could be best described as over-generalization;

I recommend this for Nigerians and foreigners alike, but unfortunately after reading it you wouldn't have become a Nigerian; At best, you'll have just been introduced to somethings to expect from a Nigerian.

The big take away for me is that, a good book always remains good and would continue to make IMPACT generations after generations, long after the author had forgotten he ever wrote anything.

A PERSONAL DISCLAIMER:
If you actually wanna be a Nigerian, this book wouldn't help; You'll have to marry someone from Nnewi or Okene or Ogbomoso or LASSA or Kano or Ijaw or Chibok or Oshogbo etc (contact me for consulting😇).

‪#‎3rdBookOfTheYear‬ ‪#‎LifeOfASpeaker‬ ‪#‎ReadABook‬ ‪#‎EmdeeTiamiyu‬‪#‎ActLikeACorper‬ ‪#‎ThinkLikeAGold‬ ‪#‎TheFutureIsNow‬

Celebrate Earth Day with #YALIGoesGreen!

Thanks to you, #YALIGoesGreen has been one of the YALI Network’s most successful efforts to spur awareness and positive change! Thousands of Network members have taken the YALI Network Online Course, Understanding Climate Change and hundreds went even further by holding #YALILearns events in their communities.

But we’re not done yet! In honor of Earth Day (April 22nd), we’re re-launching #YALIGoesGreen and I encourage you to share with your friends. From now through May 15, 2016, YALI Network members who complete one or more of these activities will receive a personalized #YALIGoesGreen badge: 

• take Understanding Climate Change and host a #YALILearns event
• organize a tree planting event and educate participants on the role of forests in combating climate change
• host a recycling drive
• create an Earth Day event engaging family, friends, students, scholars, etc.
• organizing an event around ocean protection issues and/or conduct a cleanup event of a local outdoor recreational space, waterway, or beach 

For more information and resources to help plan your climate events, visityali.state.gov/climate. We’ll follow up soon on how you can report your Earth Day event to us to receive your badge.

We all have a role to play in fighting climate change - and no action is too small. Everyday I bike to work. What will you do?

 P.S.

I look forward to hearing about your events. Be sure to share photos and stories with the YALI Network via Facebook and Twitter. And I promise to share a photo too!

Sincerely,

Sent to me from:

Macon Phillips

Coordinator, International Information Programs
U.S. Department of State

"The Spirit of Istanbul": A message from Klopp

For the first time in my relatable history, I sat down to read a sport news..Shuuu? Wetin I dey find? Actually this is what happens when you "mistakenly" watch an interesting match where the players display so much passion that it brings forth your own "Can-Do" spirit. 

From a 2-0 in the first half, Liverpool bounced back to win their opponents 3-4. The fourth goal was the most spectacular. Chai! It changed the entire game. Kudos to the Liverpool players, I mean those who sweated out the victory (not the fans ooo); More kudos to Coach Klopp. I loved his managerial and leadership sense. This connected with me because I was lucky enough to have also watched that 2005 Champions League Final, again by mistake (while minding my own business in my uncle's room). Trust me, I have been minding my own business since 1863.

Here is what I learned: I believe if we can all bring "the Spirit of Istanbul" of Liverpool into what we do at everyday, we can change our story and change our lives positively. While I continue to maintain my club-less status, permit me to sip from this bottle of chilled Zobo! See you guys at the semi-finals.

#Africa4Her: What's Next?

Over the last six weeks more than 20,000 YALI Network members have pledged in support of#Africa4Her. Over 3,000 members have earned a YALI Network Online Course certificate for completing, Understanding the Rights of Women and Girls. It’s truly inspiring to see so many Network members joining this campaign to invest in women and girls in your communities. Today, I invite you to join them in taking action.

There is still time to get involved! I am excited to announce part two of #Africa4Her and I’m urging YALI Network members to continue their efforts on behalf of women and girls. To recognize your commitment and hard work, we want to give you an opportunity to be recognized as a changemaker and earn a special #Africa4Her certificate!

To earn this special certificate you will need to:

1. Make an #Africa4Her pledge.
2. Earn your YALI Network Online Course certificate for Understanding the Rights of Women and Girls.
3. Hold a #YALILearns event using Understanding the Rights of Women and Girls. Visit yali.state.gov/learns for helpful tips and resources for planning an event.
4. Take action and fulfill your #Africa4Her pledge.

You must complete all of these steps and report all actions by Friday, July 1 to receive the certificate. We will be in touch in the next few weeks with more details on how to report progress on your pledge.

There are more than 250,000 young African leaders in the YALI Network. Imagine the impact you could have on your community, your country and your continent if each Network member took an action to empower women and girls.

P.S.
Don’t forget to use the YALI Network Face2Face group to collaborate with your fellow Network members on completing your pledges.

Sent From:

Macon Phillips

Coordinator, International Information Programs
U.S. Department of State

#YALICHAT with #Africa4Her Course Instructor

Dear Friends, 

Nearly 20,000 YALI Network members have pledged in support of #Africa4Her and 3,000 have earned a certificate for completing our newest course, Understanding the Rights of Women and Girls. It’s exciting to see so many Network members joining #Africa4Her and investing in women and girls in their communities. I encourage you to make a pledge and take the course to join your fellow Network members in supporting women and girls today!

This week, I invite you to join us for a Facebook #YALICHAT with YALI Network Online Course instructor and Man Up Campaign founder, Jimmie Briggs, on his lesson, Ending Violence Against Women and Girls. Join us and start asking questions about steps you can take to help stop violence against women in your communities.

WHAT: #YALICHAT with Jimmie Briggs
WHEN: Tuesday, April 5 - Thursday, April 7
WHERE: Post your questions at facebook.com/YALINetwork

Sincerely,
Emdee Tiamiyu

From Desert to 1st World: A Story of Dubai

After several weeks of turning the pages, I finally got to the end of this wonderful book.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum (Ruler of #Dubai) loaded this book with so much wisdom and leadership lessons.

While reading this, I've been asking myself, "Are our leaders just IGNORANT of all these?" or “Are they aware, but intentionally decided to make us suffer?" I still need answers, please!

When Sheikh Mohammed was asked, "What will happen to the vision if the visionary goes away?" He answered, "NOTHING will happen, because my vision of Dubai has become Dubai's vision of itself." That's what happens when you run a people-oriented kind of leadership.

There is a part where he said,
"We no longer need to indulge in NEGATIVE energy. We need POSITIVE energy. We want to be OPTIMISTS, we want to realize economic visions and want to win. We need people who can remind us of our STRENGTHS and show us SUCCESSFUL development projects that turn visions into realities."
With my mind's ears, I heard him say "We need people like #EmdeeTiamiyu." 😉😉😉

It's the second book I completed this year after "Psycho-Cybernetics" by Dr. Max Maltz and it's been worth the while. If you need great insights on realistic and visionary Leadership, I recommend this for you!

I'm moving on to the third book for the year, any recommendation(s)?

#MyVision  #LifeOfASpeaker #ChaseYourDreams #InspireTheWorld #TheFutureIsNow #ActLikeACorper #ThinkLikeAGold

I'm LIVE @ The 2016 Inspire Conference (CATCH ME IF YOU CAN)

I'll be speaking to hundreds of undergraduates in a moment at the 2016 FRESHERS Inspire Conference of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria. Wouldn't you rather join us!

This is a Motivational Seminar specifically organized to get 1st year (100 Level) students started on the right track. I wish I had this kind of life-changing opportunity in my days.

Date: Saturday 2nd April, 2016.
Time:10 AM 
Venue: 1000 LT Faculty of Pure & Applied Sciences, LAUTECH.
Ticket: ‪#‎FREE‬

Coincidentally, this is the University I graduated from.

Powered by ‪#‎LargeHubAfrica‬ & The Union of Campus Journalists (UCJ);

‪#‎LifeOfASpeaker‬ ‪#‎EmdeeTiamiyu‬ ‪#‎MandelaFellow‬ ‪#‎ChaseYourDreams‬‪#‎InspireTheWorld‬ ‪#‎TheFutureIsNow‬ ‪#‎ActLikeACorper‬ ‪#‎ThinkLikeAGold‬