For amplifying the voices of others, we salute them

University of Calgary students Adibba Adel and Ganiyat Sadiq have been recognized for exhibiting excellence in leadership by the Alberta Council for Global Cooperation’s (ACGC) Top 30 Under 30 Award.

The ACGC is composed of a group of organizations and individuals who are focused on advancing sustainable development within the community and global citizenship at large. By acting as a hub for knowledge and information, it ensures Albertans have adequate resources to catalyze sustainable impact.

Each year, ACGC selects 30 young people to receive the Top 30 Under 30 Award. Recipients are nominated by community members for their contributions toward “making the world a more just, fair and sustainable place for all.”     

Adibba Adel

Adibba Adel is a fourth-year undergraduate student in the Bachelor of Health Sciences program at the Cumming School of Medicine, majoring in health and society. Realizing her desire to ensure equitable health care is provided for all Canadians, Adel has volunteered to lead the development of a curriculum that covers the holistic spectrum of health (i.e., mental, social and physical health) in a way that meets the needs of immigrant and refugee youth.

"There's a significant lack of diverse perspective, especially in general health-care practices,” Adel says.

It is important to consider the emigrational changes the world is experiencing and so I am fortunate to be in a place where I have the ability to impact change, even if it is a little bit.

Also a co-chair for the Sustainable Development Goals Alliance, Adel provides support to student groups by encouraging partnerships that will enhance sustainable development impact on campus.

“It is so important for students to feel that they can create actionable change around sustainability on campus and the broader community, and I want to be there to inspire and encourage this,” she says.

Ganiyat Sadiq

Fuelled by the desire to help create a more equitable world for those who are Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC), Ganiyat Sadiq is making sure her voice is being heard loud and clear. As a political science and international relations major, and co-president of the African Caribbean Students’ Association at UCalgary, she has managed to garner support from public organizations such as The Canadian Council for Muslim Women (CCMW).

In 2021 Sadiq worked with CCMW for its Hate2Healing campaign which was a call to action for the Canadian government to stop attacks against Muslim women. By expressing her lived experiences of racism and Islamophobia as a Muslim woman living in Canada, Sadiq vocalized her statement through a video.  

“For a long time, I was so scared to speak up because I thought that nobody would listen,” says Sadiq. 

I have come to realize that there will be one or two people who will hear you and uplift you, and you must leverage that encouragement to amplify your own voice and the voices of other people in your space.  

Sadiq is also president and co-founder of the non-profit Black Inclusion Association, where she has established a Post Secondary Application Bursary aimed at reducing the effects of systemic educational inequality by providing financial support to Black high school students.

As a passionate activist, Sadiq is encouraging young people to “speak up and understand that your voice is so powerful.”

Celebrate

On Feb. 9. join ACGC during this year’s International Development Week for a virtual celebration event where Adel and Sadiq will be awarded the Top 30 Under 30 awards.

Register here.