Attending One Young World Summit 2024 as a BrandTech Group Impact AI Scholar

“Innovation is a contact sport.” This quote from Dr Barbara Ghinelli perfectly sums up the One Young World Summit. Put thousands of young changemakers in a room and sparks fly.  

Attending the One Young World Summit in Montréal/Tiohtià:ke came at exactly the right time for me. Having followed the summit since COP26 in Glasgow, I knew I had to be a part of this incredible community. And thanks to the BrandTech Group Impact AI Scholarship, I got the opportunity to connect with young leaders from across the globe, discover the cutting edge of AI, and learn about the summit’s key pillars: The climate and ecological crisis, Indigenous voices, artificial intelligence, health equality, and peace. 

Rebecca at the One Young World Summit in Montreal. Credit: Rebecca Daniel.

What is One Young World and why did I apply? 

One Young World is a global community of young leaders – from across the world’s biggest corporates and the non-profit sector, to independent activists and social entrepreneurs. Identified for their commitment to social and environmental impact, delegates and scholars are hand-picked to attend a summit. The event offers the opportunity to connect, be inspired, and share knowledge, but this is just the start.

After attending, all delegates ‘graduate’ as lifelong One Young World Ambassadors. And since the first summit in 2009, the community has grown to over 10K ambassadors from across the globe.

Since 2017, I have been running The Marine Diaries, a non-profit organisation dedicated to ocean conservation, alongside full-time roles in environmental communications. I saw One Young World as an opportunity to connect and learn from other changemakers, and ultimately amplify our impact. The BrandTech Group Impact AI Scholarship was a chance to not just attend a summit and join this global community, but also learn how to harness the power of GenAI for The Marine Diaries and bring insights back to my role at MSQ/Sustain. 

AI and social impact: My role as an Impact AI Scholar

One of my highlights from the summit was a presentation by Amy Arnell and James Dow of BrandTech Group on how young leaders can use GenAI to increase their reach. The session was a crash course in Generative AI, filled with actionable insights that inspired me to think beyond just ChatGPT (which had been my primary experience with AI). I was blown away with how realistic GenAI images and videos could be, how you can customise AI tools to your needs, and how AI can rapidly translate videos into different languages - in just a few seconds.

As BrandTech scholars, we had various opportunities to come together at Delegate Dinners, the BrandTech Group exhibition stand, the presentation on GenAI, and a workshop session where all 5 of us acted as Dragons Den judges – which was very fun! Getting to know the other scholars was incredible, and I know we will continue to stay connected and support each other long into the future. I was so impressed with the work each of them is doing:

• Anna Mae Yu Lamentillo – who is using AI to preserve Indigenous and endangered languages through NightOwl. 

• Joshua Wintersgill – is working towards an accessible aviation industry for disabled people, through easyTravelseat, ableMove, and Rights on Flights. 

• Hammed Kayode Alabi – who is empowering and upskilling rural communities in Nigeria and across Africa through Kayode Alabi Leadership and Career Initiative and Skill2Rural Bootcamp. 

• Hikaru Hayakawa – is the Executive Director of Climate Cardinals, which is translating climate education into 100+ languages and promoting grassroots climate education. 

Throughout the week, we received boundless enthusiasm, advice, and support from BrandTech’s delegates for our initiatives – which has continued even after the summit finished. 

The 5 Impact AI scholars at One Young World in Montreal. Credit: Eden Sanderson, BrandTech Group.

Summit highlights: Connections, mentorship, and learning

For me, conferences are always about the people you get to meet. And I’ve never been to a more diverse conference! I met people from Singapore, Bhutan, Nigeria, Philippines, Morocco, Malaysia, and so many more... And with a majority youth representation, this conference had a completely different energy to others I have attended. Although we often had different areas of interest, everyone was keen to meet, chat, and share perspectives, journeys, and approaches. It was just so inspiring to be surrounded by passionate people, doing positive work.

Seeing ocean and climate heroes like David Suzuki, Jane Goodall, and Johan Rockström speak about the growing shift in how we view nature, and how the ocean is our greatest climate sink, was epic. I also had the chance to hear the perspectives of young Indigenous leaders and their hopes for the future. And the speech by Tawakkol Karman on her role in the Arab Spring uprising literally gave me chills.

“Nature has had 4 billion years to adopt ways of living sustainably on this planet. We need to learn from nature.” - David Suzuki.

The summit wasn’t just a series of panel discussions. There were ‘Action Sessions’ to come together in small groups and discuss challenges, and regional networking sessions to meet other changemakers in your area. I also joined a group mentoring session with ex-Olympian Mark Tewksbury on the key principles of good leadership – and got a free signed copy of his book!

Rebecca and other delegates with ex-Olympian Mark Tewksbury. Credit: Rebecca Daniel.

AI and Ocean Conservation 

One of the most significant takeaways from the summit was how AI can drive social impact projects. Although there are concerns and issues around AI, when used with purpose it can be hugely beneficial.

“We’re told that AI is a threat to our jobs, information systems, and a threat to humanity. I am here to tell you that AI is literally a lifesaver.” – Jose Zea, Arkangel AI.

As Justin Troudeau said at the summit, this generation will be last to remember how life was before AI was everywhere, and this generation gets to define how it is used. AI is not only useful for businesses, but can be transformative for NGOs across every sector. There was a lot of discussion around using AI ethically and equitably, ensuring that tools are designed by the communities that need them.

Already AI is being used for ocean conservation efforts, from analysing marine datasets to detecting plastic from space, identifying species, and monitoring illegal fishing activities.

I’m excited to start applying everything I’ve learnt about GenAI to both our activities at The Marine Diaries, and to support our clients at MSQ/Sustain. 

Only after the summit did I learn that less than 1% of applicants secure scholarships, so I am even more grateful for this opportunity. I left the summit feeling totally invigorated, and reminded of the power we all have to accelerate positive change.

Justin Troudeau speaking at One Young World on the power of AI. Credit: One Young World.