Today, the World Literacy Foundation announced that Mary Xu and Savete Tealikisele will be a Youth Ambassador for 2024. They will serve as a local advocate to increase education and community awareness about the importance of reading and writing to lift literacy rates in Auckland, New Zealand.
Mary Xu, aged 25, is currently employed at Auckland Council, where she dedicates her weekdays. Her passion for community service extends into her weekends, where she volunteers with various organizations. Mary excels in recruiting volunteers, having successfully onboarded over 200 individuals for a recent three-day community event.
Driven by her commitment to community welfare, Mary is eager to become a World Literacy Foundation (WLF) ambassador. Her experience in the public sector and leadership roles within non-profit organizations have equipped her with valuable skills in community engagement and organizational management. By joining WLF, Mary seeks to develop her leadership capabilities further and learn from others’ experiences in advocating for literacy.
Mary is particularly concerned about the recent increase in illiteracy trends in New Zealand, which she attributes to absenteeism and the lack of mandatory studies. She notes governmental efforts such as banning phones in classrooms and mandating dedicated hours for reading, writing, and mathematics in schools. Mary is motivated to contribute to WLF’s mission of combating illiteracy and believes in the transformative power of education for all individuals in her community and beyond.
Savete Tealikisele, aged 21, is a young Tuvaluan woman pursuing dual degrees: a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and a Bachelor of Global Studies focusing on Global Politics and Human Rights. Born in New Zealand, Savete had the privilege of growing up in Tuvalu before returning to New Zealand in 2010. Her upbringing in Tuvalu profoundly influenced her commitment to combating climate change, a cause she champions passionately.
Savete is applying to become a World Literacy Foundation (WLF) Ambassador to advance her career aspirations and dedication to climate change advocacy. She believes this role will provide her with valuable opportunities to promote awareness and education about climate change and critical issues affecting her homeland of Tuvalu and the broader Pacific region. Witnessing firsthand the impacts of climate change on Tuvalu’s communities has fueled Savete’s urgency in advocating for global action.
In addition to climate change advocacy, Savete is deeply concerned about the challenge of illiteracy in the Pacific region, including Tuvalu. She understands that illiteracy hinders economic development and restricts access to essential information on health and environmental issues, perpetuating cycles of poverty. In the context of climate change, illiteracy poses a significant barrier to communities’ ability to comprehend and respond effectively to environmental changes.
As a WLF Ambassador, Savete aims to leverage her platform to raise awareness about these interconnected issues. By promoting education and literacy, she seeks to empower individuals in Tuvalu and across the Pacific with the knowledge and skills necessary to adapt to and mitigate the effects of climate change. Savete envisions fostering resilient and informed communities equipped to confront the environmental challenges they face, thereby contributing to a sustainable future for Tuvalu and beyond.
The World Literacy Foundation, a prominent international literacy nonprofit, is on a mission to eliminate illiteracy by 2024. Currently, a staggering 770 million people worldwide are unable to read a single word, and an additional 2 billion struggle to read a sentence. In low-income households, an average of 72% of children face reading difficulties. Illiteracy can have long-term social and economic consequences for young people.
Youth Ambassadors will be able to develop leadership skills and highlight literacy issues to the broader community.
