Nearly one third of our population are the youths, that is around 50 million of the total population. We the youths, are the only hope of our country. If nurtured properly, we can change the whole scenario of the country. But, what are we doing ? Are we working hard to make changes?

No, we are just sitting back and waiting for others to help us, to guide us, in spite of making new opportunities for ourselves ,we are waiting for others to give us the opportunity. And this is where we are doing it wrong.

Picture :  Sabuz Shahriar Khan ( Photo Credit : deskgram.net )

Sabuz Shahriar Khan realized it at the age of 14.

We have seen and heard about different individuals and organizations contributing to the youth empowerment of our country selflessly. Sabuz is one of them. He thought out of the box and took steps to make the change. 

A 14 year old observant child, Sabuz , noticed early on how his fellow students at school were getting involved in all sorts of wrongdoings. He saw that many of his peers showed characteristics of moral degradation. He noticed that they use to hoax the elders maintaining a good image in front of everyone and were engrossed in unethical behaviour behind their back. In spite of helping others selflessly , they were volunteering just to show-off on social media. 

These things started to bother Sabuz. He came to a conclusion that it won’t be wise to sit back and watch others to destroy their lives. So, he decided to take a step. 

He first tried to figure out the core problem. He understood that all these children had a common problem that is, lack of ideologies. Which is why they could not utilize their talents in a positive direction. He realized that they need a proper guideline and believed that the youths needed to stay busy. Although Sabuz knew that he is not the only one, there were many other people working on it. And most of their efforts were going down the drain. This made him think a little differently. 

As he was also a teen, he knew that only attractive alternatives could persuade the children to change. He knew that journalism interests him the most, so it may seem attractive to the other kids too.

According to Sabuz journalism is platform to ask questions and also a means of impacting the society. The more youths participate in this platform, the more it well prevent them from going astray.

 All his thoughts started to form into small initiatives and led to the formation of his venture ‘Bangla Initiator’ which officially started in 2015 , when he was 17 years old.

Picture : Logo of the Bangla Initiator  ( Photo Credit : linkedin.com )

Bangla Initiator is an online news portal. It completely run by young journalists. Sabuz who is now 20 years old, is the Chief Editor. The organization uses journalism as a medium to aware children about the society and their rights and responsibilities. All these children are curious about their work. They expand their knowledge by staying updated about the world, they think critically and ask relevant questions. They become aware about the social problems and try to solve the problems making others aware about it and taking small initiatives. This helps them and others to grow up into responsible and conscious citizens. 

“ We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.”_ Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Bangla Initiators believes in this ideology and works accordingly. Their purpose is to increase the contribution of children and youth towards achieving sustainable development. They not only support and guide them to make a change in their communities but also provides them training to develop their leadership skills. They provide them the chance to gain a social perspective to solve social problems. 

Not just journalism, Bangla Initiator has other creative clubs to provide different skills among the children and youth. 

The ‘Book Club’, here the members exchange books amongst themselves, which helps them to develop reading habits and deep thinking. 

The ‘Photography Club’ , this nurtures and encourages children’s arts and photography skills by hosting a festival named, ‘National Teen Art and Photography Festival’. This festival is like a competition where youths from all over the country participate enthusiastically. They submit their photos and artworks from which only the selected ones get displayed and the best one gets the price. The purpose of this festival is to bring the talents from all over the country under one roof and give them a platform to showcase their talents. 

The ‘Child Welfare Club’, this club is completely directed by the child journalists.They provide help to underprivileged children by raising money.   

One unique event that is held by this organization and is the most praise worthy, is ‘The Jalsha’. These events are hosted at significant historic sites. And not only that, they invite freedom fighters to share about their personal experience during the war. Children and youth gather to hear about the struggles and bravery of the speakers. This helps them to get the authentic view of the country’s liberation war and to grow respect and a sense of responsibility towards the country. 

Although this unique venture’s foundation was laid by Sabuz but as the time passed he with his hard work and dedication motivated many other like him to join and work for the betterment of the youth. 

Since its beginning the organization had to go through highs and lows but as time passed it has seen its fair share of accomplishment as well. Now their hard work is not only recognized by affiliated schools but also recognized by international organizations like the ‘Ashoka Foundation’. Three years down the line, the organization has built networks across Bangladesh from districts like Dhaka , Chattogram , Mymensingh , Bogura and Shivganj. There are around 300 young journalists spread across the country. They all work together to train other children. And to know how they define themselves, please click on the given link : https://goo.gl/ZCgX6t  

Sabuz along with his team has sky-rocketing hopes to see this organization as one of the leading organization of Bangladesh. The organization also aims to hold a strong position that will allow them to reach every child in any corner of the country, who needs their help and support. They are leaving no stone unturned to build a future generation where everyone is a leader.