Climate Force Expedition 2019

Hello! my name is Oluwaseyi Odufuye, Seyi for short. I am a 1st-year student at the University of Texas at Austin currently studying studio art. I am also a Longhorn Legislative Aide within UT's Student Government and a mentor for elementary students that attend low-income schools under a nonprofit organization call Score Athletics.  Junior of Highschool I started a Service club at my high school, associated with Rotary, and through that have been able to do many service projects. I am very keen on keeping myself busy with community service and making sure I am involved on campus in efforts to leave both places -my community and my campus- better than how I entered.

In December of 2018, I found out that I had been chosen to go on the ClimateForce 2019 Expedition to the Arctic. I was ecstatic because I knew what this could mean not only for my future but for the future of many other people. 

The ClimateForce Expedition to the Arctic is a chance for me to engage with other leaders from all around the world, learn up-to-date information on climate change, and build on leadership skills such as public speaking/communication, teamwork, collaboration, and problem-solving, thus enabling me to return back to Austin as a better-equipped leader with the skill set, solutions and a worldwide network to bring to the table. 


In the near future, I will utilize the resources given to me from this expedition to go back and effect social and environmental reform in my home country, Nigeria.  
To start off, I want to focus on improving water quality and the overall quality of life, specifically in rural areas and teach the people there how to take sustainable actions to maximize the resources they have. I also want to integrate cultural anthropology and use my creative skills to shed light on how unsustainable actions (particularly that of America) affect the lives of other people. 

Nigeria, however, is just the starting point. I envision this organization including global leaders so that we can bring social and environmental reform to many countries, ultimately changing the world!

Lastly, So much potential goes to waste because many individuals don't have someone to open their eyes to the potential they carry within them, and to make certain resources available to them. My hope is that I will be able to empower those coming after me to strive for a future beyond their current circumstance. I want to be able to empower younger ones, help them develop their skills and talents and help open their eyes to all that their future holds for them if they are able to grab hold of it.