While young people are often referred to as the leaders of tomorrow, this week's Hero of the Week, Andre Damian, realizes that many of his peers are already Leaders of Today. That's the name of his networking hub for young people and their causes.  They are a global community of young leaders and activists, hailing from over 40 countries worldwide, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. 

Andre's story:

Before I founded Leaders of Today, I had spent years advocating for children’s rights. I have spoken at the United Nations in Geneva, at the Dutch Parliament, and at international conferences from Seoul to New York. Advocating for children‘s rights and working on social good projects has given me  immense personal gratification and greatly contributed to my professional growth. That is why I am building a platform that would allow any young person to engage in similar opportunities and experience the same level of personal and professional development, while being able to help others.

The idea for the online platform sprouted in April 2015, six months prior to its launch, when I had just returned from the ‘Global Teen Leaders’ conference in New York City. Learning about my peers’ work and seeing their passion and drive to change the world to a better place was inspiring. This was the moment I realized that more young people should get the opportunity to become leaders like them. I decided to create a place where they could develop their potential.

Andre joins us today to talk about what it is and how it came to be.