This 16-Year-Old Young Achiever is taking on Global Issues while Winning Hearts and Minds

Teenage years for a typical 13-year old are devoted to exploring the world with friends, attending school and tuitions and preparing about exams in equal measure; but not so for Ananya Kamboj - a young journalist from Mohali, Punjab. Seldom do we come across youngsters whose achievements outnumber their years, but for Ananya, a journalist at heart, this statement stands completely true.

From being selected to be part of a global friendship initiative at the age of 13, to being an author by the time she turned 16; Ananya has garnered many laurels and accolades in a short time span. This ardent Lionel Messi fan has addressed contemporary global challenges such as climate change while also using sports to promote gender equality and women empowerment; she is certainly creating an impact!

Let’s find out what drives her to be an agent of change!

The Beginning

Ananya’s journey as change agent began 4 years back. In 2017, India hosted the U-17 Men’s Football World Cup, as part of which an essay writing competition was organized under the banner ‘Mission XI Million’. The essay competition was backed by AIFF (All India Football Federation) programme and was promoted by the Central Government to promote Football in India. Ananya participated in the competition and wrote an article about how football fosters friendships and global relationships. Her winning essay led her to be selected as a ‘Young Journalist’ for the Football for Friendship (F4F) programme in St Petersburg, Russia.

F4F is an annual international children’s social programme that brings together children from over 60 countries to cultivate respect for different cultures and nationalities through football. The programme, implemented by the Gazprom Company, is supported by organisations like FIFA, UEFA, the UN, the Olympic and Paralympic Committees, governments, and football federations of different countries.

Using Sports as a Medium of Social Change

Being chosen to be part of the Football for Friendship (F4F) programme was the first step in a very illustrious ladder of achievements that Ananya has scaled in the last three years. In her winning essay entry, Ananya had quoted sports to be a medium of social change while 'enabling conversations', which could help soothe tensions and foster engagement between countries and people across the globe. She says that sports have the power to bring people from diverse backgrounds, race, ethnicities, cultures and countries together and bind them together.

Gender Equality in Sports

Ananya is a very active Basketball and Football player herself, and during her formative years, she saw many coaches discriminate between young players on the basis of their gender. Such coaches had been promoting the notion that girls can’t play sports. After seeing this, she took upon herself to become an agent of change for gender equality in sports. As part of the Football for Friendship (F4F) programme, she started getting involved in various programmes and empowerment initiatives and became a vocal advocate for gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Penning Down Her Journey

With her efforts on using sports as a uniting factor and to spread awareness on gender equality getting noticed, Ananya decided that it was time to pen down her message in the form of a book titled “My Journey from Mohali to St. Petersburg’. The book is an anthology of twenty-one stories, through which she shares her learning and experiences during the F4F programme. The book focuses on fundamental human values of friendship, equality, fairness, health, peace, devotion, victory, traditions, and honour that sports teach. She also adds,“The book presents a holistic picture of good life, which transcends the prevalent narrow understanding of what constitutes success, fulfilment, and happiness in life. It offers a fresh interpretation of sports through human values which collectively enrich the different dimensions of life.”

Achievements Galore...

Remember, at the start, we had mentioned that Ananya’s achievements outnumber her age, well that wasn’t an exaggeration. During the last four years, Ananya has added several feathers to her cap. She has participated in various other empowerment projects like Girl Up, Girls with Impact, Lean In India, SDGs For Children, SDG Choupal, World Literacy Foundation, and She's Mercedes. Apart from this, she has also been invited twice by the United Nations to share her views on Football for Friendship programme. On similar lines, she has also been a goodwill ambassador of BRICS countries. Previously, she has also been by International Children's Games (ICG), an International Olympic Committee-sanctioned event to speak on peace, friendship, and youth empowerment during the opening ceremony in Ufa, Russia.

‘Sports to Lead’ Programme

Currently, Ananya is working on the launch of a unique initiative under the banner ‘Sports to Lead’. The programme aims to help girls and women understand their rights and overcome gender inequality. Through a series of workshops and awareness sessions, Sports to Lead programme will empower young girls to fight discrimination and gender inequality. The programme aims to bring to light several challenges faced by female sportspersons in India, including lack of infrastructure, sexism, lack of contracts, fewer matches, low wages, a dearth of broadcast slots and lack of popularity.

The Way Ahead…

In India, where traditional vocations are still considered to be viable career choices, Ananya has already charted out a tough but rewarding path for herself. She has already been a ‘young journalist’ as part of the Football for Friendship (F4F) programme, she plans to continue her passion for journalism in future as well. She is keen to study Journalism at the undergraduate level and plans to enrol in FIFA Masters programme – an international sports management course. In future, she hopes to pen stories of inspirational sports persons via reporting for organisations like FIFA and the Olympics.Ananya is not wrong when she says, “I am changing the world”.