By Munira Muhammad Abdul, YES 2012-2013, Nigeria, hosted by IRIS in Burlington, IA

My name is Munira Muhammad Abdul. I am from Nigeria. The YES program brought me to the United States during the 2012-13 school year and then, as an alumnus, to Morocco for the Transformational Leadership Training (TLT) program in May 2014. This pathway has led me to discovering hidden talents and using them to unlock my full potential.  

As part of the TLT, I took leadership and action on an issue of concern in my community.  The problem I saw was an environmental one. Litter was soiling the public spaces, particularly the Jalingo Motor Park. Established in the Jalingo Taraba state capital in 2009, the motor park is operated by the Taraba State Transport Cooperation, a state government parastatal under the Ministry of Works and Transport, to serve both intra and inter-state routes through affordable transportation services and regulation of fares.

The litter in the Jalingo Motor Park was an inconvenience for the many travelers who used the facilities and it could promote disease transmission. The eyesore and unpleasant smells had personally affected me. So I asked myself, why does it have to be this way, has it always been this way, and how can I stop it? I asked other people at the park the same questions and told them of the effects of their actions if they were littering. Their responses helped me come up with a possible long term solution of installing trashcans for people to dump their trash in, which would then get emptied when full - in other words, a proper sanitation system to benefit the passengers, travelers, and store owners who come to the park on a daily basis to book or buy tickets, and travel and sell their goods, respectively.

First, my YES alumni team and I approached the park officials with our idea as a volunteer youth group. They were impressed by our independence and confidence. When we set out to clean the park, the park officials got other volunteers to help us with the job. We also reached out to the State Coordinator and people from the community who contributed another $500 of funds in addition to the TLT grant we received from the YES program. This funding went to order metal trashcans from a blacksmith who had a shop in back of the main market of my own. He was excited and proud, never having been given such a huge task before. At first he asked, "Are they for sale?" When we described the project and its purpose to him, he was intrigued and hoped to work with us on more upcoming projects in the near future.

The blacksmith specially designed the trashcans to fit our purpose. As they were to be stationed outside, we made sure they were metallic and had lids in order to withstand the harsh sun, wind, and rain. After cleaning the park, we stationed them at the various corners of the park. We painted them in order to avoid rusting and wrote PLEASE USE ME and TLT PROJECT on each and every one. Initially, we had hoped to build an incinerator, but after reaching out to the State Ministry of Environment, briefing them on the details of our project at their head offices, they agreed to provide a trash trailer for the back of the park that will be hauled on a monthly basis. 

This project‘s immediate impact was huge. People benefitted from the cleanliness and park officials were happy that change had finally come. A restaurant owner Mrs. Saje said, “I am happy that people will put their dirt in the dustbin and the entrance to my restaurant will be now clean.” My hope for the longer term is that there will be change in the behavior and attitudes of the people using the motor park, as well as the continued use of the trashcans and their proper maintenance into the future. The alumni group and I plan to follow up at the end of each month, visiting the park to make sure the trashcans have been emptied into the trash trailer and helping do so if needed, for the next six months. Thereafter, a follow up will take place every other month.

During this project, I learned the power of teamwork. Being a leader doesn’t require one to work alone. Working as a team really helped my create the best idea for my project and implement it. I learned that a leader should learn to listen and think about other people’s opinions, working with others in order to get the best results for a certain task. The YES program gave me the opportunity to know what I want and to boost my sense of confidence and independence.