Mariam

Mariam sees that people living in rural areas, especially girls, don ́t have access to the same developmental opportunities as boys. Social norms and cultural expectations hinder gender equality at a young age, and Mariam is determined to change this across her country. To empower girls in rural areas,  she believes, they need access to opportunities and a supportive community where they can develop their problem-solving skills. Mariam founded ‘Fighters of Bangladesh’, the first youth-led organization in her community, where she is building model villages via community development projects. Workshops on menstrual health in local schools, Menstrual Pad Banks, campaigns on smoking, and climate change seminars are some of the projects run by Fighters of Bangladesh. The venture involves 50 young people and through their joint effort, they have reached over 300 girls as of January 2020. Additionally, the team is changing the mindsets of adults to believe that young people can be powerful changemakers. 

Mariam was elected as Sir Fazle Hasan Abed Ashoka Young Changemaker in honour of Late Sir Abed and the key leadership role played by BRAC in creating the Everyone A Changemaker world.