The stellar grade 12 student, but also an entrepreneur, a student leader in her community, and a notable influencer for the new generation.
Anjali Dhaliwal is not only a stellar grade 12 student, but also an entrepreneur, a student leader in her community, and a notable influencer for the new generation. She is the founder and executive officer of Youth Helping Youth (YHY), a student-led, non-profit community organization that promotes opportunities for youth through social media.
The young founder explains, “Our mission is to empower the next generation of future change makers, and to positively impact the youth communities for the betterment of the world.” YHY works to combat stigmas such as ageism, which may stop youth from reaching their full potential; thus, it provides opportunities such as job fairs, conferences, mental health care, workshops, volunteering, summer internships and much more. This allows youth to get involved with their community and start making their impact.
When asked what her inspiration was behind starting this organization, Anjali says “personally, I’ve been faced with the stigma of ageism almost every day. There is always that adult who says ‘You are too young, or you don’t know what you are doing.’” This has fueled her motivation to create an organization which supports youth in fighting these stigmas, and using their merit and experience to showcase their capability.
The youth leader has also co-founded a local high school business called Nutri Lip Balm, a 100 per cent vegan and organic, eco-friendly handmade lip balm. The mission is to help make Vancouver’s goal of becoming the greenest city in the world a reality, and thus the business utilizes 10 per cent of its profits towards planting new trees in Vancouver. Cosmetics are known to be a leading cause for plastic pollution, and thus Anjali and her classmates created a product that is 100 per cent biodegradable, recyclable and reusable. “Since this product connects with the value of being organic, and enforces values of creating a greener city, it has helped us integrate with the City of Surrey to partner and grow the business,” Anjali proudly explains. Although the business is currently taking a break, Anjali is hopeful that she and her classmates will continue taking Nutri Lip Balms to new heights.
Anjali was the Surrey Board of Trade’s youngest 2019 Top 25 Under 25 Recipient; she received the award for her work in the world of business and community projects in Surrey. She has also been recognized by the City of Surrey in 2018 for her outstanding contributions to the city’s community and recreation services. She has also been given several awards by her high school, Queen Elizabeth Secondary, including ‘Student of the Year,’ ‘Outstanding Leadership Award,’ and the ‘Outstanding Service Award.’
When asked about her future plans, Anjali is excited to enter grade 12 this year, and hopes to attend the UBC Sauder school of Business in 2021. She is also hoping to get to travel in the near future, and has Japan on her list of things to do, as well as adventures such as skydiving! The passionate influencer hopes to continue to serve her community and make a positive impact throughout her life. She says, “I hope to continue helping my community in the future and to continue growing my stems until finally I am a tree – standing sagaciously with knowledge but still growing my numerical value of rings.”
