JA Alumni News: January / February 2023
For the Youth, By JA Alumni | Boundless: JA Worldwide Strategic Plan 2023–2025 📖
JA set forth a path to reach 100 million youth annually by 2050, and JA Alumni is one of the driving force to achieve the goal. Since JA’s founding 104 years ago, millions of JA alumni have built ventures from the ground up, won election to the highest political offices, studied at leading universities, and invented products that have revolutionized industries. By inviting JA alumni to contribute to the global expansion roadmap, we can enhance existing JA programs and develop new impactful projects.
The boundless ambition is underpinned by a strategic framework that will be our blueprint to accelerate inclusive growth and impact over the next three years:
- Accelerate Digital: inventing new ways to reach youth and prepare them for the future of work while being mindful of the digital divide.
- Empower the Underserved: optimizing for impact in underserved communities which are experiencing a boom in demographic dividend.
- Cultivate Partnerships: activating synergies across governments, NGOs, social-good organizations, ministries of education, corporations, and more.
- Strengthen OneJA: amplifying cross-pollination, collaboration, accountability, and impact across the JA network.
Read more about JA Worldwide Strategic Plan, 2023–2025.
For the Globe 
Attend Quarter #3 JA Alumni ClubHouse
Get together on March 15, 9amEST/3pmCET/10pmHKT to brainstorm and exchange ideas on the best practices for building your local alumni chapter. You will also get early access to global JA Alumni initiatives that you can be part of.
For the Quarter #3 JA Alumni Clubhouse, there will be a 40-minute presentation on global, regional and local alumni initiatives and a 20-minute facilitated breakout session that aims to support alumni leaders in the following verticals: membership 🧑🏻🤝🧑🏻, engagement 🔥, starting a chapter 💼, and JA offices 🏢.
RSVP to attend JA Alumni Clubhouse here. We can’t wait to see you on March 15.
Apply for 2023 Youth Advisor Role
We are looking for JA alumni around the world to speak up, share their experiences, and help create the future of JA. In partnership with MIT Center for Constructive Communication, Cortico, and Accenture, we launched youthvoices.org – a platform where we gather 100+ voices of alumni leaders across 45 countries. This time around, we are making it even bigger!
The goal is to have at least one voice per JA location on the youthvoices.org platform.
To become a Youth Advisor . . .
- Apply for your spot here;
- Participate in a 90-minute group interview for youthvoices.org.
Apply today to secure your spot.
Compete in 2 Minutes Drill to Win $50,000
Pitch your business on #2MinuteDrill to stand a chance at winning $50,000! Season 5 will include an episode exclusively featuring JA alumni.
Apply today!
The #2MinuteDrill is a "pitch only" show for entrepreneurs, hosted by JA University Chief Chancellor David Meltzer. In each episode, the winner receives $50,000 in cash. One episode in season 4 will be dedicated to the JA alumni community, and only JA alumni-owned businesses will be accepted into that episode. Check out the official website for more details.
Meet Nadia Ladak, a JA alumna from Canada, who recently won USD$50,000 in the JA Alumni episode in season #4. Nadia competed against JA alumni from Austria, Uruguay, Northcentral Ohio, and Sweden, and emerged as the winner with her lubricated tampon company that is revolutionizing menstruation products.
”I’m really proud to give back [to JA] and inspire even more people to love entrepreneurship” - Nadia Ladak on @jaworldwide.
Watch the full alumni epsiode.
Watch the JA Worldwide 2022 Year-End Video Featuring JA Alumni
Last year, JA celebrated a year of impact and milestones: new and renewed global partnerships, nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize, listing among the World’s Most Innovative Workplaces, showcase of the winners of the De La Vega Global Entrepreneurship Award, and so much more.
Read about the impactful partnerships and important milestones. Watch the compilation of JA alumni stories about how JA impacted their life, and millions around the world.
Read JA Worldwide CEO, Asheesh Advani’s Take on Education 4.0
The Education 4.0 initiative from the World Economic Forum presents a unique opportunity to upgrade educational systems around the world. Centering individual skill-building and classroom learning around three skills—problem-solving, collaboration, and adaptability—offers young people the greatest opportunity to succeed in the global economy. Asheesh explains why on the WEF blog.
What’s Happening? 
Fahd Jamaleddin: Alumni Board Member for JA Worldwide Board of Governors Starting July 2022
In a pool of 28 JA alumni from 17 JA locations around the world who applied or were nominated for the JA Worldwide Board of Governors, Fahd Jamaleddin has been selected for the Alumni Board Seat. The alumni member serves as the official alumni representative for the JA alumni community, advocating for alumni interests, voting on all decisions made at each Board of Governors meeting, and guiding the future of JA.
A social entrepreneur, education consultant, and reform advocate, Fahd is co-founder and Head of School Transformation at Nafda Lebanon, a collective that aims to build a movement for educational change in Lebanon. He’s also a Kofi Annan Changemaker Fellow, and the World Economic Forum (WEF) recognized Fahd as a Global Shaper.
Fahd participated in JA through INJAZ Lebanon in secondary school and at university. He has also volunteered with INJAZ, served as an alumni ambassador, and helped found the INJAZ Lebanon alumni association, for which he served as vice president. Fahd’s three-year term on the JA Worldwide Board of Governors will begin July 1.
Micaela Fernández: JA Alumni Americas COY Influencer
Micaela, a JA alumna from Uruguay, was selected as the JA Americas COY Influencer. She travelled to Guatemala for the 14th JA Americas Company of the Year Competition to showcase JA student companies. Watch her coverage of the event at JA Americas’s Facebook Reels.
JA Alumni Europe x Meta: Spark Hackathon (December 3–5, 2022)
The Meta Spark Hackathon on Augmented Reality and Metaverse is joined by 28 JA alumni from ten countries. Participants worked on developing an augmented reality enhanced awareness campaign for the European Year Of Skills–an initiative by the European Commission to upskill the labour market for digital and green transition. The winning team ‘Meta4award’ created an interactive AR effect where the avatar can explore a virtual exhibition on essential future skills. JA alumni are also invited to Meta’s innovation house to experience the future of digital skills.
Nelly Cetera and Valentina Londero: JA Americas New JA Alumni Hires
JA Americas recently onboarded two JA alumni from Argentina to join their expanding team to deliver more JA amd JA Alumni programs. Nelly and Valentina, the new Business and Partnership Development Assistants, will bring their youth perspective to enhance JA’s programming to cater to the region’s dynamic youth. We are happy that more JA alumni are becoming more involved in shaping the future economy.
JA Bahamas Alumni Launches First Alumni Council
JA Bahamas Alumni brings together former JA students, advisors, and volunteers from all over the Bahamas, who share enthusiasm and passion for entrepreneurship and leadership. For the first time ever, JA Bahamas Alumni is forming the Alumni Council, consisting of the President, the Vice President, the Event & Program Manager, the Communications Manager, and the Human Resources Manager. For more information about the application for the roles, please visit JA Bahamas website. JA Bahamas is also actively gathering alumni stories and showcasing alumni businesses from Bahamas.
Snow Weekend at Seefeld, Austria (March 17–19)
JA Alumni Austria and Young Enterpise Switzerland Alumni join forces to organize a snow weekend of skiing, networking, sightseeing and hiking. If you are around Austria and would like to spend a weekend gateway with amazing JA alumni, message Young Enterprise Switzerland Alumni on Instagram.
Housekeeping 
- Apply to be a Youth Advisor.
- Join the Alumni Leadership Group on Gather.
- Schedule a call to talk about alumni chapter building.
- Email Sarah Rapp for potential partnerships + synergy.
- Access the new JA Alumni branding.
- Request brand transition assistance.