Asha's Story

Hello! My name is Asha Motel and I’m a 17 year old high school student from Brisbane. For the past two years I have travelled to the wild jungles of Borneo, Indonesia to immerse myself in a tiny Dayak (Aboriginal) village called Tembak. Here, without running water, internet or phone reception I am taken back to my roots, surrounded completely by nature and traditional village life. While there I help out in the small community; teaching at the local schools, helping out at the Orangutan rehabilitation centre and learning traditional ways of life from the elders. Experiencing life in Indonesia has opened my eyes to the unbelievable beauty of the natural world however, it has also shown me the consequences of human selfishness and greed.

Ever since I was a little girl I have always thought of the bigger picture; becoming famous and spreading my influence around the world however, as I am becoming more independent I am venturing out into my local community more and I realise what an impact I can have on just a small scale. Lately I have been attending many market stalls and community events, meeting people in my community who are interested in what I am doing and who are doing amazing things themselves. By chance at the start of the year I came across an application for the Jane Goodall Institute Australia’s Roots & Shoots inaugural National Youth Leadership Council which was to be a group of young people from all over the country picked to inspire and encourage other young people to take action in their own communities. To my surprise I was chosen as one of ten representatives from all over Australia, and the sole representative for QLD (2017 applications will open at the end of the year; we need more Queenslanders see http://rootsandshoots.org.au/ for more info). Along with the Queensland Roots & Shoots coordinator I have been working hard to get this amazing program up and running in the sunshine state as this is our first year up here. So far we have been busy visiting schools, holding market stalls and preparing for our first major event; the QLD Climb for Chimps. Perhaps one of the most exciting advancements so far is pairing up with the Fed up movement as they embrace everything A.P.E (animals, people, environment) about Roots & Shoots.

I am sick and tired of being FED up. When people come together in groups such as FED and R&S they can accomplish amazing things. Especially when that groups is full of determined young people. I intend to fight for a planet that is as much mine as anyone else’s. For me, my children and those who do not have a voice.

#Environment #Motivation