Emirati student selected for inaugural global youth leadership fellowship

Dubai: Emirati student Moza Ahmed, chairperson of Dubai’s first Students Council, has been selected for the inaugural Global Youth Council Fellowship, where she will represent the UAE among a group of young leaders from around the world.

A Grade 12 student at the American School of Creative Science in Nad Al Sheba, Moza joins the founding cohort of the Global Youth Council, an international youth leadership initiative that brings together young people from different countries and cultures for a year-long leadership experience.

Moza’s leadership journey gained momentum after she was elected the first chairperson of the Dubai Students Council, launched by the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) under the City of Students initiative within Dubai’s Education 33 (E33) strategy.

The council was established under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai.

A platform for student voices

The Dubai Students Council was created to provide a direct channel between students and KHDA, enabling young people to contribute their perspectives to programmes, policies and initiatives that shape their educational experience.

During its first academic year, the council brought together 16 students from 16 private schools across Dubai, representing six curricula and nine nationalities and cultural backgrounds. Members were selected from nominations submitted by 90 private schools and collectively represented nearly 400,000 students in Dubai’s private education sector.

Council members held 16 internal meetings focused on planning and implementation, launched interactive platforms to gather student feedback and developed a monthly newsletter to strengthen engagement with the wider student community.

Reflecting on the experience, Moza said: “Representing nearly 400,000 students showed me the incredible diversity of voices, perspectives and aspirations that make up Dubai’s student community. It taught me that meaningful participation is not only about listening to young people, but also about trusting them and giving them genuine responsibility.”

She said serving as chairperson enabled her to understand perspectives beyond her own school community and strengthened her ability to engage in dialogue, listen to different viewpoints and advocate for issues affecting students across Dubai.

“Being elected chairperson of Dubai’s first Students Council was about much more than developing leadership skills. It allowed me to experience first-hand what ‘Dubai-It’ means in practice and how ambitious ideas can be transformed into action. Together with my fellow council members, we were encouraged to think beyond what seemed possible,” she said.

“The Dubai Students Council gave me a voice, but more importantly, it taught me what that voice can represent. Today, that journey continues beyond Dubai through my participation in the inaugural Global Youth Council Fellowship, where I will carry the spirit of ‘Dubai-It’ to an international platform.”

As a member of the fellowship’s founding cohort, Moza will help shape the Global Youth Council during its formative stage and contribute to laying the foundation for its future work.

“This is an opportunity to share the values that have shaped my experience of youth participation in Dubai, including innovation, leadership and turning ideas into action. It is also a chance to learn from young people around the world while sharing Dubai’s experience with them,” she said.

“What makes Dubai unique is its ability to make young people feel that the impossible is simply another challenge waiting to be overcome. From creating platforms for student voice to connecting Emirati youth with global opportunities, Dubai continues to demonstrate that young people are not only the leaders of tomorrow, but active contributors shaping our present.”

Sarah Hollis, Principal of the American School of Creative Science in Nad Al Sheba, said: “We are proud to see her take the confidence, responsibility and experience she has gained through this journey to an international platform. She will be an outstanding ambassador for Emirati students and for Dubai’s commitment to empowering young people and involving them in shaping the present as well as the future.”

Moza was selected following a competitive admissions process. The fellowship’s organisers described her as a young person with strong intellectual curiosity, conviction and the potential to make a meaningful contribution to the world around her.

Established by T4 Education, the Global Youth Council Fellowship is a year-long programme for young people aged 16 to 18. It focuses on developing leadership, vision, communication, collaboration and community engagement skills through mentoring, virtual engagement, collaborative projects and participation in an international summit.