By Audrey Willett:
Youth Magazine is all about building a platform for the future changemakers of the world. They publish inspiring stories of young people and provide voices to all those who aim to bring about significant change in the world. Please enjoy our interview with Hrudhai Chand.
AW: Tell us all about you and your organization!
HC: Hi, my name is Hrudhai Chand. I'm from Bangalore, India. I'm an Executive-Director at Youth Magazine. Youth Magazine is a magazine cum media platform covering the most pressing issues Generation Z faces. We feel that our generation has been the source of most progressive change in the last decade, yet our voices are underrepresented and overlooked. Our agenda is to provide a platform where we can let our voices be heard, amplified, and taken into consideration.
AW: Why do you think it’s important for your generation to let their voices be heard?
HC: It is crucial for our generation for our voices to be heard because we are the future; we will inherit the world the way older generations leave it for us. Now what we get might be a very misshaped, ruined world, or we can turn the tables and do some justice to the world we get on our own terms, one which can be preserved and taken care of. Hence, it is fundamental for our voices to be heard because we won't be given the justice we want if it's not heard.
AW: Are you optimistic or pessimistic about the future?
HC: I am not going to lie if I say both, the future is uncertain, it'll have its highs and lows, but it won't be entirely positive nor negative. We need to face our worst nightmares and enjoy our happiest dreams; it's essential we persist and flourish under both terms.
AW: What are the most important issues facing our world right now? And in the future?
HC: It's safe to say the most vital issue facing our world, which needs immediate attention now, is Global Warming. We have taken our planet for granted and played the role of owners of the Earth rather than its inhabitants. We have broken many natural cycles, killed many species of animals, and made many areas inhabitable that were once flourishing, all for our greed. There have been good activism and initiatives for change, but that's what they remained, "initiatives"; we as a world must unite to save our planet before the time arrives that we need the saving.
AW: What does your organization offer that helps the world be a better place?
HC: We try our best to educate and empower our audience with the various issues around the globe, many of which aren't covered by mainstream media and we're not cognizant of. We try to provide a means for change by providing resources where they can pressure governments and necessary officials to strive for the needful change. We also offer a voice for the unheard and a platform to keep conversations up and running. With these in our minds, we strive to better ourselves at serving others in the most constructive and consequential way possible.
AW: Will you be voting in the next election?
HC: Yes, I would; unfortunately, many people within our generation feel voting is an unnecessary task that consumes much energy and won’t lead to any meaningful strides; they are blatantly mistaken. I personally think people don't deserve to campaign for change or complain about their leaders at the top if they don't exercise their basic rights. Voting is the fundamental pillar of democracy and freedom, which our founding fathers and independence leaders shed their blood, tears, and sweat for. It's incredibly painful to see that many people take what’s given to them on a silver platter for granted whilst many other countries are still there fighting for their rights and democracy.
AW: Please tell us all about your current campaigns, projects, and endeavors. Tell everyone where to find you online and on social platforms.
HC: Right now, we have many things curating; we recently covered the Pride Month series where we spoke a lot about the LGBTQIA+ community, especially about how members of our society are afraid to open up about their sexuality and explore different modes of the spectrum. Before that, we had productive progress on mental health issues, where we had a form open where people could vent and talk about their most profound issues whilst under the veil of anonymity. We're going to start a conversation on sex education now. This is a serious issue with many topics under it. However, we remain optimistic about covering as much as we can, especially on how schools show a blind eye to matters pertaining to these issues. We're also collaborating with many other organisations whose sole purpose is women's reproductive health or sex-ed.
You can find our website at youthmag.net, or you can follow us on Instagram at @the.youthmag or check our Twitter account @empowerance if you want to keep in touch with us or read more of our content!
AW: If there is anything else you would like to say, please do!
HC: Winston Churchill once said, "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it’s the courage to continue that counts." Don't be scared to achieve success; only a handful dare to dream, and one in the handful dare to achieve their dream. Even if the whole world goes south on you, if you maintain the persistence and determination to set out and change the world, you can—don't allow anyone to tell you the opposite.
Audrey Willett is a southern California sophomore in high school. She is an activist and aspiring filmmaker, and the Social Media Outreach coordinator for The Gen Z Collective.
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