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The leaders:
WHO WE ARE.
Tonwaan is a student at the International School of Bangkok. She is extremely passionate about mental health and is dedicated to reducing the stigma surrounding it. Having struggled with anxiety from a young age, she is determined to raise awareness and support those who also struggle with their mental health. Alongside being the Director of Media for SENIA Youth, she is also the Head of Media for the social enterprise ‘Stick To Change,’ which aims to raise awareness for systemic racism. In her free time, she enjoys dancing, swimming and reading.
DIRECTOR
Advisor
DIRECTOR OF MEDIA
Sasin (Emmy) Thamakaison: Emmy Thamakaison is a 17 year old student activist studying at the International School of Bangkok. Her passions include the arts, biology, and equality within diversity and her ambition is to give back to her community. Having a personal background with learning differences, she is extremely passionate about exceptionalities and is devoted to advocating and supporting those with learning differences. Emmy is a founder of SENIA Youth and the author of the bilingual ADHD picture book “JJ’s Squiggly Mind”. She is also the founder of Squiggly, an online resource hub and platform for children and adolescents with ADHD. In her free time, she enjoys reading, drawing, and spending quality time with her family and friends.
Vienna Sparks is a student activist who is currently attending school at the International School Bangkok. She is extremely passionate about advocating for social change, especially about creating more inclusive educational platforms. Vienna is one of the leaders of SENIA Youth International which is a global student led non profit dedicated to advocating and providing resources for differently abled people through inclusion. She is also the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of StarRising International a social enterprise focused on striving for equitable opportunities for every individual. In her free time Vienna enjoys spending time with friends, swimming, debating, and studying chemistry.
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Belle is from the Philippines and is currently a second-year creative writing student at Emerson College. She enjoys writing about mental health issues, mystery, fantasy, and realistic fiction. Before this, she was a part of the SENIA Manila Youth Chapter where she spoke at both local and international SENIA conferences. Due to SENIA, she realizes the importance of advocating about mental health issues, which inspired her to talk more about her experiences with special needs. During her free time she loves to spend time with her family and friends, reading, writing, singing, and playing the flute.
WRITER AND CONTRIBUTOR
Ananya Rao is a mental health advocate, currently studying Psychology at The University of Western Australia. She is the Director of Outreach and Communications at SENIA Youth International, which is a global, student-led, non-profit organization committed to advocating for mental health and differently-abled people through inclusion. Ananya has a background in interning at the Institute of Mental Health and Life Skills Promotion, New Delhi in the socio-legal frameworks of psychology and psychometric testing in clinical settings. Also an Advanced Certified Career Counsellor, she is passionate towards the cause of enabling financial independence for the differently-abled and individuals with mental disorders. She enjoys reading, painting, listening to music, and practicing martial arts.
DIRECTOR OF OUTREACH
Akshara is a sophomore at the Bullis School. She has lived overseas and in Egypt and Dubai for eleven years. She is passionate about creating inclusive environments for everyone and has followed this passion through her work coaching softball for differently-abled people being a peer buddy with Best Buddies. Akshara is also passionate about International Affairs and climate change and is a Student Ambassador with the Virginia Youth Climate Cooperative. In her free time, she loves to play the piano, sing, and spend quality time with her family and friends.
WRITER AND CONTRIBUTOR
Anna Ozaeta is from the Philippines who is currently studying Communications at Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University in Japan. As she is passionate for fostering inclusion and ending the stigma around mental health illnesses, Anna is excited to work alongside other youth activists and advocates to spread positivity and contribute to impactful changes for the better of the world. In her high school, she was the president of a Best Buddies Chapter - a nonprofit organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, leadership development and inclusive living with individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She is also the co-founder of a start-up lifestyle store named Color & Co. PH where proceeds are donated to various non-profits and initiatives. She is a sports enthusiast and enjoys spending her free time playing golf, cooking for her family, going to the beach, and reading self-help books.
DIRECTOR OF OUTREACH
Emma is a Junior studying at the International School of Bangkok. She was born and raised in the US and will be joining the SENIA youth team as a graphic designer for their instagram page! She loves to be creative in her work as much as possible, and SENIA has given her the perfect platform to advocate for inclusivity and mental health, which are some of her passions. In her free time, Emma loves to swim, bake, sew, and spend time with her friends.
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
People who have contributed to senia youth:
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I’m a student activist at Newport high school in Seattle Washington. As an APAPA intern, community contributor for GlobalGirlhood, Cards4Kindness club leader and publicity director, and FYLearning teacher, I’m so excited to join this amazing organization and help to further develop this organization as a community manager.​
COMMUNITY MANAGER
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GRAPHIC DESIGNER
Hiya! I'm Prang, and I'll be working as one of SENIA Youth's Graphic Designers! I was born and raised in Bangkok, Thailand, and have been doodling on the the corners and covers of my notebooks ever since the tender age of five. Advocating for mental health and inclusivity is something I've always been passionate about, so I'm glad to be able to do that here at SENIA Youth!
SECRETARY
Vorachat Elm Piyasombatkul is a 17 year old student currently studying at Suffield Academy, before that he was a student at ISB. He is from Nonthaburi, Thailand and is currently residing in New York, NY. Outside of SEINA Youth, Elm is the founder and director of 7 Trees, a student venture non profit organization with the modus operandi to fight climate change. Elm enjoys playing the saxophone during his free time and plays squash and tennis competitively in the United States’ circuit.
our Mission:
to advocate and provide resources and supports for differently-abled individuals
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As students, we noticed there was a lack of conversation among youth talking about the importance of inclusion
Lack of Youth Activism
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After some discussion, the idea of SENIA Youth was created where there could be a network of inclusion clubs all connected internationally under one goal.
AN IDEA FOR INCLUSION
Our Story
By Students For Students
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With the idea of SENIA Youth, we strived to connect schools across the world under the common mission of inclusion.
Establishing THE network
By creating this network clubs have been able to collaborate with one another and develop new activities around inclusion. Similarly, the idea for an inclusion oriented conference was created.
Spreading our message
Looking forward
Currently, we are always looking for ways to expand and improve. If you have any questions or suggestions please let us know!
As we continue to expand we hope to create a broader global network of inclusion clubs and continue with the inclusion youth lead initiative.
A vision for the future
our VISION:
To advocate, raise awareness, foster inclusion between individuals with and without learning differences to create a more inclusive future
"We believe we can create a world beyond inclusion together"
Mansi Gogia is a mental health advocate who’s currently studying Psychology at The University of Western Australia. Mansi is passionate about bringing about change, especially in the areas of gender inequality, mental health, and inclusion. Mansi is the Chief Brand Officer of SENIA Youth International, which is a global student-led non-profit organization dedicated to advocating for mental health and differently-abled people through inclusion. She’s also the President of Girl Up Femina, an initiative by the Girl Up campaign, under the aegis of the UN Foundation. In her free time, she loves reading philosophy, binge-watching her favorite TV series, singing, and listening to music. Mansi hopes to continue her passion for the eradication of stigmas against mental health by pursuing a career in Clinical Psychology.