How To Turn A Personal Challenge Into A Leap Of Faith with Gabriela Jaeger

From Gabriela's bio: "In 2013 I was living in Mozambique as a diplomatic wife with a 5 year old gilr and working remotely on a succesful youth program that was originally devised to bring talented teenagers to the world economic forum. The organization that hosted the program was undergoing a deep redisign and despite the success of the program it was decided that the goals, international development through the work of youth, did not align with the organization’s core mission. At that point it was clear that any professional pursue I might have would need to be something of my own creation. These were the years before remote working was normalised and the luxury of flexible remote working were not widely available. At the same time, my work which had focused on supporting the community development projects young people from our network wre implementing to tackle big issues had really changed my perspective of what a person with a passion for improving the world could do. I had met young people with devastating life stories who despite all odds, or perhaps, because of them, were truly changing for the better the lives of those around them. At that point I was convinced that I needed to find a way to continue this work and how crucial it was to support those young people who are actively working towards a fair, peaceful and sustainable world.

This moment was profoundly meaningful because it really pushed me to pursue my sense of purpose. To work and have a career were always life goals of mine and being faced with the reality of having to move countries every for years made pursuing those goals really difficult. I was also deeply inspired by the young people I was working with, they opened up my eyes of how important it is to work on things you are deeply passionate about and believe in.. The realization that I could not rely on existing structures to align with my passions and professional goals was both daunting and liberating. It forced me to embrace the idea that I could, and should, carve out my own path—one that reflected my commitment to fostering meaningful change.
I learned that meaningful work doesn’t always fit into traditional molds and more often than not it might not be remunerated. It requires creativity, persistence, and the courage to take risks. This period of my life instilled in me the belief that creating something of value, even in uncertain circumstances, is worth pursuing. It was a lesson in adaptability, self-reliance, and persistence, which are values that continue to guide me today."

Gabriela is a binational of Mexico and Switzerland, having lived in Georgia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Brazil, Switzerland, and the United States. With over eighteen years of experience in nonprofit and international development, Gabriela has been a key figure at Global Changemakers since 2009. She initially developed a grant process that has now supported over 500 youth-led development projects worldwide. Gabriela authored the influential article "By Youth, For Youth," published in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, and played a pivotal role in Global Changemakers’ growth as a co-founder when it became an independent organization in 2014.

In addition to her work with Global Changemakers, Gabriela has co-authored educational tools and consulted on a range of youth-focused events and workshops. She has spoken at renowned international forums like the Estoril Conference and Unleash. Gabriela holds an LL.M. in Law from Universidad Panamericana and is deeply committed to supporting impactful youth-led initiatives globally.

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