#iwill week – ‘We do have the power to make the change’

From becoming an #iwill ambassador to co-chairing the movement was “a very quick journey” for Sami Gichki.

“I actually joined last year as a 2023 ambassador and I became co-chair in four months, which I was not expecting,” laughs the 21-year-old.

Sami first arrived in England as a Baloch refugee from south-west Pakistan, aged 10.

More than a decade later, his “complex” asylum case has still not been resolved, leaving him unable to work or study. Instead, he throws himself into volunteering and charity work. Not only is he co-chair of #iwill, but Sami is also chair of Manchester City of Sanctuary, trustee of four more charities and a governor at three different schools.

The #iwill movement describes him as “a remarkable individual with a story that exemplifies resilience”. Sami describes himself as “an unemployed workaholic”.

“I did not know what #iwill was. I applied just because I’m involved with Youth Leads, which is a charity based in Manchester run by Saeed Atcha, an alumni for #iwill.

“He mentioned it to me and I thought ‘this seems like a cool idea – I have no idea what it is, but I’ll apply anyway’.

“So I applied, got in, went on a residential and that’s actually when I fell in love with the movement and realised what it was all about. It was pretty much about you do your thing and we’ll basically help and guide you and support you wherever we can, to amplify your social action.

“With the residential, it was just being in that space with so many other change-makers who were basically so ambitious and hopeful about the future. I just thought ‘this is my squad basically’.

“My social action has a few different strands to it. The first one was refugees and asylum-seekers, because I’m an asylum-seeker myself, so I was quite passionate about campaigning on that part.

“I am also quite passionate about mental health because of my own lived experience. For example, campaigning involved working with the Mental Health Foundation as a peer researcher and figure out what are the barriers to mental health support for asylum-seeker and refugees, and then writing a report on that and then launching it in Parliament.

“The third strand of the work I do is around young people and making sure our voices are being amplified at the national stage, so that’s where #iwill played the really big role and that amplified that side of my social action a lot more.”

From becoming an ambassador, he quickly jumped into the role of #iwill co-chair.

“I saw the opportunity and I love strategy, because I was already a trustee for another charity based in London which provides asylum-seekers and refugees with mental health support and legal casework support, so I had the expertise. I was also a school governor for a school based in Manchester., so this combined together to give me the strategic thinking and I felt like I had the passion to basically take the movement somewhere, so I put the two and two together and applied – I felt if I didn’t apply, I would regret it.”

And Sami has embraced the role, seizing the opportunities it offers him, as well as offering his strategy and insights to others in return.

“It’s a big thing,” Sami says. “Every time I mention it to anyone, it’s like, ‘oh, you’re doing a lot then’. I’m also on the board for the #iwill fund and with all my other roles, I feel like it’s giving me the experience to do quite a lot outside of the movement in general, but also giving me the strategic experience to actually think long-term and look at the bigger picture of things.

“I’m at the point where I’m trustee of five charities and actually chair one of them, and then I’m also governor for three schools and then co-chair of #iwill. I feel like it gives me the strategic insight to basically get the experience I’ve wanted, because as an asylum seeker, I can’t go into university, or further employment, but it’s basically filled the gap in the career path, that I’m actually using my time productively, rather than just sitting at home doing nothing.

“It also puts you in spaces. One of the first things I did with #iwill when I was an ambassador was to go to Windsor Castle for two days for Intergenerational England, basically as a consultancy to figure out what their strategy should be in the long term. Now I’m actually a trustee for Intergenerational England, which is fascinating.

“It was one of the first bits where I was like, ‘oh, I’m with important people, I’m doing something that is going to make a difference whether I’d like it to or not, and it’s going to basically change lives’.

“I feel that really motivated me to keep going and pushing forwards and ever since then I’ve just been kind of carried away with doing as much as I can. I call myself an unemployed workaholic because I’m not employed, but I’m a workaholic because I’m in the office for like 16 hours a day.

“I guess it gives me the motivation and the drive to keep going, because there’s so many other young people who are doing amazing work out there and still, we are seen so negatively by so many people.

“We do have the power to make the change and it’s not fair that we have to work twice as hard to make that change, but it is the way it is and I guess we all have to play a part in it.”

UK Youth is a leading charity with a vision that all young people are equipped to thrive and empowered to contribute at every stage of their lives. With an open network of more than 9,000 youth organisations and nation partners; UK Youth reaches more than four million young people across the UK and is focused on unlocking youth work as the catalyst of change that is needed now more than ever. To find out more, visit ukyouth.org 

UK Youth is involved in a range of programmes designed to help young people thrive, such as outdoor learning, physical literacy, social action and employability. For more on UK Youth’s programmes, see ukyouth.org/what-we-do/programmes

#iwill is a movement comprised of more than 1,000 organisations and 700 young #iwill Ambassadors & Champions from across the UK. They are united by a shared belief that all children and young people should be supported and empowered to make a positive difference on the issues that affect their lives, their communities, and broader society.

#iwill is empowering, challenging, independent, collaborative and inclusive – it belongs to everybody.

The #iwill movement is powered by young people and organisations. The #iwill Ambassadors and #iwill Champions, alongside organisations who sign up to the Power of Youth Charter, help ensure meaningful action is taken to support more children and young people to be active citizens.

The #iwill Partnership is made up of leaders of collective action groups working within and across sectors and nations of the UK to guide the #iwill movement. The independent #iwill Coordination Hub, hosted by Volunteering Matters and UK Youth supports the #iwill Partnership, #iwill Ambassadors and broader #iwill movement.