Two steps into leadership, one step closer to change
Jana Jovanoska is 16 years old, and Anastasija Velkoska is 17. Both come from North Macedonia, and both recently became Scout leaders after completing their training in August 2025. They joined Scouting at a young age and grew up in the Movement. Now, they are stepping into leadership roles with new confidence and a strong sense of responsibility. In October 2025, they helped organise an environmental camp in Prilep, held from 24 to 26 October, as part of a project empowering 50 rural youth in environmental leadership and sustainability.
For Jana and Anastasija, the training that prepared them for this moment offered much more than practical skills. It reshaped the way they see their environment and their ability to protect it.
“We learned how to move through nature, how to protect it, and how to properly use the resources around us,” Anastasija explains. “It taught us to be more aware of the impact we have every day.”
Jana adds that the biggest insight for her came from understanding that environmental problems must be addressed at their roots. “We realised that climate change and environmental protection shouldn’t be approached only at the surface level. We need to look deeper, to the causes, and act from there.”
Their training also equipped them with the skills to organise the ecological camp they led in Prilep, bringing together young people to learn, collaborate, and take action. “The skills we gained gave us the confidence to organise a camp of this scale and with an ecological character,” says Anastasija. “It showed us that we can lead initiatives that improve our environment.”
For Jana, the motivation to continue this work comes directly from the challenges her community faces. “In our society, there is a problem with managing the environment,” she says. “We want to identify the root causes and provide education to help solve them. Organising future initiatives or camps like this one is a big part of that.”
Both young leaders recognise that change cannot occur alone; it requires a community. And they believe Scouts can spark it. “As leaders guiding young children, we have the power to improve awareness in our society,” says Anastasija.
Jana agrees, adding that their approach goes beyond Scouting. “In our activities and campaigns, we want to include not only Scouts but also those who are not. That way, the impact can reach more people and create wider change.”
Their work unfolds against a backdrop familiar to many rural areas in North Macedonia: limited youth opportunities, environmental challenges such as waste and pollution, and few platforms for young people, especially girls, to take on leadership roles. This project aims to change that by equipping rural youth with the training, mentorship, and tools they need to become environmental leaders in their communities.
For Jana and Anastasija, being part of this group of 50 young people is a turning point. They are gaining not only environmental knowledge but also leadership, teamwork, and problem-solving skills that will follow them long after the project ends.
Most importantly, they are already putting their learning into action. Every activity they organise, every young person they inspire, and every small change they help create bring their community one step closer to a cleaner, greener, and more sustainable future.
About the Youth Empowerment Fund
The Youth Empowerment Fund, a partnership between the European Union and the Global Youth Mobilization, an initiative of the Big Six Youth Organisations, aims to break down barriers to funding; provide opportunities for mentoring, coaching and capacity strengthening; unlock opportunities for marginalised and under-represented communities; engage, empower and mobilise young people to create local solutions to the world’s biggest challenges, from climate change and gender equality to access to education and employment.
Young people lead all aspects of the Youth Empowerment Fund, from selecting grant beneficiaries to serving on the board of the initiative, supporting mentoring and capacity-building programs, and participating in the design, leadership, and implementation of projects in their communities.