Alphonso Davies: Harnessing The Power Of Sport

GH: ACCORDING TO THE UNHCR, APPROXIMATELY 3.7 MILLION REFUGEE CHILDREN ARE OUT OF SCHOOL. THIS PAST FEBRUARY, YOU HELPED THE CANADIAN GOVERNMENT LAUNCH THE “TOGETHER FOR LEARNING” CAMPAIGN. CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT THAT CAMPAIGN AND WHY IT HOLDS SO MUCH SIGNIFICANCE TO YOU?

This campaign aims to make sure refugee children and children from the communities that host them can go to schools that are safe and allow all children, boys and girls alike, a place to be their best. The fact that so many refugee kids are out of school makes me sad, and I want to help end the stigma and the negative attitude around refugees. We are all human beings and deserve to be treated equally and fairly no matter our background, skin colour, or religion.

As an athlete, I have a platform, and I want to use it to spread this message.

GH: IN ADDITION TO THE “TOGETHER FOR LEARNING” CAMPAIGN, YOU'VE ALSO BEEN A PART OF A LIVESTREAM TOURNAMENT FOR REFUGEES AND, MOST RECENTLY, A VIDEO WITH FOOTBALL COMMUNITY 433, WHICH CONNECTS YOU TO THREE YOUNG REFUGEES IN LIBERIA, CANADA, AND GERMANY. CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR COLLABORATION WITH THIS SOCCER COMMUNITY?

AD: When the pandemic started, I teamed up with footballer Asmir Begovic to raise money to help refugees. The funds we raised during the livestream helped UNHCR provide soap and clean water. Imagine how hard it is to socially distance in a refugee camp, where everything is already very cramped!

It was amazing to connect to those kids. They all wanted to be exactly like me. But I was happy they had backup plans if they don’t make it as soccer players. Rachelle in Liberia intends to be a nurse, Nouri wants to work in a pharmacy, and Jacob is still figuring out what he wants to do.

HERMON: DO YOU HAVE ADVICE FOR PEOPLE LIKE ME WHO LOVE PLAYING SOCCER? HOW CAN I GET BETTER? WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR A YOUNG PERSON LIKE ME?

AD: Just play your game. When you go onto the field, always give 100 percent. Here are my tips for getting stronger and improving your game:

Make sure to always play with a smile on your face. If you're having fun, it will make it easier to improve because you'll want to.

Make sure to train on your own time and not just with your team. Go to a field or find some space in or around your home. Start juggling and working on your touches as much as you can. Touch the ball as many times as possible when you're training alone.

Watch football on TV. It will help you understand the game better, so it is always good to watch games closely. Especially players who play in the position you play.

When you’re a professional, you also have to do more than play soccer. Sometimes you have to go far from home and learn new languages. I am learning German right now. It’s not easy. You also need to stay true to yourself. I promised my mom when I left for Vancouver that I would continue to be a good person. It’s important to respect people and to stay humble.

DONATE AT UNHCR.ORG/ALPHONSO-DAVIES

BRIGHTENING THE WORLD WITH LIGHT, POSITIVITY, AND A LITTLE BIT OF PINK

IT’S TRUE WHAT THEY SAY; NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES. SOME WEAR RAINBOW-KNIT SWEATERS.

I met Alicia Grace in high school, where we had the same second-period drama class. Her happiness easily spread to others around her, and between her cheerful attitude and her infectious laughter, she lit up every room she entered.

As I got to know Alicia, I learned that underneath her sweet exterior was a secret warrior—Alicia is blind, a brain tumour survivor, and living with chronic illness.

When she was only six months old, Alicia was diagnosed with a childhood brain tumour called a craniopharyngioma. It is a rare type of brain tumour that grows at the base of the brain, near the optic nerves that connect your eyes to your brain. The tumour caused Alicia to go completely blind in her left eye, and lose most of the vision in her right eye. Now 21-years-old, Alicia is navigating life as a blind girl in a sighted world—and doing it with ease.

What’s inspiring about Alicia is her ability to remain positive. She says this is due to the support of her friends and family, and by choosing to surround herself with positivity every day.

But Alicia also creates positivity by working with charitable organizations within and outside of her community. She is a National Youth Council member and Ambassador for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB), a foundation that has been important to her since she discovered she was blind. Alicia works alongside the CNIB to help raise awareness of visual impairments and share her experiences.

She’s also worked with the Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada by participating in their yearly walk to end brain tumours and by joining their new SUPERKIDS committee, a program designed to create lesson plans for teachers and educators to teach children about brain health and brain tumours.

“My diagnosis is something I wasn’t able to control, but how I live with it is something I can control. If that means sometimes I dance around in my hospital gown as I get MRIs… I’ll find a way to make myself laugh.”

Representation of chronic illness, something that is severely lacking in mainstream media, is important to Alicia, and compels her to share her experiences through social media.

“I never had anyone I could relate to in the media or on TV,” Alicia said. “I started to share my story so I could potentially be that person for kids… and show them that no matter what, you can do it and be successful.”

Alicia shares her personal experiences and positivity through her social media accounts @AliciaGraceOfficial.

AFTER TAKING

ON PLASTIC, BALI SISTERS WANT BAR RAISED ON CLIMATE ACTION

Dismayed by the plastic waste strewn over their home island of Bali, sisters Melati and Isabel Wijsen have channelled Ted Talks and international conferences in raising global awareness through a youth-led movement to try to eliminate the scourge.

YOUTH ENVIRONMENTALISTS ISABEL WIJSEN, 17, AND MELATI WIJSEN, 19, SPEAK AS THEY STAND ON A PICKUP TRUCK DURING BALI’S BIGGEST CLEAN-UP 2020 IN PETITENGET BEACH, SEMINYAK, BALI, INDONESIA FEBRUARY 15, 2020.

It was not “rocket science,” said Melati, 19, of the plastic waste problem that prompted the sisters to set up their “Bye Bye Plastic Bags” initiative seven years ago. The campaign has grown internationally, with Bali leading the way in Indonesia banning single-use plastic bags. The sisters aren’t resting on their laurels, however. Tackling climate change is now among the world’s most pressing issues, they say.

“We know the urgency, we have to take action now,” said Melati, speaking from their home surrounded by paddy fields.

“We need to see the bar set a lot higher and a lot sooner,” she said, calling on policymakers to take swift action.

Melati’s activism started when she was only 12 years old and her sister even younger at 10. They have since garnered global attention, speaking at international conferences including setting out their ideas in a Ted Talk.

The sisters say they were inspired by figures such as Nelson Mandela, Princess Diana, and Mahatma Ghandi when at school. Growing up on the tropical island famed for its beaches and temples, they were disconcerted by the plastic waste everywhere.

“Sadly...we could see that no matter where we went there was plastic constantly surrounding us,” Melati said.

Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, is estimated to be the world’s second-largest contributor of plastic pollutants in the oceans after China, according to a 2015 study published in Science journal. The Southeast Asian country this year unveiled a plan to cut marine plastic debris by 70 per cent within five years and to be plastic pollution-free by 2040.

But for the sisters, measures on the environment are often too slow and reinforces the need for the young to take action.

“We believe that us kids may only be 25 per cent of the world’s population, but we are 100 per cent of the future,” said Isabel.