Ambassador - Canada

Martina Buchal is the One Young World Coordinating Ambassador for North America, Global Ambassador for World Merit and now Canadian Ambassador for Global Resolutions – sense a pattern of do-gooding and ambassadorship here? We sure do!

Martina takes her role of positively affecting change very seriously. An internationally recognized speaker, coach, and peace practitioner, she has been traveling the globe listening to, empowering, and working with young people to engage their voices and talents to create a more positive future for our planet through the Sustainable Development goals. She has traveled to more than 30 countries, engaged with thousands of youth worldwide and spoken on prestigious stages including the Summit of the Americas, where she represented North American youth interests by special invitation from the Vice President of Panama herself.

We’re living in an increasingly interconnected world where society has moved passed apathy to greater understanding the damages we create through environmental degradation, pollution and everyday actions. I believe we’re at the perfect time to go out there and do something.  And I believe young people today are ready to go out and do that.

Schooled in law (Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada), trained in peace and conflict resolution by the Canadian International Institute of Applied Negotiation and empowered to act through experience in high-responsibility roles in politics and diplomacy in the Canadian Senate and the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Canada, she applies her knowledge of communication, systems and players to solving systemic issues, build peace and awareness, while holding micro and macro perspectives in mind. This has made her excel as a proactive leader and thoughtful project initiator and manager. Martina takes great joy in creating people-centric, empowering solutions to complex problems and believes that to solve the most difficult challenges we must meet people and problems where they are, engage in meaningful dialogue, and dig deep, while working together to co-create solutions for long-term success.

Her #StartWithin approach is the greatest summary of her passions. She is an advocate for peace, collaboration, mindfulness, and empowering people to take radical responsibility for their future (and thus the future of our world) by working from within, to see the changes we so need externally.  When it comes to the Global Goals, Martina knows that these are not just goals for the United Nations, but for the whole of humanity,  and so aims to empower everyone to make their own positive impact to help move the world in the right direction.

Martina is currently traveling the world, doing yoga, and probably reading a really good book.  In her spare time, she also blogs for the Huffington Post. You can read her most recent article on Mindfulness Towards Achieving the Global Goals here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/martina-buchal/