Faculty: Forestry
Program: Master of Forest and Conservation Sciences
Year: 2017
Country: Nigeria
Despite the distraction of financial hardship, Samuel performed at the highest level in each stage of his education, allowing him to “see a glorious future ahead coupled with his passion, hard work and commitment to achieve greatness.” In addition to his commitment to academics, Samuel also involves himself with community service through his role as the founder and lead volunteer of his own NGO, Pace Impact Initiative. In the past year, this organization has been able to train 200 young people in two communities on academic excellence, leadership and skill acquisition, allowing participants to leverage their knowledge and skills to impact their communities. Samuel believes that the biggest impacts come from educating youth with real world skills; as a result, he has committed his time outside of the Pace Impact Initiative to volunteer with other NGOs that focus on leadership, youth capacity building, rural development and entrepreneurship – areas where he finds passion.
Samuel aspires to build a career in the environmental and natural resources sectors. His MSc research thesis will be looking at specific problems associated with forest policy in Nigeria and ultimately offer solutions to such problems through facilitating consultations with all stakeholders in the forestry sector. As he prepares for his time at UBC, he reminds himself that there are bound to be distractions, difficulties or discouragement along the way; however, only those who persist in the pursuit of their dreams will achieve greatness.