Tariq Lawal (he/they) is a writer, multifaceted creative, multimedia journalist, artivist, changemaker, and budding social entrepreneur from Lagos, Nigeria. He is constantly evolving and driven by an insatiable thirst for knowledge and personal growth. An angelic troublemaker and changemaker, Tariq is very dedicated to making a difference in the world. He also believes that art can be used to drive social change, so he uses a wide range of creative mediums to raise awareness about pressing world issues.
As a member of the Youth Advisory Council, he hopes to promote wildlife and ocean conservation in his community and beyond. He believes young people are capable of driving transformative change, so it is very important they feel empowered to do so. In the fall of 2023, Tariq ventured into the streets of Lagos Island to raise awareness about pressing social and environmental issues. The story of his public demonstration was even featured by UNICEF during COP28. Since then, he has been very dedicated to community organizing and youth mobilization.
Tariq passionately advocates for social, economic, environmental, racial, and gender justice. He is a UNICEF Nigeria Young Influencer, UNODC Nigeria Young Wildlife Influencer, and 4Ocean Wavemaker. He is also a Global Citizen 2024 Emerging Creative and a Heal The Planet Young Planet Leader. Tariq has won several creativity-related contests, including the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime #BeWildForNature Competition and the American Sociological Association Student Video Contest. Additionally, he serves as a World Literacy Foundation Youth Ambassador, a Theirworld Global Youth Ambassador, a CK-12 Ambassador, a The Climate Interactive Ambassador, Youth Talks Ambassador and a Write The World Community Ambassador.
He is the Director of Creative Media and Communications, a nonprofit that aims to help children and young people build healthy relationships with social media and digital platforms. Tariq manages their social media presence and digital communication channels. He is the Culture Lead Writer at Young Journalists of America and the only African correspondent for FEMINIST, a global hub for intersectional feminism with an audience of over six million. Tariq has also collaborated with various nonprofits as a creative media creator, interned with Ocean Uprise, the Corporate Sustainability and Responsibility Department at Wema Bank and OystrFinance, a fintech startup.
Currently, Tariq serves as the creative designer for Girl Up Nigeria and leads Catcalls of Lagos, a chapter of the global youth-led Chalk Back Movement, which aims to end street-based harassment and other forms of gender injustice. He is a Civics Unplugged Fellow, Orius Fellow, Young African Internet Safety Fellow, 50 Percent Storytelling Fellow and OneUpAction Creative Fellow, and is involved with YouthXYouth, UNITE 2030, the Internet Society, the youth constituency of the UNFCCC, the Children and Youth Major Group of UNEP, the Global Mental Health Action Network, and many other organizations. He also volunteers with Lekan Bakare Foundation, SustyVibes, Global Mental Health Outreach and many other nonprofits.