My Life My Say

You’re invited to join us and make some NOISE! The UK’s youth & democracy summit is taking on The Barbican Centre on Friday 22nd November. Join My Life My Say as we bring together decision makers, business leaders and young people from across the U.K. to discuss the greatest issues facing our generation. Let me know if you’re coming by commenting “See you there!” below 👇🏽 If you’re not already signed up, get your tickets here: https://lnkd.in/eXU3eFWu And if you would like to get your organisation involved, send me a DM! Remi Olokun Melisha John Paris Mia H. Hayley Biley George Somers Lily Mott Mete Coban MBE Joe Rich Andrew Roughan Glen Manning Harjeet Sahota Cécile Laval, PhD, SFHEA Lennox O-A, ICA.Cert (AML) Jenk Oz, FRSA BCyA Alex Holmes George Fielding BEM Sophie Pender Fin Wright Sami Gichki Mathilda Della Torre Sharon Gaffka Dr Annabel Mullin JP Stephen Skeet Holly Notcutt Gary Trowsdale Abdirahman A. Patrick Cook Lánre Adeleye Lucy Newman Olivia Clarke Xavier Banson Kayleigh Wainwright #conference #youth #democracy #engagement #nextgen #letsgo

I wanted to do something meaningful to honour Black History Month at My Life My Say. The key question for me was: how can I create *real* impact for young black and brown people during this month? The answer was clear—to do what we do best at MLMS and bring people into the same rooms as high-level decision-makers, people at the top of their fields, because young POC deserve access to these spaces and conversations too. We hosted the event in the Mayor's office in Lambeth Town Hall, Brixton. A location rich in Black British history. It felt right to bring these conversations into a space with such deep connections to the community. I ran with the idea of exploring what it means to be black in politics, breaking it down into two panels. Panel 1: Navigating Race & Identity in UK Politics. We had an incredible line-up that included Jovan Owusu-Nepaul, Dr Nero Ughwujabo and Dr. Mahamed Hashi. Panel 2: Learning from History, Leading Tomorrow. Bringing together two remarkable women from U.S. politics: Muthoni Wambu Kraal and Amy K. Dacey. Finishing with a speech from Bashir Ibrahim. You can imagine how impactful these conversations were. In a room, we brought together over 50 young people, over 50% of them local to Brixton, and an audience that was over 95% black and brown. These are the kinds of spaces I want to continue creating. A huge thank you to the Mayor of Lambeth, John-Paul Ennis for partnering with us and allowing us to use your space. And a special shout-out to Lily Mott, who jumped into the chaos just weeks before the event and helped bring my vision to life. I’m always grateful for the freedom we have at My Life My Say to create events based on what we truly Give an X about. I’m hyperaware that not everyone in larger organisations has that same privilege—where ideas often have to pass through multiple teams and boardrooms, getting reshaped or even scrapped along the way. It was an absolute pleasure to design, organise, and host this event.

Are you excited for #NextGen? We asked our Engagement Team what they are most looking forward to at Next Gen: Give an X. Lily Mott is looking forward to everyone seeing the inspiring lineup of speakers we have at the conference 🗣️💎 Make sure you get to see the incredible lineup (with more info on that coming very soon 👀) by securing your free ticket today: https://lnkd.in/eR4yEwiB

We know, it's a bold claim 😉 But if you knew what we have in store this year, you'd be as sure as we are that this year will be the best #NextGen ever! Head to our website via the link below to secure your free ticket today: https://lnkd.in/eR4yEwiB

Yesterday was a day of 𝑭𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒔 for me: 📍It was my 𝑭𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 time in Liverpool. I was only there for a day so unfortunately I didn’t get the chance to improve my Scouse accent 😪 ☕️ Paris Mia H. and I hosted My Life My Say’s 𝑭𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 Democracy Café in Liverpool, collaborating with MERSEYSIDE YOUTH ASSOCIATION LIMITED. It was great to see and speak with some young people and hear what policies they want the government to prioritise 📋 🎤 And lastly, I had the privilege to speak on a panel for the 𝑭𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 time. Many thanks to The Young Fabians for having me and for facilitating such a much-needed discussion about young people and the future of voting 🤳

NCS partners with MyLifeMySay a youth-led, non-partisan charity on a mission to amplify youth voices and engage young people from underrepresented communities in democracy. From organising over 700+ nationwide Democracy Cafés to hosting the UK's largest youth summit, Next Gen, they strive to ensure young people have their voices heard. Earlier this year, they founded the Give An X campaign we supported alongside the #iWill Movement and Shape History. Give An X became the UK's largest youth voter registration campaign which helped 488,846 young people register to vote in this year's elections. Through their Squad and Squad Leadership programme, they help empower young people from all parts of the country to feel like they can become changemakers within their communities and in politics.

One morning we asked Siri “how do we build a My Life My Say community”. She told us to hire Paris Mia H.👩🚒 Young people are at the heart of everything we do at My Life My Say. They co-create our programmes. They speak at our events. They lead our campaigns. But we needed someone to solidify our community, bringing them together and ensuring that they’re embedded into all of our work. In just five months of arriving Paris has 👇🏽 1️⃣ Coordinated youth co-creation and leadership opportunities as part of our landmark #GiveAnX Campaign. 2️⃣ Brought together a community of 300 young people (18-30 year olds) across the country on digital platforms whilst embedding new safeguarding processes. 3️⃣ Upgraded our Squad Leaders programme to become a comprehensive, highly engaging leadership programme offering bespoke personal branding, upskilling and new opportunities. The Squad Community are going to be essential to My Life My Say growth as we embark on a new chapter. Thank you Paris (& Siri). #Team #CommunityBuilding #Engaging #YoungPeople #Youth #Politics Melisha John Hayley Biley Remi Olokun Mete Coban MBE

🎉 It’s Squad Day 🎉 It’s a new era for government and My Life My Say 🌅 Now more than ever, young people are at the heart of everything we do and we want to ensure our Squad is ready to step into the next chapter✨ We've revamped the look and feel of our Squad 🔥 and have decided to commemorate this occasion by declaring August 1st - SQUAD DAY 🎉 What is the Squad? The Squad Network is a dynamic network designed for young people passionate about making a difference. Based on WhatsApp, it's the ultimate hub for connecting with like-minded change-makers who share your enthusiasm for driving positive change in the 🌍 Interested? Head to our website to join the squad and be part of an amazing movement 👉 https://lnkd.in/eRtjwwX8 #TheSquad #NewEra #MLMS 

We are delighted to share the incredible success of the Give an X voter registration campaign. Thanks to your support, we reached a staggering 4,061,056 young people aged 18 to 24 through our targeted paid ads. Even more impressive, 488,886 of these young people clicked through our links to the Government website to register to vote. This remarkable achievement was made possible by our innovative partnerships and collaborative efforts with sectors that don't traditionally engage in voter registration and youth engagement. We worked with over 300 organisations from across media and entertainment, advertising agencies, the youth sector, culture, sports, and many other industries to encourage young people to turn out to vote. The scale of our efforts through the Give an X campaign was unprecedented. Here are some highlights of our partnership work: Tinder: Users could register to vote while swiping right to look for a date. Snapchat: We introduced engaging filters to promote voter registration. Premier League: Our campaign featured in matchday programmes, reaching football fans across the UK. Lime: We offered thousands of free minutes to young people to “Lime to the Polls.” Ben & Jerry’s: We had our own Battle Bus that visited young people across the country, giving out free ice cream and promoting voter registration. Pearl & Dean Cinemas: We showcased our campaign to movie-goers with an engaging trailer in partnership with Ogilvy.  Influencers and Celebrities: Through our partnership with Ogilvy, we launched the "You Already Vote, So Vote" campaign, working with reality TV stars and other popular figures to encourage young people to register to vote. A key part of our campaign's success is our youth-led approach and meeting young people where they are. Our youth steering group helped shape the look and feel of the campaign and strategised with us every step of the way. However, we know that there is still much to do. While unconfirmed, there are many reports of historically low turnout at the 2024 election, making our work even more crucial to engage young people in politics. We need your help to build on the success of Give an X. By donating as little as £10, you can help elevate our model of engagement, address low youth participation in elections, and build young people’s trust in politics. You can donate by clicking here: https://lnkd.in/eq5ma8Vr Thank you for all your support.

What. A. Night. This General Election will be remembered as one of the most significant in history. We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you who helped deliver an incredible campaign. With the help of our amazing partners and supporters across the country, we’ve inspired countless people to get out there and #GiveAnX. Stay tuned next week as we share all the stats on the incredible reach and impact of our efforts. For now, let’s take a moment to rest and celebrate the amazing foundation we’ve built together. This momentum will only continue to grow from here. With gratitude, The My Life My Say Team 🗳️❤️ #GeneralElection2024 #GiveAnX #ElectionNight #ThankYou #CampaignSuccess #MyLifeMySay