Niouma Semega: Environmental Justice and Leadership for Empowering the Next Generation - 028

This podcast delves into Niouma's personal story, from her childhood in Mauritania to her current PhD studies in environmental health at Boston University.Her experiences as a Black woman in STEM, often being the only one in the room, fueled her passion to create change.The Mission of Semega Change: Niouma founded Semega Change to address the underrepresentation of women of color in STEM. The organization's mission is to empower these women with the resources, mentorship, and opportunities to become leaders and problem-solvers in their communities.A Multi-Faceted Approach to Empowerment: Semega Change operates on local, national, and global levels. Their programs include mentorship opportunities, leadership summits in countries like Nigeria and Tanzania, and the annual Semega Change Gala that celebrates the achievements of women of color in STEM.Community-Centric Solutions: A core theme of the conversation is the importance of community-driven solutions. Niouma emphasizes that those who have experienced the problems are often the best equipped to solve them, and Semega Change aims to empower them to do so.The Intersection of Environment, Justice, and Policy: The podcast explores the deep connections between environmental issues, social justice, and policy. Niouma's talk, "Racism Polluting the Water," is highlighted, and she discusses how environmental hazards disproportionately affect minority communities.A Call to Action: The episode concludes with a powerful call to action for listeners to support Semega Change. This includes following them on social media, donating to their cause, and spreading the word about their impactful work.Timestamps[04:19.4 - 04:22.3] "something I call workaholic, where I just cannot sit down."[09:22.6 - 09:29.0] "I was the only woman or the only woman of color or black woman in most of these rooms."[11:21.5 - 11:21.5] "racism pollutes the water. Tell us more."[16:06.2 - 16:11.7] "nimbyism or not in my backyard they're like don't put this mercury polluting building in my backyard put it over there"[32:34.5 - 32:43.5] "I was the first Black student in the department in five years or more"[35:35.7 - 35:39.5] "for us it's also important that we are the ones to create the solutions for our communities"[57:00.8 - 57:08.0] "So Make a Change actually stands for Science, Environment, Medicine for Girls Achieving Change. So, you know, it's also a play on my last name."[58:50.7 - 59:02.6] "A lot of the issues we have no longer exist, but for them to have the urge and the passion to continue the work if we haven't gotten to where we need to be because someone like me has started it or moved it along or to sustain it if we are in a position where things do get better."LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/niouma-semega-3b6483205/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/semegachange/Website https://www.semegachange.com/Donate here: https://link.africanwomeninstem.com/SemegaChangePublic Hearings: https://www.senate.gov/committees/how_to_committee_hearings.htm“Racism Polluting the Water” https://youtu.be/FiUGlGa_ouA?si=gDB098rYymTX52oC