To support young people in Iraqi Kurdistan and encourage them to improve their communities through entrepreneurship, Spirit of America partnered with Five One Labs to launch The Youth Impact Initiative, a collaborative campaign with the US Consulate Erbil. This project set out to strengthen engagement and solidarity between Americans and Kurdistani youth, and to provide young leaders in the region with the resources, mentorship and confidence they’d need to turn their bold ideas into actions.

A Wave of Innovation – Kurdistani Youth Respond to the Call for Community Solutions

The campaign kicked off with a pitch competition, inviting young people in the region to present solutions to challenges affecting their communities. Over 800 applications poured in, highlighting the enthusiasm for programs in this region that empower individuals to become leaders in improving the areas where they live and work. The project proposals ranged from issues like environmental sustainability, public health, community engagement, and legal empowerment. In total, 10 finalists were selected and publicly celebrated for their creativity and commitment to making an impact.

The Youth Impact Initiative winners received seed funding for their projects from Spirit of America after completing their entrepreneurship bootcamp at Five One Labs.

Each selected participant was invited to an entrepreneurship bootcamp hosted by Five One Labs in Erbil, a week-long immersive training that provided essential education in entrepreneurship, project management, marketing, design thinking, and budgeting. By integrating hands-on exercises and real-life scenarios, the bootcamp prepared participants to implement their projects with confidence and skill. Upon completion, each winner received $3,000 in project funding from Spirit of America to kickstart their initiatives.

From Pitch to Project, Young Leaders In Action

The Youth Impact Initiative’s reach extended well beyond its immediate participants. Finalists poured their energy into tackling a spectrum of local challenges, and their projects directly benefited hundreds of people, while also inspiring thousands more through awareness campaigns and community events.

Building Connections through Storytelling
Sisters Shnyar and Sozyar Yadgar worked to build connections across their communities through storytelling. Shnyar’s project, “More Beautiful Together” highlighted the commonalities of different religions in her community and created space in podcasts and seminars for discussions that highlighted connections and led to deeper understanding and peace between locals in the Halabja region.

Sozyar infused culture and performance art into her teachings on climate, to make a positive and lasting impact on the way young people in her community engage with their environment. After the project wrapped, Sozyar commented on the power of bringing together bold people with bold ideas. “Through this program, I met many talented young people with strong ideas, which had a good impact on exchanging and promoting our ideas and working together in the future to beautify and develop our city.”

Enviromental Impact
Majid Khodeda organized multiple clean ups and started planting trees, inspiring his city of Duhok to embrace environmental conservation and sustainability practices. He shared: “Spirit of America has had a remarkable impact, particularly on initiatives with the potential to evolve into sustainable businesses… Through our work, we have inspired community members to plant more trees and to take greater responsibility for protecting and preserving the natural ecosystem.”

Majid attending the entrepreneurship bootcamp

First Aid Support
Participant Alla Rasheed Sleman identified an unmet need in her community and acted. She wanted to better equip her community with first aid training and practical emergency skills and resources. By the end of the project, she had provided critical assistance in over 25 emergency cases. In her words: “Our ambulance service, working collaboratively with public ambulances, played an essential role in providing timely medical support and contributed to the overall safety and well-being of the community.”

Alla completing the entrepreneurship bootcamp

Volunteers assisting with emergency medical cases in Alla’s community

Empowering Women & Young People
Amez Abdulrahman’s project “Support for Women and Youth” set out to enable other young women in her community and has since trained over 100 youth in natural product manufacturing techniques.

Amez attending the entrepreneurship bootcamp

Amez awarding a certificate of completion to one of the women who attended her workshops.

AI Innovation
Bahast Mohammed launched Mitmana, a digital AI platform in the Kurdish language that gives young people the access and skills to create masterful presentations. The program empowered Bahast to grow his internal team and expand his company’s social media presence.

Bahast attending the entrepreneurship bootcamp hosted by Five One Labs

Impact and Learnings:

A standout feature of the Youth Impact Initiative program was that it attracted young entrepreneurs with projects from all four main governorates in Iraqi Kurdistan. In final surveys, 90% of participants reported that the program introduced new ideas and opportunities to their communities, and a majority agreed that programs like this promote new ideas, global connections, and positive perceptions of American values.

The results of our Youth Impact Initiative highlighted the remarkable potential of young entrepreneurs in Iraqi Kurdistan when given the proper tools, access to education, and a supportive network of partners. And the pool of over 800 applicants to the program emphasized their passionate ambitions to make a positive and long-lasting impact in their communities.