Ili Nadiah Dzulfakar

Growing up in the 90s, Ili Nadiah Dzulfakar witnessed a fair share of biodiversity collapses in Malaysia. Her first step was to embark on an environmental science degree programme at Nottingham University.

But Ili Nadiah was no idle environmentalist. In 2019, Ili Nadiah and her friends founded Klima Action Malaysia (KAMY), a climate justice and feminist organisation led by young people in Malaysia. Four months later, the pressure group took to the road and rallied a 1000-strong crowd intending to highlight the climate crisis to the then-government.

The demonstration sparked international media attention. KAMY has matured as an organisation that works to strengthen the ecosystem of climate justice and climate governance in Malaysia through research and lobbying. Over the years, KAMY strengthened engagement with civil societies and vulnerable groups such as the indigenous communities to join hands to take action against climate change.

Ili Nadiah also co-founded Weaving Hopes for the Future, a programme to cultivate leadership and organisational skills amongst Malaysian indigenous communities, especially women and the youth. By using art, she hopes the indigenous communities in Malaysia will add value to the existing discussion on climate change.

She is also a consultant working in climate policy and risk, and business and human rights (BHR) with experience in several local think tanks and international institutions like the ISIS Malaysia, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, European Climate Foundation, Climate Tracker, Stanley Center for Peace and Security, INGKA group’s Young Leaders Council and the Swedish MFA international advisory group for the environment, climate and biodiversity.

For more info on Klima Action Malaysia (KAMY), click here.

A good impact should be inclusive, diverse and non-discriminating and must be felt by the most vulnerable in our society. In my work, I believe that good impacts should be life-changing for generations to come. It rewires our behaviour and our relationship with each other and with nature. And to do that, we must reimagine what a good world this could be and how we can collectively play a part in being in that good world.