My name is Ben Dowdle, I am in year 13 at Pakuranga College where I will be head boy this year. My passions are poverty and the environment and through my role as UNICEF ambassador I hope to highlight the strong link between the two. I enjoy cooking, hunting and playing hockey for our first Xl school team. To make money I garden, trap possums and umpire hockey. When I leave school I am hoping to study Economics, Geography and Politics as part of a conjoint arts and science degree.

Hey! My name’s Akane Sandom, and I’m from the beautiful Kapiti Coast! I’m 18 years old and am currently in my first year of studies at Victoria University of Wellington. I love travelling and meeting new people. Children’s rights and poverty are two issues that I’m really passionate about, as well as nuclear disarmament.

Darren Zhang - Kia Ora. I'm a first year student studying at Vic in Wellington. I'm passionate about the environment, social responsibility and really engaging with people on these challenges affecting our global community today. I love reading, going out when I can, learning and trying out new things but more importantly, I believe each and every young person has the potential to create change and that's what drives me.

My name is Sharndre Kushor, I am 17 years old and I am currently a head student at Albany Senior High School in Auckland.  I am passionate about education and believe that improvement in the quality of education around the world will be imperative in the eradication of poverty. While pursuing my passion I am also a normal teenager;  I go to parties, I socialise with friends, I’ve done cheer-leading, played hockey and I enjoy longboarding.  I am excited to be an ambassador and will focus on raising awareness about issues facing our Pacific neighbours. This year I hope to provide young people all over New Zealand with opportunities to get involved.

Rachael Hodge is a seventeen year old who attends Cashmere High School in Christchurch. She is passionate about global issues and also rebuilding her quake damaged city.  Rachael loves to get involved in as many things as she can, including being a Cancer Society Smokefree Youth Ambassador. Her favourite subject at school is drama and she has never had the drink coke and probably never will.

Hello I'm Nasif Azam, I am a 17 year old year 13 student, and the current head boy and Student trustee at Lincoln High School in the Garden City of Christchurch. My main pastimes are socialising, reading, music and movies; some of my hobbies are debating and public speaking! Having moved here from Bangladesh when I was 8 years old, I was motivated to become involved in UNICEF's work to raise awareness for the poverty and the impoverished condition in which children in developing countries experience. Of particular interest to me is the philosophy of human development, the issue of child exploitation and abuse, and the importance of education in achieving human rights and social justice.