Himaja Nagireddy is the 11th UNA-USA Youth Observer to the UN!
The most critical role of the Youth Observer is to engage young Americans in the work of the UN, empowering them to be active participants to foster a greater global impact.
About Himaja
The most critical role of the Youth Observer is to engage young Americans in the work of the UN, empowering them to be active participants to foster a greater global impact.
About Himaja
Get to Know Himaja Nagireddy
Himaja Nagireddy, from Acton, MA, is a proud daughter of South Indian immigrants. She is currently a health equity research fellow at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). She recently graduated with an MS (SM-80) in Environmental Epidemiology with a concentration in Infectious Disease Epidemiology from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, where she was selected as a 2021 Presidential Public Service Fellow.
Himaja brings six years of experience as a leader at UNA-USA, where she served on the National Council and founded the first collegiate chapter in Connecticut. Among her works in public service, she has interned for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the Maryland Department of Public Health, and the Massachusetts State House under Senator Jo Comerford. Driven to localize all global goals, she ran for and was elected to serve as the first Indian American on the Select Board for the Town of Acton, MA. As one of the youngest elected representatives in the state, she is dedicated to building youth civic representation in her community and country.
Serving as the UNA-USA Youth Observer to the UN has been a long-time dream for Himaja. She is constantly inspired by young people who collaboratively organize and lead changes to protect the human rights and dignity of people in their community, especially those who have and continue to disproportionately face injustices that are overlooked and disregarded. Recognizing this, Himaja will strive to uplift and embolden the voices and actions of young people across our country in everything she does as this year’s UNA-USA Youth Observer to the UN.
The UNA-USA Youth Observer to the UN elevates youth voices in the global policy dialogue around international issues. For a one-year term, an American between the ages of 18 and 25 is selected to engage and connect young people in the U.S. to the work of the UN. The Youth Observer travels throughout the U.S. to discover the issues important to young Americans and participates as a UNA-USA delegate at UN conferences.
