In 2023, Jodie Bailey-Ho was a finalist in the Canon Young Champion category at the Global Good Awards, having submitted an amazing entry that told us about how she co-founded ‘Teach the Teacher‘ – a global, student-led campaign to embed effective, informative, and well integrated climate education into schools. The programme provides training, resources and support for young people, empowering them to deliver climate education training to their own teachers.

But Jodie hasn’t rested on her laurels since then, continuing her work in sustainability and climate change, winning more awards, and even joining our panel of judges in 2024 to help us assess entries in the very category that she triumphed in! And all while studying for her degree at the University of Manchester!

We grabbed half an hour of her time, to ask how things have been going, as well as her top pieces of advice for any young person thinking abut entering the Canon Young Champion category.

Hi Jodie! Thanks so much for giving up some of your precious time. First up, could you tell us what first attracted you to enter the Canon Young Champion category? had you entered any awards before?

I think I saw a post on LinkedIn or Instagram, and thought, ‘yeah, I could probably do that!’. After looking at the previous winners I felt inspired to write an application of my own – I liked the prospect of being recognised amongst other changemakers on a global scale, and I also remember thinking that winning a camera would be really cool! I had entered and won a small-scale local award before, the Jack Petchey Environmental Award, and that boosted my confidence a little – but it was still daunting to apply for an award when the scope was so big.

What would be your top tips for anyone submitting an entry?

The first thing that immediately jumps out to me when I read the applications is whether or not the applicant has fully answered the question. I would say to always keep the question in mind when you write the answers – often we have set categories to score, and if the question hasn’t really been answered, it makes it hard to judge properly! Keep an eye on the judging criteria that comes with the information about the category to help with this.

It also helps to try and think about whether you’ve written enough. Writing paragraphs is not necessary (at all!) but one or two sentences might not be enough to really get your point across.

My main tip is to put yourself in your writing, and try to enjoy writing your application! It’s really nice to read an application where the entrant’s personality shines through, and this also helps to really show that they’re passionate about their project too.

Since you’ve also seen the judging side, what are the judges really looking for? What would make an entry stand out?

We’re looking for originality, passion, and dedication – but most of all, we’re looking for evidence of all these things! If you can include statistics, facts, and quotes, it really helps to quantify the impact you’ve had and show us that you’ve helped real people.

Other things that help an entry are the photos and supporting video. I personally really like seeing when there are pictures of you out doing your work (whatever that may be), and when those pictures reflect what has been said in the application previously. If you’ve said you did a presentation or a panel, we want to see a picture of you at the panel. If you said you’ve sold something, show us you selling your products! This really helps put an application in context, and helps me to visualise you out in the field.

Looking back at your own entry, is there anything you would have done differently (even though it was obviously a very good entry!)?

Ooh, what a good question. I think I might have made a completely new video. I took a clip from a video I had previously made explaining how my project worked, but it wasn’t personalised to the Global Good Awards, and didn’t include anything else I talked about in my application. That wouldn’t have been strictly necessary, but after seeing entries from last year (where the winner made an amazing video!!) I think this would only have helped me.

What did being a finalist offer you in terms of insight, support, recognition, and opportunities?

As a finalist, I was invited to be one of the Cartoon Network Climate Champions! That was an amazing experience – I filmed an interview with them talking about easy ways to help the planet, and it’s still being aired on television which is a bit surreal. I’ve also been invited back to judge the Canon Young Champion category, which is very fun, and always inspiring to see so many other young people fighting for what they believe in, and trying to make the world a better place. I’ve also had the opportunity to connect with the other finalists, thanks to the GGA team running Zooms so we can introduce ourselves to each other and hear about everyone else’s work.

What kind of positive effect has being named a finalist made to the work you do around your cause?

It was definitely a confidence boost! It always helps to know when you’re on the right track, and the credibility of an award can help to validate you to other people – especially in a professional setting. There have been great networking opportunities too, like meeting the team at Canon and getting the opportunity to speak to young people they work with, and some great meetings have come from adding people I’ve met through the GGA network on LinkedIn! I also believe it’s good personal and professional growth to do hard things, like putting yourself out there for an award, and if you don’t win you’ve still challenged yourself.

What are you doing now, and tell us about the other awards you’ve won!

I am currently in post as one of the Department for Education Youth Focal Points for Sustainability and Climate Change, although my role ends in July/August this year. I’m gutted to be leaving it behind, but it has taught me so much and its been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life so far. I’ve also won The Diana Award for my work on Teach the Teacher and bringing the importance of climate education to a global audience. I definitely wouldn’t have been able to do this without being a finalist for Canon Young Champion – it gave me the confidence I needed to ask someone to nominate me!

What are your plans for the future?

I’m currently in my third year at the University of Manchester, where I study environmental science. I’m doing a placement year this year, and have been working as an intern at an environmental consultancy. After I go back to university to complete my fourth year and get a masters, I’m not sure what I want to do! I think a PhD is on the cards, or going back to the job I’m in now. I’d really like a career in both industry and policy, helping push sustainability through business and science (s much as that is possible?!) before moving into policy and working for the civil service. Who knows what could happen!

Thank you so much to Jodie for sparing us some time, and hopefully providing some inspiration to our next generation of Canon Young Champs. You still have time to submit an entry (our deadline is on 9th May 2025), and we would love to see what you’ve been up to. We have heaps of information on our dedicated page – including tips for entering, and what our other past winners and finalists have been doing.

If you have any questions at any time, please email Karen or call her on 01932 355900 or 07813 718541.