Kianni’s journey was sparked by a visit to Iran, her parents’ homeland.
“I was struck by how awful air pollution was. I couldn’t see stars at night,” she said.
She learned about the alarming rate at which temperatures in the Middle East were rising, yet her relatives knew very little about climate change due to the scarcity of information in Farsi.
“I was inspired to start Climate Cardinals because of this lack of climate information in my family’s native language,” Kianni said.
Breaking language barriers
Climate Cardinals is translating climate information into various languages, making it accessible to non-English speakers worldwide.
“I worked to translate climate resources into Farsi with my mom,” Kianni said. “We realized the vast majority of non-English speakers were left out of climate advocacy.”
Even the UN only translates its resources to its six official languages — Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish — which account for less than half of the world’s population. In partnership with UNICEF and the UN environmental program, Climate Cardinals has now translated more than a million words of climate resources into 100+ languages using AI from Google and more than 10,000 volunteers.
Leaning on other changemakers
Reflecting on her growth and that of Climate Cardinals, Kianni said she attributes significant learning to her interactions within the Ashoka changemaker community.
She learned how to navigate different challenges, how to fundraise, and how to balance being a student with creating an organization.
“It has been incredible to find this community which has not only provided support but also a platform to amplify our work,” she said.
With recent grant funding, Climate Cardinals is poised to expand its mission. They are using their new funding to hire full-time staff and will launch their ambassador and chapter programs with their NGO and tech partners, respectively.
Climate Cardinals aims not just to translate but also actively educate and empower people in climate advocacy, regardless of the language they speak.
