SARAH KOLA

Sarah Kola has worked at governmental hospital pharmacies, and with many non-profit organisations in an attempt to give back to society, as she believes in the importance of uplifting weaker members of the community. Sarah is the recipient of the Masters Innovation Scholarship from the National Research Foundation of South Africa. She has been awarded with the Brian Seymour Award for 2018, which is the most prestigious award for a pharmacy student in South Africa. The attributes sought after in the selected winner, are academic excellence, leadership qualities and a keen interest in, and enthusiasm for the pharmacy profession. Sarah is currently researching novel mechanisms of drug delivery. Sarah Kola lives in Johannesburg, South Africa.

“Happiness is an inside job, it comes from within”

Q: TELL US A FEW THINGS ABOUT YOUR COUNTRY, AND ALSO YOUR LIFE'S STORY!

I love living in Johannesburg, South Africa because it is a country that welcomes and celebrates diversity of all kinds. Due to the lessons learned from the oppression of the apartheid era, racial, religious, and gender-based inequality is not well tolerated and any victim of such is given support. As a result, it makes living in South Africa wonderful for me as a young Muslim woman, as I never feel afraid to wear my religious garb and practise my religion freely.

I have been given the opportunity to make friends who belong to all faiths and racial groups, which has taught me to be accepting to and loving of all people, based on the truth that ultimately we are all human beings and are worthy of respect, regardless of our differences. This has proven to me that South Africa really does foster a culture of “The Rainbow Nation.”

Q: WHAT IS YOUR VIEW OF THE WORLD AS IT IS TODAY? AND HOW DO YOU DEFINE THE CONCEPT OF A BETTER WORLD?

There is a great deal of pain, suffering, injustice, and inequality present in the world we live in today. However, I believe that by only focusing on the negative and not taking the positive into consideration, we may feel despondent and hope for a better tomorrow will be lost.

After reading the book ‘Factfulness’ by Hans Rosling, I have realised that in totality our world today is an overall positive environment, as compared to the past. Factors such as life expectancy, the empowerment of women, reduction of poverty, reduction of deaths by natural disasters, access to electricity, and developing a greater awareness on endangered species have all greatly improved in the past 20 to 30 years, proving that our world is improving and if we are all willing to work towards further positive change we are capable of achieving a beautiful tomorrow.

My definition of a better world is one in which injustice of any kind does not exist, where good morals and values are used to govern how we live and interact with each other, and where positive communication skills are employed to deal with disagreements and challenges. My greatest hope for a better tomorrow is that love will be used instead of hate to deal with our differences and trials. As Martin Luther King Jr said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

Q: WHAT ARE SOME OF THE KEY CHALLENGES IN YOUR SOCIETY?

Some of the key challenges present in South Africa are high unemployment and low incomes which leads to an increase in poverty and consequently an increase in crime rates. There is a high rate of illegal immigration by people from other parts of Africa, leading to an increase in competition for limited jobs and resources. Inequality with respect to access to quality education is present. State involvement in corruption has led to the development of chaos within state-owned companies, thereby causing a regression in the growth of the country. Access to not just healthcare, but quality healthcare is still a challenge for the poorest of the nation.

Q: AS A YOUNG INDIVIDUAL WHAT ARE A FEW OF THE HURDLES THAT YOU HAD TO OVERCOME UP UNTIL TODAY?

By far the greatest hurdle I had to overcome was experiencing a divorce at the age of 23. Divorce has been described as the psychological equivalent of a triple coronary bypass, so having to overcome that challenge and its associated stigma as a very young adult was difficult. However, my belief is that every challenge is just a blessing in disguise. So even though the divorce was the greatest hurdle I had to overcome, it was also my greatest blessing as it allowed me to rebuild myself as what I believe to be a better, kinder, stronger, and more spiritual version of myself.

Q: WHY IS THE ROLE OF A MENTOR IMPORTANT FOR YOU?

As a young adult, the role of a mentor is important for me, as it provides me with the opportunity to receive guidance. Navigating one's way through adulthood can be daunting, therefore having the guidance and support of someone who is successful is a great asset in developing the necessary skills required to succeed as well.

Q: DO YOU HAVE A LESSON THAT LIFE HAS TAUGHT YOU AND YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE?

One of the greatest lessons that life has taught me is that happiness is a choice. Our individual happiness does not depend on anyone or anything else, but it comes from within. Instead of spending time wishing for a different reality and waiting for a moment in the future to arrive where we believe we will finally taste happiness, we need to work on leveraging the present moment’s opportunities that we have been given, whilst always keeping in mind that happiness is an inside job.

Q: NAME A PROJECT, A FOUNDATION OR A PERSON IN YOUR COUNTRY THAT YOU THINK IS DOING GREAT WORK IN HELPING IMPROVE OTHER PEOPLE'S LIVES!

The Gift of the Givers Foundation is a South African NGO that is doing wonderful work to improve the lives of people around the world.

Q: WHAT ARE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT WOMEN IN YOUR COUNTRY FACE AND WHAT EFFORTS ARE MADE TOWARDS GENDER EQUALITY?

The three greatest challenges faced by South African women are:

•        Lack of financial independence.

•        Inequality within the workplace.

•        Sexual violence.

The Southern African Development Community's (SADC) gender equality project is an effort to promote gender equality. Recently there has been an increase in the conversations taking place regarding gender equality. This has led to the development of a greater awareness surrounding gender equality and its importance within our society. I believe that as more people become aware of the problems that women face, more people will be willing to speak out and this will hopefully lead to action being taken.

Q: ATHENA40 IS THE FIRST EVER GLOBAL SELECTION OF THE TOP 40 WOMEN FORWARD THINKERS, COMMENTATORS, ACTIVISTS, AUTHORS, ACADEMICS, ENTREPRENEURS, EXECUTIVES, INNOVATORS. CAN YOU THINK OF A TRULY INNOVATIVE AND FORWARD-THINKING WOMAN FROM YOUR COUNTRY THAT YOU WISH TO NOMINATE FOR THE ATHENA40 GLOBAL RANKING?

I would like to nominate Dr Judy Dlamini. She is a qualified medical doctor, who also has an MBA and PhD

Q: SHARE WITH US A PHRASE, A POEM OR A STORY THAT YOU LOVE OR YOU FIND INTERESTING!

“You cannot connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.” – Steve Jobs

Q: TELL US ONE THING THAT YOU HAVE LEARNED FROM YOUR MENTOR.

I have learnt from my mentor the great importance of time management, and how to effectively implement it within my life.