Naza Alakija is a humanitarian, philanthropist and climate action advocate. She believes that climate change is the defining issue of our time and threatens to wipe out the social development gains of the last half century in the most climate vulnerable parts of the world. To protect the social development gains threatened by climate change, Naza focuses her work primarily on identifying and deploying solutions to address its negative impacts in low-income communities whilst providing both emergency and long-term solutions for refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) through different institutions such as UNICEF and the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
Naza currently works with and supports a number of key agencies including UNICEF through these programs: GIGA – a global connectivity expansion project designed to connect every young person in the world to the internet. Nanosatellites – encouraging girls in STEM by aiding 20 girls from across Kazakhstan who are creating models of nanosatellites that will be launched into the upper atmosphere to collect data. Conceptos Plasticos – which builds schools in developing nations, made out of recycled plastic collected by women in the community and sold to Conceptos.
In 2019, Naza launched a foundation – SAGE Innovation Centre – to identify, mentor and fund climate-solution innovations developed by African and Middle Eastern SMEs that promote equitable and sustainable development.