Community volunteer and academic Ryan Javanmardi plans to put the $1,000 scholarship to good use
Morgan Cross
News contributor
In a unanimous committee vote, recent Oak Bay High graduate Ryan Javanmardi was presented with the 2017 World Citizenship Scholarship by Oak Bay’s Bahá’í Faith community. For those who know him, it’s not a surprise: Javanmardi has volunteered in the Greater Victoria region for the past two years with Adopt-A-Highway, the Bahai Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program, Scouts Canada and as a martial arts assistant instructor, all while maintaining a 98.5% academic record.
The World Citizen Scholarship is presented to one grade twelve student who works toward harmony between people of all races, cultures and nationalities. Javanmardi exemplifies the award in his commitment to inclusivity and positivity in his community and around the world. “It means, first of all, eliminating any prejudice from your thinking. It’s a hard thing to do, but I want everyone to be treated equally and to receive equal opportunities,” Javanmardi said. “The only way I believe the world can reach peace is through uniting people and maintaining diversity.”
Javanmardi has travelled to eight countries and plans to volunteer abroad in the future, sights set on the Bahá’í World Centre in Israel January 2018. He plans to put his engineering degree to use in developing countries, and credits his family’s hosting of international students over the past 13 years as one of the primary reasons he has become globally aware and invested in other cultures. Javanmardi can speak three languages fluently.
“I’m considering specializing in biomedical,” he said. “The better technologies we can develop to address those issues will increase the quality of life worldwide and lead to happier communities.”
“Ultimately, my highest aspiration is to serve other people, no matter where they are or where they come from, and work towards progress for all, not just one country or one people, but the friendship between different countries.”
editor@oakbaynews.com