“The biggest challenge has to be my age,” he said, highlighting a cultural norm passed down to many young Caribbean people to “speak only when spoken to” and “let the older bosses have the big discussions.”
The sport has helped her overcome these barriers: “Archery gives you that discipline to keep going,” she said.
Anthurium Lewis receives first prize in an archery competition.
Now, Ms Lewis wants to use her platform as a Young Leader for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – the internationally agreed goals aimed at driving peace and prosperity for people and planet – to demonstrate that young people can lead change when the world makes space for their voices and equips them with the right skills.
She believes that sport is one of the most powerful ways to develop these skills.
‘Kids can do it’
We have a voice and a vote. We have the intellect. We also have the passion behind it. You don’t have to wait until you’re 25 to want to fight for a cause… We can start right now.
The most profound transformation that sport brings is quieter than a trophy or a title; It starts in the mind.
She believes archery is 80 percent a test of mindset with the self-esteem and discipline it builds in a young person transferring to all aspects of their life.
However, recognizing the challenges faced by other young people with powerful ideas but nowhere to turn, Ms. Lewis encourages her peers to be confident in their voice.
“Children can do it. We have a say. We have the intellect. We also have the passion behind it. It is not necessary to wait until we are 25 years old to want to fight for a cause… We can start right now.”
Sustainability mission
Through his foundation, Lewis is on a mission to plant native fruit trees throughout Tobago to move the island toward more sustainable practices and boost food security.
He also visits schools, communities and religious organizations, where he works to train young people to plant fruit trees, such as sapodilla, soursop, cherimoya, breadfruit and star fruit.
From fruit trees to food security: Anthurium Lewis | United Nations
“You won’t find me just planting,” he said, “you will actually find other young people, also very young children, going out and planting their own fruit trees that they will take care of.”
Efforts pay off
On his first visit to a rural primary school in Tobago, Lewis arrived to find the school’s gardening area overgrown and abandoned, but two months later, he returned to find it transformed: it was cleared and filled with children diligently tending their plants during the school day.
“That change made me very happy,” he said, emphasizing that the work also gives children the opportunity to get out of the noise of the classroom, connect with their peers and build something together with their own hands.
For Ms. Lewis, that sense of ownership, which fosters discipline and self-confidence, is the goal.
Anthurium Lewis spoke to UN News ahead of ECOSOC’s annual Youth Forum (14-16 April 2026), which brings together young leaders with policymakers to focus on promoting the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals.