An interview with Roy Kareem
BGF Programme Director
August 2025
After 9 years with Bright Green Future and empowering over 350 young people to learn about green career paths, Roy Kareem is stepping down as Programme Director. As a new chapter opens for both Roy and BGF, alumni from across all cohorts have offered their questions to reflect on Roy’s journey and legacy.
What has been your favourite part of directing Bright Green Future?
My favourite part of working on BGF is getting to meet new people and form new relationships. That's what gives me the most energy and brings out the best in me – whether it's talking to staff members or the young people on the programme. I love seeing our students change, make friendships with each other and connect with the ideas we present to them. There are some parts of BGF that seem to light people up and when that happens it’s really magical.
What is the most important part of BGF, in your view?
I think the most important part of BGF is our attempt to find a connection between the external and the internal. During the last residential I talked about the Twin Trail – wanting to do something out in the world, while also exploring what's going on inside, and trying to align those two things. That’s been relatively rare in the environmental world; those links between making an external impact and looking at well-being and mental health. I think that's one of the more unique and more important elements Bright Green Future engages with.
What has working with young people interested in caring for the planet taught you?
The students are great! Young people tend to have a very different way of thinking because they haven't had time to put barriers up. Something we do as we get older is start with the reasons why something won't work. Young people often start with the reasons why something could work. Working with young people, you constantly get to reset and see things with a beginner's mindset.
It's not that young people are always more hopeful: they’re all different! But they bring a clarity of perspective and ask different questions. Spending a week with BGF students on a residential, you can't help but feel more positive and hopeful about the future because you're surrounded by a community of energetic people with a shared passion.
What advice would you give to A-level students who want to make a difference immediately, but also want to go to university?
Going to university and making a difference are definitely not contradictory! I’d recommend starting off with something tangible and local to you. The complex thing about sustainability is that there are big systems and trying to change them is overwhelming. Get immediate feedback and feel change quickly by starting small with everyday changes like the food you eat, how you move around or even how you form relationships.
What's the best piece of advice you've ever received?
A friend used to say “fill your own cup first”: you can't act to replace your strength unless you've got your own solid foundation first. Another piece of advice that has stuck with me is “stay connected to that beginner’s mindset”, which I interpret as remaining open to new ways of looking at things and not holding on to my own preconceptions. If you're not open to new ways of looking at things, you're never going to be open to new ways of doing things. In our current situation, we really need that.
Other ideas I’ve heard over the years that have really resonated with me include the Twin Trail and the Inner Development Goals. I was really excited coming across those because they helped articulate things I've been trying to express but didn't quite have the language for, namely balance between the inner and outer.
What are your strengths and how do they reflect your journey so far?
This is such a good question. We were all asked this at the last residential and my top three strengths were learning, adaptability and ideation. I found that the more I used those strengths in my work at BGF, the greater the fulfilment and meaning I get from it. And in whatever I do next, I hope that I can apply these strengths - learning and adaptability and ideation - and by doing so get more satisfaction and make more impact.
What is one action we should all take to ensure a clean energy future?
On an individual level, I’d recommend very pragmatic actions like insulation and switching to a green energy tariff, as well as the usual suspects of how you eat and move.
Beyond that, the way we communicate is important. I became vegan 12 years ago for animal welfare. The more I talk about it, the more I’ve found that it’s important to share why it matters to me, as opposed to telling people what they should do. I think people respond much better to those personal and emotional stories.
How do you personally deal with fear or helplessness about the state of the world?
Honestly, I don't feel that anxiety and paralysis, not in the way people who experience eco-anxiety do. Though I empathise with it, I think I have a mental bias towards perhaps naïve optimism. People often see optimism as good and pessimism as bad but I think optimism can be extremely damaging in some ways. I don’t know whether my optimism is a strength or a weakness. When people ask, “how do you retain hope?” I know I don’t have to work at it so it’s an exercise in empathy for me to get in the heads of people who don’t feel the same.
How did you get into Tai Chi and Qigong and how do they influence your approach to leadership and life?
I’ve had a general interest in martial arts since I was a kid, trying judo for a tiny bit, but I didn’t try Tai Chi until around 10 years ago. I started with Kung Fu and continued with Tai Chi after moving to Bristol, eventually finding an individual teacher that I’ve stuck with. It really started out of curiosity.
What has it brought me? I wish I could share some great metaphors for life! For me, its value is about the importance of doing things that aren't related to work, leadership or climate. I feel the same way about music or playing a sport. When we talk about careers and making an impact in BGF, one of the things I try to emphasise is that careers aren't everything. They're hopefully an important and meaningful part of your life but there are lots of other important things and, for me, Tai Chi is a reminder of that.
What's your next step after BGF?
My plan is to take a small amount of time just to get used to a new city and get my family settled there. I’m excited to explore Spain, do more outside activities, go swimming in the sea and get a dog!

My next step is probably career coaching, especially working with people considering what they want to do next, so I’ll be taking my experience with Bright Green Future and trying to help them as best I can. I’m also in the very early stages of trying content creation around careers and would love to do more because I think it's such a fun way to be out in the world.
As Roy ends his journey with BGF, his impact endures with all the climate conscious young people he’s worked with.
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Thank you Roy for leading with such care and joy. Your legacy at Bright Green Future will be very fondly remembered and we all wish you the very best for the future!
Filling Roy’s shoes at BGF will be Amy Mander. She’s got a fascinating background working with young people through Global Social Leaders and other organisations so we can’t wait to see what she brings to BGF! We look forward to introducing you to her soon.