Steven (Tuti) Mukum ’26 has received two prestigious awards geared to young people at the forefront of positive social change.

Mukum earned the John Lewis Young Leaders Fellowship, which helps undergraduates become more effective social justice and civic leaders, as well as The Diana Award, which celebrates and empowers students who are creating positive change around the world.

“I feel incredibly honored to have received both awards,” says Mukum, an economics and international development major from Cameroon.

“Being the only international student in this year's Lewis fellowship makes that one particularly meaningful,” he adds, “as I particularly respect the late Congressman John Lewis' fight for equality.”

Mukum becomes the first Swarthmore student to receive the Lewis fellowship, which since 2017 has aimed to support the next generation of human rights defenders. Fellows receive resources and support to ensure their success in the program, including access to grassroots organizing workshops, one-on-one mentorship from RFK Human Rights staff, inclusion with a wide network of human rights professionals and program alumni, and financial support.

Lewis fellows develop a yearlong human rights or social justice project. Mukum is focusing on creating a multimedia storytelling initiative to amplify the voices of the people displaced by the sociopolitical crisis in Cameroon.

“Being a part of this community myself makes it especially thrilling to share their stories and experiences,” he says.

The Diana Award is considered one of the most prestigious international awards for student leaders around the world. Established in the memory of the late Diana, Princess of Wales, the program is rooted in her belief that young people have the power to change the world.

Mukum says it was “surreal” to hear he had received the recognition, since he had not applied for it but rather was nominated by community leaders in response to his efforts stemming from his project “Growing Food, Growing Communities, and Growing Hope (G3) for Peace.”

He began that project in his first year at Swarthmore, after receiving the Davis Project for Peace grant through the Lang Center for Civic & Social Responsibility. He created an agriculture and rehabilitation program to support displaced persons in Cameroon.

Mukum, also a Lang Opportunity Scholar and the organizer of the Africa is Rising symposium, cites the Lang Center as key to the Lewis fellowship and Diana Award. He points to “the training in systems mapping, the Impact Gaps Analysis workshops, and, most importantly, the guidance of [Director of Program Development, Implementation, and Assessment] Jennifer Magee, who has continually encouraged and directed me toward opportunities that would help me create impact for communities I care about.

“This support has been an instrumental stepping stone in my journey,” he says.