Linguistics student Hannah Feben-Smith wins at 2022 Young Scot Awards. Image Addie, Hannah & Jo Last year Hannah and her friends Josephine Jay and Adaline Bara founded Whatever Next? after meeting on a Facebook group aimed at adoptees. Whatever Next? was created to highlight and amplify the voices of adoptees. The group share insights from their daily lives to create a better understanding of adoption and connect those interested or involved in the adoptee experience. The aim of Whatever Next? is to positively impact the adoptive community while challenging misconceptions. Young Scot Awards The Young Scot Awards were established in 2006 to celebrate the inspirational contributions and achievements of thousands of young Scots who have made a real difference to communities across Scotland. Whatever Next? received an award in the Equality and Diversity category. Since launching in January 2021 Whatever Next? has gone from strength to strength. The website has had over seven thousand views from 42 countries, they have over 2,500 across their various social media platforms and a podcast with over 1,000 streams. A short history of success This isn’t the first time that Whatever Next? has been recognised either. They have already received an Awesome Without Borders grant, the 2021 Creative Edinburgh Student Award and were shortlisted for the EUSA Student Award for Lasting Impact. And there’s more in the pipeline for this incredible trio, having secured a deal to release a book this August! More news to come on that when the book is released. We feel honoured and humbled just to have been nominated for the Young Scot Award. It has been such a rewarding experience sharing our stories and thoughts about adoption. As we connect with more people through Whatever Next?, we continue to learn and grow with our project. We weren’t sure where it would take us but to win this award is just fantastic. Hannah Feben-Smith More Information Whatever Next? Young Scot Awards Awesome Without Borders Publication date 02 May, 2022
