ARYAANA KHAN was born and raised in Bangladesh, a country annually submerged underwater as a result of climate change. Shortly after emigrating to New York, she began doing climate advocacy and organizing with various non-profit organizations— and used spoken word poetry to shed light on issues she cares about. She competed at the renowned Apollo Theater, received a spot on the Urban Word slam team, and represented New York at the 2019 Brave New Voices International Poetry Festival. As a 2020 Federal Hall Fellow and Youth Poet Laureate Finalist, she also performed at the New York Historical Society— and started her journey as a teaching artist shortly after. Currently, she is completing her M.A in Environmental Sustainability & Decision Making at St. John’s University— while also joyously honing her creative voice!