Nine amazing teenage activists who are working for a better tomorrow

In a world which is increasingly being torn apart by divisive forces and threats, our hope comes from these youngsters who are leading movements for a better tomorrow. They have harnessed the power of youth and technology to spread their messages far and wide and to motivate others to join in.

From 16-year-old Greta Thunberg who is spearheading the fight on climate change to Malala Yousafzai, youngest Nobel laureate and children's education activist and Aisha Chaudhary’s heart wrenching yet inspiring journey with pulmonary fibrosis, we take a look at youngsters who are beacons of hope and change.

Greta Thunberg: It is not everyday that skipping school makes headlines, but Greta Thunberg did it for a cause that resonated across the world. Holding a placard which said, "Skolstrejk för klimatet" (School strike for the climate) the Swedish teenager, then a ninth grader, began her protests outside the Swedish parliament on 20 August, 2018, calling for the need for immediate action to combat climate change. She was inspired by the teenage activists from the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida, who had organised the March For Our Lives demonstration in support of a legislation to stop gun violence.

While, initially, not many paid attention, Greta persisted and soon became the symbol of grit and determination as she continued striking from school till September 9, when the Swedish general elections were held. She also announced that she would continue striking on the every Friday until Sweden allied with the Paris Agreement. Today, her banner, Skolstrejk för klimatet, has become synonymous with climate change, having been translated into many languages.

Born in 2003 to a Swedish opera singer mother and an actor father, Greta became depressed and stopped talking at the age of 11. She was later diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and Selective Mutism. Thunberg attributes her steadfastness to her cause to Asperger’s Syndrome. The teenage climate crusader was recently honoured by artist Jody Thomas in a gigantic mural which depicts the 16-year-old with her face submerged in water.

Amika George: According to a research by Plan International UK, one in 10 girls between the ages of 14 and 21 are unable to afford sanitary products, and 49 percent have had to miss a day of school during their periods, in the United Kingdom. Upset by the sheer numbers, Indian-origin, UK based 17-year-old Amika George decided to start her own campaign, #FreePeriods, to end period poverty in the UK.

Amika organised a huge protest outside Downing Street which saw around 2000 participants, including Amika’s own grandfather. The impact of her campaign is clear from the fact that shortly afterwards, the government announced that it would begin funding free sanitary napkins at all English secondary schools and colleges.

Malala Yousafzai: Inheriting her school teacher father’s love for education, Malala Yousafzai became an advocate for girl’s education rights in the SWAT region of Pakistan where she hailed from. Over the years, Malala also started to be noticed by the Taliban, which was taking over SWAT. As she gained international recognition, she started receiving death threats.

However, undeterred by the Taliban, the world’s youngest Nobel Prize laureate, continued her advocacy. She also started blogging anonymously for BBC’s Urdu website, on her life in SWAT under the Taliban. Little did she know, though, that her life would change so tragically and completely. One day, as she was returning home in her school bus, she was shot by armed militants. Malala was rushed to a military hospital and subsequently to the United Kingdom.

The shooting caused national outrage, but further spurred in Malala the desire to ensure that all children had access to education. In 2014, at the age of 17, Malala became the youngest person ever to receive a Nobel Peace Prize. Malala continues her crusade for children’s education rights.

Emma Gonzalez: The world took note as American teen activist Emma Gonzalez gave a hard hitting 11-minute speech titled ‘We call B.S’ at the gun control rally held in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Gonzalez is a survivor of the February 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, which killed 17 people. As the shooter went on a killing spree, Gonzalez saw some of her friends getting killed, as she took cover in the auditorium between the folding seats.

Days later, the extent of the horrors that took place sunk in as she read a report in the Miami Herald which contained the list of the students and teachers who had died in the shooting. Gonzalez, however, did not let greif overtake her, and instead turned her sorrow into angry activism.

Gonzalez co-founded the gun control advocacy group Never Again MSD, along with her friend Cameron Kasky and helped organise the student-led demonstration, March For Our Lives, which took place in Washington DC to put a stop to gun violence. She runs her Twitter account under the handle Emma4change, where she has 1.65 million followers and advocates for tougher gun control laws and pushes youth to vote. Gonzalez has also been at the receiving end of trolls who call her and other student activists as child actors, anti-gun liberals and communists.

Thandiwe Abdullah: Fourteen-year-old Thandiwe Abdullah who co-founded Youth Vanguard, a branch of the Black Lives Matter Movement, is amongst the most powerful voices among her generation of black youth. Through her activism, Thandiwe has brought focus to the high incarceration rates among black youth and the many who drop out of school, often ending in prisons.

Thandiwe, who has helped create the Black Lives Matter At School, a national organisation for racial justice in education, has been named as one of Time Magazine’s most influential teens. She has also been fighting against the over policing of schools and for the rights of the most marginalised of all amongst the American youth – Muslim black students, black youth and black trans and queer youth.

Sonita Alizadeh: At the age of 16, Sonita Alizadeh’s mother informed her that she would be sold into marriage. She had nearly been sold off as a bride once before when she was just 10, while growing up in Herat, Afghanistan under the Taliban. She is among the luckier ones, though, in Afghanistan, where 35 percent of girls are married off by the age of 18.

After escaping to Iran with her family, Alizadehs taught herself to read and write. She also became interested in music and poetry and was influenced by Iranian rapper Yas and American rapper Eminem. Soon, Alizadeh started to express her thoughts about child marriage in the form of rap. Defying the ban in Iran on women singing, Alizadeh also rapped about being a refugee and encouraging Afghans to vote. She also fought and managed to convince her parents to not get her married off.

Today, the Afghani rapper and activist, who lives in the United States, continues her advocacy against child marriage through her music.

Marley Dias: Marley Dias realised that most of the books around her were about white boys and dogs, while there were none focused on black girls. This inspired the 11-year-old Marley to launch the #1000BlackGirlBooks campaign, with the goal of collecting 1000 books which feature black girls as the protagonists and important characters. Marley far exceeded her target and ended up collecting and donating more than 9,000 books.

Through her campaign, Marley, who is named after legendary reggae singer Bob Marley, has shown the spotlight on the lack of diversity in children’s books the world over. Today, Marley is the youngest among the Forbes 30 Under 30 achievers and is also the author of the book, Marley Gets It Done: And So Can You!

Aisha Chaudhary: Aisha Chaudhary was born with Severe Combined Immune Disease and underwent a bone marrow transplant when she was just six months old. The side effect of the transplant was pulmonary fibrosis, a disease where the lungs become damaged and scarred. As it worsened, and Aisha’s health deteriorated, she did not give up hope. Instead, she pushed herself to continue her education, taught herself to paint and also gave motivational speeches at various forums such as TED Talks and INK.

Aisha also wrote a book to tell the world the importance of being happy, despite adversities. Titled My Little Epiphanies, which AIsha typed out on her phone while in bed, the book was launched at the Jaipur Literature Festival on 24 January, 2015 – the day Aisha lost her battle. Bringing her life story alive and on screen is Shonali Bose’s The Sky Is Pink, featuring Zaira Wasim, Priyanka Chopra and Farhan Akhtar.

Kelvin Doe: Born in Sierra Leone, Kelvin Doe was six when the civil war in his country ended. At the age of 11, Doe started collecting scrap electronics on his way from school, which he used to make workable items. By the age of 13, he had managed to teach himself engineering and started to make his own transmitters, generators out of old DVD players and batteries by wrapping acid, soda and metal in a tin cap, which he would use to light up other people’s houses.

Doe also built and powered his own community radio station to inspire people to communicate and share ideas. At the age of 16, Doe became the youngest person to be invited to the Visiting Practitioners Programme at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Doe currently runs his community radio station under the moniker DJ Focus and uses his fame to motivate youngsters in Africa and around the world to make a change for a better world.