Young activists rocking the planet
Millie Bobby Brown became famous for her role as Eleven in 'Stranger Things' and has shown herself to be an independent and generous young woman. She was the youngest person ever to be appointed as UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and included in the Time 100 list of the 100 most influential people in the world.
Autumn is the chief water commissioner for the Anishinabek Nation in Canada. Not bad for a girl under 20! She became concerned about people's limited access to clean water at a very young age. Now she represents her tribe at international climate protests and even at the United Nations.
Image: Instagram (@autumn.peltier)
This teenager has symbolized a generation's fight for its future. She began protesting in front of the Swedish Parliament to raise awareness for the threats of global warming and climate change. Her powerful speeches aimed at global decision-makers inspired millions of people around the world to join the #FridaysforFuture school strikes and marches.
Born in 2001, Ahed Tamimi became a symbol of the Palestinian resistance in the face of the Israeli occupation when she confronted an IDF soldier, minutes after her cousin had been severely wounded in the head, due to the impact of a rubber bullet. Tamimi was arrested and jailed for eight months at the age of 17, and is now back in her village (Nabi Saleh), where she is devoted to activism.
A 21st century Disney girl. Born in 2001, the 'Girl Meets World' star made an impact with her comments about feminism and racial justice when she was only 13 years old. Blanchard's feminist posts on her Instagram profile are frequent, and in 2017 she gave a vibrant speech in front of hundreds of thousands of people demonstrating in Los Angeles on Women's Day.
Gonzalez (1999) survived the Stoneman Douglas shooting in Parkland, Florida, in which seventeen of her schoolmates were killed. Her proudly shaved head and her fiery speech advocating gun control reform turned her into an icon for the cause.
Born in Florida in 2000, Jazz was assigned male at birth and diagnosed with gender dysphoria at a very young age. Today, she is one of the most important transgender rights activists and is outspoken against every form of discrimination on the basis of gender and sexual orientation.
Dias was only 13 when she came up with the #1000BlackGirlBooks initiative, aimed at promoting literature that features black female protagonists. Her parents' admiration towards Bob Marley is the reason behind her name.
Stenberg became famous for her role as Rue in 'The Hunger Games', and is a vocal intersectional feminist activist. She identifies as non-binary and bisexual.
These two sisters, born and raised on the Indonesian island of Bali, founded the Bye Bye Plastic Bags organization at a very young age and have been able to make a huge impact. For instance, they gathered a 20,000 people strong 'army' to clean up the beach, recovering 65 tons of waste.
The actress from 'Black-ish' and 'Grown-ish' became known as an artist first. But then she began speaking out about social issues as well. Yara Shahidi (born in 2000) is concerned with diversity in Hollywood and also worked with former first lady Michelle Obama on a project empowering girls in education.
The young Pakistani woman Malala Yousafzai has been an example for Greta Thunberg (as the climate activist herself confirmed) as well as for other humanitarians in the world. She won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 for her advocacy of schooling for girls in the Taliban-ruled area where she lived. With only 17 years, she was the youngest person ever to receive the Nobel Prize.
Millie Bobby Brown's colleague in 'Stranger Things,' Gaten Matarazzo, is also an international icon. He has the chronic illness of cleidocranial dysplasia and uses his fame to raise awareness about the condition. Gaten is different and doesn't hide it, which is a quality that many members of his generation share.