-
Isaiah CooperÂ
Isaiah Cooper is already aiming to fly to higher heights. In 2016, at 16 years old, he made headlines when he became one of the youngest black pilots to fly around the United States. The next mission? To make the Guinness World Records and become the youngest person to take a solo flight around the…
-
Lauren SeroyerÂ
Lauren Seroyer was eating a quick breakfast at school when she was inspired to start her nonprofit organization. A classmate approached her for some of her meal because he didnât have enough to eat at home. âI knew I had to do something to keep himâand other students like himâfrom ever having to tell that…
-
Augusta Uwamanzu-Nna
Augusta Uwamanzu-Nna is dedicated to making sure the worldâs infrastructure is solid as a rock. Seriously. Augusta has spent the last several years researching cement and how to make it sustainable. The Harvard College freshman told The Root that her âfirst loveâ and âfirst passionâ is cement. CATEGORY: Science and TechAGE: 18HOMETOWN: Elmont, N.Y.EDUCATION: Harvard…
-
Zendaya
Whether singing, acting or clapping back on Twitter, Zendaya always finds a way to use her voice for good. âI have a billion dreams, and I want to use my platform to help people,â she told Vanity Fair. âIâve been given this power and I have to start conversations that are bigger than myself.â CATEGORY:…
-
Khareem Oliver
Pet owners often think of their dogs and cats as their kids. So when Scruffy or Fluffy is lost, it can wreak havoc on ownersâ lives. Khareem Oliver has seen this firsthand. For the past 10 years, heâs volunteered at animal-rescue organizations and noticed that many animals did not have identification that could be used…
-
AâDorian Murray-Thomas
AâDorian Murray-Thomas has used her own experience with tragedy to help other young girls triumph over hard times. When she was 7 years old, her father was killed in a robbery in her hometown of Newark, N.J. Because she had a community of people around her pushing her to be her best self despite her…
-
Toluwanimi Obiwole
Toluwanimi Obiwole lets her poetry show her strength. Toluwanimi was selected as Denverâs first youth poet laureate in 2015. âThe poets teaching me how to be even braver in my writing are Warsan Shire, Nayyirah Waheed and Suzi Q. Smith,â she told The Root. âTheyâre all unafraid to be vulnerable in their writing, yet never…
-
Olivia Russo-Hood
Even after tragedy struck Olivia Russo-Hoodâs family, she started looking for ways to help others. After a massive flood in Austell, Ga., destroyed her familyâs home, Olivia noticed how many people came to her familyâs rescue. So she knew it was time to pay it forward. âIf I hadnât received help, I would still feel…
-
Destiny Watford
Destiny Watford is the accidental environmental activist America needs right now. Her quest for clean air all started when she was a senior in high school after she saw a play about a small community whose lives were at risk because of a polluted hot spring. The playâs setting mirrored Curtis Bay, an industrial neighborhood…
-
Nicole OâDell
Nicole OâDell talks as effortlessly about biotechnology as she would if she were talking about what she ate for dinner. In 2015, she won first place at the National Organization of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineersâ national competition. Her project analyzed the effects of low-dose radiation and whether X-rays from security scanning machines affect materials…
