International Girl Child Day: Girls who are empowering the future
Youth often rise to the challenge, exhibiting incredible resilience and devotion to making a difference in a society where change and growth are crucial. Girls in particular have been at the vanguard of social change, spearheading activities that address pressing problems and promote improvement in their societies. On International Girl Child Day, let's look at young girl trailblazers and their inspiring stories.
Jakomba Jabbie, Gambian advocate of girls' education
Jakomba Jabbie has been an activist for women's rights since she was 16. When Jabbie noticed that girls were not being encouraged to pursue technology and innovation courses and careers, she created a robotics club at her school. Jabbie underlines the value of allowing girls the opportunity to succeed in professions where they are underrepresented, especially in STEM education.
Bana al-Abed, Syrian peace activist
Starting in 2016, a Syrian girl Bana Alabed captured the attention of the entire world with her tweets from within the besieged city of Aleppo. Her tweets provided a glimpse into the daily horrors of life in the city, such as airstrikes, hunger, and deaths. Alabed, who is now 14 years old, still speaks out for Syrians and raises awareness of the situation there.
Sophie Cruz, American activist
Sophie Cruz, a 5-year-old, in 2015 presented Pope Francis with a letter in which she begged him to stop deporting her parents from the United States, who are undocumented immigrants. She requested in the letter that Pope Francis discuss the matter with the President and Congress. Cruz, now 12 has kept up her support for immigration rights ever since.
Marley Dias, American activist
Marley Dias felt frustrated by the lack of ethnic diversity in the majority of children's books she encountered when she was 11. This led her to initiate the Twitter campaign #1000BlackGirlBooks, to collect and donate books that would provide Black girls with a sense of representation. She aims to create a space where Black girls can be the main characters of their lives.
Greta Thunberg, Swedish environmental activist
Greta Thunberg, 20, serves as an example for students who want to lessen the effects of climate change. Thunberg gained international prominence for her resolve to do anything she could to stop global warming when she started protesting the Swedish government's meager efforts against it at her school. She emphasizes the fact that everyone "can do their part to take care of our planet."
