5 Young Girls Who Are Changing the World
- Julia Bluhm
Eighth grader Julia Bluhm noticed something that a lot of people noticed in the past few years. That the girls featured in teen magazines are not only models, they’re photoshopped to the point where they’re beyond human perfection. But rather than simply complain about it, Julia stepped up and spoke out. She made an online petition to persuade the editors at Seventeen magazine to recognize that this practice leads to low self-esteem and eating disorders, and to only use real, unretouched models. And much to many people’s surprise it worked.
- Malala Yousafzai
Though the unfair and unfortunate incident that Malala was shot in the head was in October 2012, Malala has still fights for the right to let girls, and everyone else, have and education. She now is the youngest person, and first girl, to win a Nobel prize and is pretty much what comes to mind when people sat “activist”.
- Sarah Gale
Sarah Gale, a trilingual 16-year-old from Boca Raton, has been working to change the world for years ,(that’s right I said years), traveling to her mother’s home country of Colombia and working to improve the lives of teens living in poverty. Sarah has been named a co-chair of Girl Up, the UN Foundation campaign to promote the health, safety and education of women in developing countries and works hard to raise awareness, and money, to help young women around the world who not only need the help, but also have the trouble getting it.
- Capri Everitt
Capri who is an 11-year-old from Vancouver, Canada, did something wonderful after reading about orphaned and abandoned children around the world. Wanting to give these children some love Capri, who loves to sing, decided she would learn the national anthems of 80 different countries and then travel to each of those countries to sing to children in their native language. She says she chose anthems rather than famous pop songs because some children may not have access to music, but nearly everyone knows their national anthem. Not only did Capri do this amazing act`, but she also raised money for the communities she visited along the way.
- Aija Mayrock
Aija Mayrock is a 19-year-old girl who experienced bullying firsthand. Instead of letting her experiences break her down, she channeled her positive energy into writing and self-publishing The Survival Guide to Bullying, where she shares the strategies that helped her survive and thrive. Aija writes about how to handle bullying, cyberbullying, dealing with fear, personal safety, and ultimately creating the life that you dream of having. Aija is also an accomplished screenwriter. Her film Diego received a Silver Key from Scholastic’s Art and Writing Awards.
These girls are amazing people who are changing the world one step at a time.
You’re writing is so thoughtful and powerful. I am proud of you for researching these females and choosing to write about them. I agree with you that these girls are amazing and changed the world one step at a time. I think you are amazing for recognizing this and choosing to write about it. If we don’t bring these stories to the forefront, they get lost and forgotten. Thank you for reminding me of these powerful women. I will read this blog to my three girls.
Thanks for writing on such an important topic, Delina! I have read Malala’s book but I have not heard about these four other girls before. I love that these individuals are working towards such different but very important goals. All it takes to change the world is one step at a time!