National Geographic Society Announces Spring 2020 Young Explorers

WASHINGTON, July 15, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Geographic Society is proud to announce the spring 2020 cohort of Young Explorer grantees. These 22 young people, between the ages of 16 and 26, represent six countries and are engaged in impact-driven efforts ranging from scientific innovation and conservation, to education, civic engagement, storytelling and more--all developing solutions to pressing problems within their communities.

"At the National Geographic Society, we believe young leaders are in a category all their own. They are #GenGeo--a global community of young people with empathy, tenacity, unbridled passion and an insatiable drive to seek solutions to build a sustainable future and thriving planet," says Vicki Phillips, Executive Vice President and Chief Education Officer at the National Geographic Society. "They see profound possibilities to make a difference in the world and they make a choice to do something about it with confidence, courage and conviction."

Seven of the Young Explorers are leveraging their efforts to respond to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. For instance, Katie Stagliano, who founded Katie's Krops, provides meals to South Carolina families struggling economically during the pandemic, while Chris Suggs, who founded Kinston Teens, organized a drive-through crisis relief giveaway that served 4,000 North Carolina families food, cleaning supplies, and other essential items.

Young Explorers are nominated and later selected by the National Geographic Society through a competitive, multi-tiered application process. In addition to funding, Young Explorers receive skill building, leadership development training, and networking opportunities to connect and collaborate with their peers.

The spring 2020 Young Explorers are:

    --  Aldrin Aujero, 19, of the Philippines, who founded EarthSAVERs, which
        conducts service initiatives to underserved public schools in metro
        Manila
    --  Neil Deshmukh, 18, of the United States (Pennsylvania), who founded
        PlantumAI, which uses artificial Intelligence technology to promote crop
        health
    --  Thanasi Dilos, 17, of the United States (New York), who co-founded
        Civics Unplugged, which provides micro-grants and training for youth-led
        civic projects
    --  Lauren Gibson, 25, of the United States (Indiana), who founded Carmel
        Green Teen Micro-Grant Program to provide mentorship and funding for
        youth seeking to plan and carry out their own environmental projects
    --  Liza Goldberg, 18, of the United States (Maryland), who works with NASA
        and Google Earth on research to curb climate change
    --  Zoë Jenkins, 16, of the United States (Kentucky), who launched the Get
        Schooled podcast focusing on problems and solutions in education
    --  Merrit Jones, 22, of the United States (South Carolina), who is the
        president of Student Voice, a coalition of youth-led organizations
    --  Peyton Klein, 18, of the United States (Pennsylvania), who founded the
        Global Minds Initiative, which seeks to combat discrimination and
        promote inclusion in schools
    --  Pothunuri Laya, 19, of India, who has developed several
        environment-preserving inventions, and is studying the viability of
        converting locusts, which threaten food security in vulnerable parts of
        the world, as a food source.
    --  Ashley Lin, 17, of United States (Washington), who founded Project
        Exchange to promote cross-cultural learning experiences for high school
        and college students
    --  Tiassa Samayin Mutunkei, 19, of Kenya, who founded Teens4Wildlife to
        help African youth discover the value of Africa's wildlife and take
        action to protect it
    --  Joe Nail, 24, of the United States (North Carolina), who co-founded Lead
        For America, which provides recent college graduates with fellowships in
        local government
    --  Shelby O'Neil, 19, of the United States (California), who created Jr.
        Ocean Guardians to host beach clean-ups and reduce plastics use
    --  Kevin Patel, 19, of the United States (California), who founded One Up
        Action, which empowers marginalized communities to fight climate change
    --  Shriya Rai, 22, of India, who founded Sashakt Bharat to provide a
        platform for India's youth to start their own environmental initiatives
        and positively shape their communities\
    --  Baylee Ritter, 23, of the United States (Illinois), who founded RISE UP,
        a youth-led webinar series that connects, inspires, and empowers young
        people around the globe through peer-to-peer training, networking, and
        skill-building
    --  Kartik Sawhney, 26, of India, who co-founded I-Stem, an organization
        that gives blind math and science students technical training,
        mentorship, and hands-on opportunities
    --  Katie Stagliano, 21, of the United States (South Carolina), who founded
        Katie's Krops, which empowers youth to start and donate the harvest from
        community gardens to help feed people in need
    --  Chris Suggs, 20, of the United States (North Carolina), who founded
        Kinston Teens to focus on youth engagement and rural development
    --  Richard Turere, 19, of Kenya, who invented Lion Lights to protect crops
        from local predators
    --  Diana Griselle Zendejo Valle, 24, of Mexico, who takes photographs of
        how humans establish a relationship with nature and how they use nature
        photography as an education tool
    --  Celestine Wenardy, 17, of Indonesia, who is Editor-in-Chief of the Young
        Scientist Journal and has conducted research on affordable methods for
        non-invasive blood glucose concentration monitoring for diabetics

Over the past two years, the National Geographic Society has collectively awarded more than $280,000 in funding to Young Explorers. The Young Explorer grants build on the National Geographic Society's 132-year history of investing in bold individuals with transformative ideas--innovative scientists, explorers, educators and storytellers.

"We are immensely proud to support these young people on their journey, to help elevate their voices and accelerate and amplify their work," said Phillips. "At a time when our world is facing significant challenges, these Young Explorers show us that we have many reasons to be hopeful about the future."

To learn more about National Geographic Young Explorers and their inspiring efforts, join the conversation using the hashtag #GenGeo on social media.

ABOUT NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY
The National Geographic Society is a global nonprofit organization that uses the power of science, exploration, education and storytelling to illuminate and protect the wonder of our world. Since 1888, National Geographic has pushed the boundaries of exploration, investing in bold people and transformative ideas, providing more than 14,000 grants for work across all seven continents, reaching 3 million students each year through education offerings, and engaging audiences around the globe through signature experiences, stories and content. To learn more, visit www.nationalgeographic.org or follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

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SOURCE National Geographic Society