Ananya Sagar

Ananya (15), from India, grew up with a strong awareness of how laws, institutions and access to power can shape children’s lives. Her own experience navigating school and advocacy while living with OCD also showed her how invisible challenges can affect a child’s voice and opportunities. These experiences strengthened her empathy, resilience and determination to help other children understand and defend their rights.

Ananya founded Lex Lumina – The Children’s Rights Initiative, a youth-led movement raising awareness of child labor, abuse and lack of education. She has organized rights-awareness workshops across schools, reaching more than 2,000 students and educators. She also leads legal literacy sessions that explain India’s Juvenile Justice Act and POCSO Act in child-friendly language.

Working with legal experts, Ananya helped create Hindi and English pamphlets for children and families in urban slum communities. Through regular, face-to-face sessions in schools, community centres and neighbourhoods, she has directly engaged hundreds of children, parents and educators. Her work shows how knowledge of your rights can give you the confidence to speak up and seek help.