Ridhi Gutta

Ridhi Gutta (16), from the United States, experienced gender discrimination and limited access to STEM education herself. She discovered science later than many of her peers and often felt she was falling behind children with greater educational opportunities. She decided to help make science more accessible to other children.

She founded MediQuills, a youth-led science literacy organisation. Ridhi has published more than 20 children’s books, several of which became international top 10 bestsellers, and raised a significant amount of money to support her work.

Through MediQuills, she has donated books to children around the world and partnered with organisations in Zambia and the United States to provide science education and workshops. She has also published policy briefs on paediatric devices and orphan diseases with the European Union and established more than 10 international MediQuills chapters.

Her books have given hundreds of children their first science book. Through MediQuills’ outreach, online education and policy work, she has improved access to science content for more than 70,000 children across countries including Germany, Spain, Zambia and Australia. .