Heman Bekele, a 15-year-old from Virginia, has a big idea with life-saving potential.
For over a century, TIME has covered influence and leadership. Typically, those we recognize are fully grown adults—in the prime of their careers or sage elders reflecting on long experience. But there are exceptions. From climate activist Greta Thunberg (16 when she was named Person of the Year in 2019) or Millie Bobby Brown (14 when she made the 2018 TIME100 list), some prove that youth is no impediment to achievement.
In fact, young people are some of the most impressive individuals out there—and not just because they’ve had fewer years in which to hone their talents. They are not just examples of human attainment, but also reason to believe that the future they’ll lead will be a bright one.
[time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”]That’s why we choose to recognize TIME’s Kid of the Year. After all, we could use a little bit more of that hope.
This year’s list is a collaboration between TIME and TIME for Kids. This spring, we put out a call looking for young leaders who are making admirable contributions in a range of fields—including social justice, science, and business. Editors and writers combed through submissions and conducted our own research, searching for stand-out kids in the U.S. ages 8-16. Then, as part of the selection process, a team of TFK Kid Reporters weighed in on the honorees. We learned about hundreds of kids with strong records of achievement, service to others, innovation, entrepreneurship, and more.
As the conclusion of that search, we are excited to introduce readers to the Kid of the Year for 2024: Heman Bekele, a 15-year-old from Virginia whose big idea—an affordable soap that could be a new and more accessible way to deliver cancer medication—has life-saving potential. “Anybody could do what I did,” Heman told TIME’s Jeffrey Kluger during a visit to the lab where he’s conducting his research. “I just came up with an idea. I worked towards that idea, and I was able to bring it to life.”
Our five honorees are likewise impressive. They include Madhvi Chittoor, a Colorado 13-year-old who fought pollution by successfully campaigning for a new state law; Shanya Gill, a California 13-year-old working on a new kind of fire detector; Dom Pecora, a Pennsylvania 15-year-old who is giving back with his bike-repair business; Jordan Sucato, an Arizona 15-year-old campaigning to protect pets as her region faces extreme heat; and Keivonn Woodard, a Maryland 11-year-old who became the first Black Deaf actor nominated for an Emmy Award.
And these honorees are already thinking of how they can lead the next group of amazing young people. Heman told Kluger that his 7-year-old sister doesn’t quite fully understand his research, but she sees that he’s working on something exciting. “She gets the gist,” he said, “and I hope that I can serve as an inspiration to her.”
We hope reading these stories offers you some of that same inspiration.