Celebrating 25 Years of Young Heroes — Meet the 2025 Barron Prize Winners
One of the greatest privileges of my life has been to witness the incredible impact that young people can make in the world. Since founding the Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes twenty-five years ago, I’ve had the honor of celebrating hundreds of remarkable young leaders who have inspired us all with their courage, creativity, and compassion.
This year, we mark the Barron Prize’s 25th anniversary — a milestone that reminds us of the extraordinary legacy of young heroes who have raised nearly $32 million for their causes and touched countless lives. I am thrilled to introduce the 2025 Barron Prize winners, an inspiring group of young people who are making a real and lasting difference for both people and the planet.
Fifteen top winners each receive $10,000 to support their service work or higher education, and all 25 honorees are recognized for their leadership and impact.
2025 Barron Prize Winners
Aadi Kulkarni, 17, New Hampshire – Founded TechPals to teach digital skills to more than 5,000 senior citizens, building confidence and intergenerational connections.
Alaina Zhang, 17, Rhode Island – Created Harvesting Change to explore seaweed’s role in reducing nitrogen overload along Rhode Island’s coast, protecting fragile marine life.
Anisha Dhoot, 16, Oregon – Developed Smart Carbon Recycling, a climate solution combining carbon sequestration, seaweed fertilizer, biochar, and AI-driven crop models.
April Surac, 17, Florida – Founded NeuraSensa, designing interactive textile art installations to support neurodivergent individuals and those with sensory differences.
Asa Miller, 18, New York – Launched ¡Viva el Vivero! (Long Live the Nursery!) to help Cuban communities restore coral reefs through training, resources, and hands-on support.
Carter Medved, 18, New York – Created youth-led climate initiatives (CrushCarbon, EnviroVols, WattSherpa) to reduce emissions and strengthen community action.
Cynthia Zhang, 17, New York – Founded Monarchs Matter, engaging youth to raise and release monarch butterflies and create 15 waystations across 34 acres.
Ethan Hua, 17, California – Founded H.O.P.E. (Help Our Planet Earth), a school uniform recycling program that has redistributed 9,500 uniforms, saving families $135,000.
Gia Providente, 8, New York – Protects diamondback terrapin turtles by designing awareness signs and working with her local government to install them in parks.
Matthew Vila, 16, Florida – Founded Harmony Hugs, leading student musicians in offering free weekly lessons to 70 youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Nicolina Pappas, 14, Illinois – Founded Nicolina’s Turtle Co. and her Skip the Plastic campaign, helping communities cut reliance on single-use plastics.
Srihan Sankepalle, 15, Michigan – Created a nontoxic, low-cost system to remove microplastics from waterways using only UV light, at 90% less than commercial methods.
Vick and William Tan, 16 and 14, Minnesota – Co-founded Fish Hut, a nonprofit supporting youth mental health through outdoor fishing events and free equipment programs.
Vivian Liu, 16, Texas – Founded Origami For Good, a global effort with 7,000 volunteers who have folded more than 825,000 origami gifts for hospitals and care centers.
Zinia Khattar, 17, California – Designed a gene-set profiling algorithm to uncover cellular mechanisms that could ease mitochondrial dysfunction, the root of many diseases.
Congratulations to the 2025 Barron Prize winners! May their vision and determination remind us that real change often begins with one bold step, and their efforts light the way for us all. And they are not alone — many others are carrying that torch, including this year’s runners-up.
2025 Barron Prize Runners-Up
In addition to the outstanding winners, I am proud to also recognize ten remarkable runners-up. Their projects reflect the same creativity, innovation, and deep commitment to making the world better — and their stories deserve to be celebrated, too.
Anirudh Rao, 12, Colorado – Invented Revere, a tornado detection system using drones and sensors that could triple warning times from 13 to 40 minutes, while also engineering other innovations in renewable energy, wound care, and STEM outreach.
Anthony Woo, 17, Florida – Co-founded Torus, a free curbside composting service that has diverted more than 200,000 pounds of food waste and raised $75,000 to expand sustainable waste solutions.
Daniel Thomas, 17, Texas – Founded LitterScout, mobilizing thousands of volunteers to remove over 42,000 pounds of litter and developing tools like a solar-powered water cleaning system and portable WiFi for environmental education.
Giuliana Demma, 15, New Jersey – Founded G’s Giving Gowns, leading 500 volunteers in sewing and distributing more than 2,200 brightly colored hospital gowns for children battling cancer.
Kavin Ramadoss, 16, Oregon – Created a low-cost biocomputational framework to identify new drugs against malaria, pinpointing five promising compounds and successfully testing one that inhibits the disease by over 50%.
Maya Puterman, 18, New York – Founded Fresh Opportunities, helping students create food recovery clubs that have donated more than 11,000 meals to local shelters and community fridges.
Rabani Bajaj, 16, Texas – Founded Seva-Art, combining art and service to raise more than $15,000 for the San Antonio Food Bank through student art exhibits.
Sophie Zeng, 17, California – Founded Project ARISE, developing an AI-powered app to identify invasive plants, remove 18,000 pounds of them, and restore habitats for pollinators worldwide.
Tina Jin, 14, California – Engineered a sustainable, low-cost water filtration system using animal bone powder that reduces bacteria by 99%, providing clean water for underserved communities.
Yashwin Adusumilli, 16, Florida – Created Marine Guard biofilters using seaweed to absorb excess nutrients and combat destructive algal blooms in South Florida lakes.
Together, the 2025 Barron Prize winners and runners-up remind us that age is no barrier to bold action — and that curiosity, grit, and compassion can transform our communities and our planet. As the Barron Prize celebrates 25 years, I’m more hopeful than ever — and I hope you’ll read their stories, share them, and find one thing that inspires you to act.
Learn more about each winner and their projects at barronprize.org where you can also find details on how to nominate outstanding young leaders for the 2026 Prize.
