The Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes is a national award that celebrates inspiring, public-spirited young people from across the U.S. and Canada. Established in 2001 by author T. A. Barron, the Barron Prize annually honors 25 outstanding young leaders ages 8 to 18 who have made a significant positive difference to people or the environment. Every year, 15 winners each receive $10,000 to support their service work or higher education.
One of the national winners this year is Aseel Rawashdeh, age 17 from Austin, Texas. Aseel developed an inexpensive, environmentally-friendly solution to mosquito-borne illnesses. About her project, Aseel notes, “I’ve realized the power of dedicating myself to a cause. When the experiments got tedious or things didn’t go as expected and I felt the desire to quit, the one thing that kept me going was the prospect of contributing a solution to a global issue.”
