“Action is the foundational key to all success.” -Pablo Picasso
These young entrepreneurs and impressive professionals are well-known and highly-respected in their fields. Learn about their accomplishments and think about what’s on the horizon for you. Get inspired to follow your dreams and boost your career with an international internship experience.
Claim to fame: The Latin American Mark Zuckerberg
Sector: Entrepreneurship
Home country: Colombia
Age: 29
Key accomplishments: A serial entrepreneur, Barreto has launched several successful start-ups including Grooveshark, PusloSocial and Onswipe. Barreto is particularly passionate about boosting tech entrepreneurship in Latin America and creating more opportunities in the region.
2. Malala
Claim to fame: The youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate
Sector(s): Law, Education, NGOs
Home country: Pakistan
Age: 18
Key accomplishments: An internationally recognized advocate for women’s education, Malala has spurred a global movement to promote education for young women in Pakistan – her country of origin. In her native region, girls were banned from school by the Taliban.
3. Lin-Manuel Miranda
Claim to fame: Creator and star of Broadway hits Hamilton and In The Heights
Sector(s): Theatre, Music
Home country: United States
Age: 36
Key accomplishments: Lin-Manuel Miranda has brought minority voices to Broadway through his award-winning musicals Hamilton and In The Heights. The son of Puerto Rican immigrants, Miranda has made an important effort to include immigrant narratives in his work. Miranda is also a winner of the MacArthur “Genius” Award. Among the many fans of his musical Hamilton is President Barack Obama, who has seen the show twice.
4. Maria Qamar
Sector(s): Art, Design
Claim to fame: Major following on Instagram for her culturally critical pop-art memes
Home country: Canada
Age: 25
Key accomplishments: Qamar’s artistic and comedic commentary on Pakistani cultural expectations has found a mass following within the South Asian diaspora. Her pop-art memes often address the traditional expectations immigrant parents have for their children, engaging young people in a discussion about generational differences within immigrant families.
5. Lauren Bush
Sector(s): Entrepreneurship, NGOs
Claim to fame: CEO and Co-founder of non-profit organization FEED, former model
Home country: United States
Age: 31
Key accomplishments: Bush’s organization has donated over 87 million meals to families in need all over the world. FEED uses proceeds from selling reusable bags to feed the hungry. The company has partnered with the United Nations World Food Program.
6. Bheki Kunene
Sector(s): IT, Design, Entrepreneurship
Claim to fame: South African Entrepreneur and Mogul
Home country: South Africa
Age: 28
Key accomplishments: After attacking a teacher during his youth and being banned from public schools, Kunene struggled to get an education. Despite his bare bones high school education, the youth’s ambition and talent for IT helped him rise up in the industry. Without any business experience he created his own creative design company, Mind Trix Media.
7. Clara Ianni
Sector(s): Art
Claim to fame: Rising Sao Paulo artist
Home country: Brazil
Age: 29
Key accomplishments: Ianni’s art explores the history of violence within Brazil through her modernist sculptures. Her works have been featured in galleries all around the world.
Feeling inspired by these successful young entrepreneurs and professionals? Apply now and boost your career!
Sources: http://www.artinamericamagazine.com/news-features/interviews/untitled-work-clara-ianni-at-the-istanbul-biennial/, http://www.forbesconferences.com/event/2016-forbes-under-30-summit-israel/, https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-up-and-coming-clara-ianni-s-bullet-ridden, ttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malala_Yousafzai, http://www.forbesconferences.com/event/2016-forbes-under-30-summit-israel/, http://africanbusinessmagazine.com/uncategorised/from-thug-to-business-star/, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lauren_Bush, http://www.lennyletter.com/culture/interviews/a305/how-instagrams-hatecopy-speaks-to-the-south-asian-diaspora/, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lin-Manuel_Miranda, https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-up-and-coming-clara-ianni-s-bullet-ridden, https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-30-emerging-artists-to-watch-this-summer, http://under30ceo.com/top-15-young-female-entrepreneurs-and-their-rising-companies/
Photo 1. by Andres Barreto
Photo 2. based on Hamilton, live in NY today. Who knew rap was the format I needed to learn history! Thx Lin-Manuel Miranda, by Steve Jurvetson, CC-by-2.0
Photo 3. based on 2011 Media Tour to Honduras, by US Mission to the United Nations Agencies in Rome, CC-by-ND 2.0