Founder, United for Change
Mirriam is fostering inclusion, empathy, and anti-racism in her school community. She founded United for Change at her school in Worcester to tackle racism and promote kindness. Working with senior leaders and a small team of students, she organises events like Diversity Fairs, Colour Runs, and bake sales, alongside publishing daily bulletins with educational games and facts. Her initiative equips students to understand and celebrate diversity while raising awareness of wider community issues. United for Change has transformed school culture, reaching hundreds of students and inspiring pride, empathy, and collaboration, with plans to expand its impact to younger learners in local primary schools. The initiative began after Mirriam witnessed a friend face racial discrimination, sparking her determination to create change.
Founder, Reel It In
Lewis is challenging social media addiction and enabling young people to reclaim their digital wellbeing. He founded Reel It In to tackle social media addiction and reshape how young people engage online. Inspired by his experiences with youth-led journalism and a censored speech to government ministers in 2024, he aims to influence policy and raise awareness globally. His initiative combines legislative lobbying with Project R, a digital campaign set to reach 10 million young people annually, equipping them to resist addictive platform design. Lewis works collaboratively with peers, partners, and policymakers, creating a youth-driven movement for healthier digital habits and long-term social impact.
Founder, Where We Land
Tai’bat is using film, art, and storytelling to uncover untold Black British histories and spark narrative change. She is creating Where We Land, a documentary series exploring the legacy of African and Caribbean migration through place, memory, and identity. Blending oral history, geography, and the arts, her project makes overlooked histories accessible, emotional, and relevant for a new generation. A storyteller and filmmaker, Tai’bat’s passion for advocacy began in secondary school, where she performed spoken word to share the experiences of being a Black girl in the UK. Growing up in Essex in the early 2010s, she often felt misrepresented and misunderstood, which inspired her commitment to telling these stories.
Founder, One Voice, Many Stories
Safa is creating safe, empowering spaces for young migrants to share their stories and be heard. She co-founded One Voice, Many Stories in 2024, delivering workshops and community events that give refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants a platform to express themselves. By combining art, storytelling, and dialogue, her initiative fosters empathy, belonging, and confidence. Since becoming independent in 2025, the project has engaged over 100 young people and adults, helping them feel seen, heard, and proud of their identities. Safa’s drive to create this initiative comes from her own experience growing up as a refugee in Greater Manchester, where she saw firsthand how young migrants are often misunderstood or overlooked.
Founder, Mission Home
Scarlett is tackling homelessness by creating new pathways for families trapped in temporary accommodation to access secure, permanent homes. At 15, she launched Mission: HOME, a grassroots campaign in Brighton and Hove working with the local council to identify small unused plots of council-owned land, known as microsites, that could be developed into social housing. Her campaign is already supporting a planning application for four new homes in Woodingdean, with hopes that this first project can become a model for wider change. Scarlett’s work brings together public support, local government, and community awareness to show that unused land can become part of the solution to the housing crisis. She has been committed to tackling homelessness since childhood, raising more than £10,000 for local charities after first noticing people sleeping rough in Brighton and Hove. Mission: HOME began after she heard from families living for years in unsafe temporary accommodation, sparking her determination to help create homes where children and parents can live with dignity.
GenC exists within a global network of over 4000 Fellows and more than 200 young changemakers in 90+ countries. Being part of this network means collaborating with award winning social entrepreneurs who are redefining the future of humanity and the planet.
GenC community members receive a one-time unrestricted grant of £2000 and have access to opportunities that will develop and enhance their toolbox of leadership skills. With our global network of partners we provide access to workshops, training, funding pools, professional and practical experiences which equip them to excel as lifelong change leaders.
The GenC community members have access to tailored storytelling support to shape their narratives, celebrate their impact, and speak with authenticity. We create opportunities to platform their voices across a range of spaces, from digital media to high-profile events, ensuring their stories are heard, valued, and able to inspire change at scale.
Ashoka is a global community of leading social entrepreneurs—individuals who, when faced with a pressing problem, chose not to look away. We are looking for young changemakers who are committed, have listened deeply, empathised fully, and developed creative, innovative solutions. This ability to combine deep empathy with entrepreneurial action is what defines our makes the Ashoka community uniquely equipped to drive systemic, lasting change.
You didn’t just identify a problem; you stepped into it with care and creativity. You helped improve lives and protect the world around you, always guided by a commitment to the good of all. This deep-rooted dedication to people and planet is what unites Ashoka’s community—and what fuels the changemaker movement we’re building together.
To create change, you did not work alone. You built and nurtured a team around your idea, leading by inspiring others to lead, and practicing collaborative teamwork to help each member realise their potential to create positive change—embodying Ashoka’s vision of a world where everyone as a changemaker.
The most important step of the application process is the written application. This will form the majority of your application and is the most important step in telling your changemaker story. The written application is therefore, the most important factor in the success of your application. As part of the initial written application, you are welcome to submit a short video (maximum 1 minute) as a supplement to your application to show us who you are.
The next step in the selection process is a 1-hour online interview. This is our chance to get to know you and understand your initiative and how you fit the selection criteria for Generation Changemaker on a deeper level. We will share examples of the kinds of questions we will be asking when we invite you to the interview stage, so you have time to prepare.
Following the interview process up to 6 candidates will be invited to an in-person day at our offices in London. During this day you will get a chance to have 1:1 conversations with members of the Ashoka community where you can showcase your journey as a changemaker and young leader.
To co-lead means to share leadership in a way that honors everyone's unique strengths, perspectives, and roles. It's about creating space for collective visioning, decision-making, and action — where leadership is not held by one, but activated in many. In a world of changemakers, co-leading invites trust, deep listening, and mutual accountability. It’s how we build systems that are resilient, inclusive, and capable of lasting change.
At Ashoka, an initiative refers to a purposeful action or project that creates positive social change. It’s when a young person identifies a problem in their community or the world, imagines a better way forward, and takes the lead in making that vision a reality.
An initiative can take many forms — from launching a campaign or social venture, to starting a club, organizing a community event, or creating digital content that shifts mindsets. What matters most is that the young person is driving the change themselves, collaborating with others, and learning through action.
Yes, we will accept applications with evidence of local as well as global impact. We are looking for changemakers with a deep commitment and connection to the problem and therefore will be assessing applications accordingly.
Yes, successfully elected Generation Changemakers will receive a one-time unrestricted grant of £2000.
Email [email protected] if you have any questions.
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