How We Selected TIME’s First-Ever Girls of the Year

Nearly one yr in the past, I welcomed my first daughter into the world. During the months main as much as her beginning, I discovered myself jotting down the traits I hoped she may possess someday: bravery, intelligence, and kindness. I assumed usually about how vital these traits are, particularly in a world that desperately wants them.

Upon my return from go away, I got down to discover these very traits in ten women all over the world for TIME’s first-ever Girls of the Year checklist. Girls who challenged stereotypes, tackled issues head-on, and sought to construct options from the bottom up.

From France got here a singer channeling her abilities into the struggle in opposition to bullying. From the U.S., a younger writer who reworked her household’s hardships into highly effective advocacy for organ donation. From the U.Ok., a 12-year-old innovator whose creativity helps the unhoused. And from Turkey, a younger pilot actually reaching new heights.

These women are a part of a technology that is reshaping what management appears to be like like at present. Women now make up over half of all college students enrolled in tertiary training worldwide, and these younger girls are pursuing careers in engineering, know-how, and innovation at report charges. Their technology understands that change does not require ready for maturity—it begins with seeing issues and refusing to just accept them as everlasting.

We all understand how daunting it could really feel to hold the burden of the world in your shoulders, believing there’s nothing we are able to do to vary it. But TIME’s Girls of the Year—who’re all between the ages of 12 and 17—show that altering your neighborhood and galvanizing these round you possibly can ship ripple results across the globe.