The 17-year-old Swedish climate activist was awarded the 2020 Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity this week.

Greta Thunberg, the Swedish teen activist who founded the Youth Strike for Climate Movement,  was awarded the 2020 Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity this week!  "[Greta] gave voice to the concerns of young generations about their future, which is at risk due to global warming," the Gulbenkian wrote in a statement about the prize. "Her global influence is unprecedented for someone of her age." The 17-year-old was selected from a field of 136 nominees from 46 countries for the prize which recognizes people for their contribution to climate change mitigation and adaptation. The award comes with a $1.15 million prize (€1 million), which Greta has already pledged to donate to a number of environmental causes. "I’m extremely honoured," she wrote on Twitter. "My foundation will as quickly as possible donate all the prize money of 1 million Euros to support organisations and projects that are fighting for a sustainable world, defending nature and supporting people already facing the worst impacts of the climate- and ecological crisis." Continue reading → Continue reading

The Green Berets were one of the last assignments in the Army without any female soldiers since the Pentagon opened combat and special operations roles to women in 2016.

A National Guard soldier has become the U.S. Army's first female Green Beret since the Special Forces unit was formed in 1952! The woman, who cannot be named due to security concerns, recently completed the famously grueling Special Forces Qualification Course and received her Green Beret along with her classmates during a graduation ceremony last week in North Carolina. Her graduation was a particularly noteworthy milestone for women in the military since the Green Berets were one of the last assignments in the Army without any women since the Pentagon opened combat and special operations roles to women in 2016. "Half of the world that we have to deal with when we're out there, half of the people we have to help, are women," said retired Lt. Gen. Steve Blum, a 42-year Army veteran and 16-year Green Beret, when the unnamed soldier passed her initial assessment in 2018. "The days of men fighting men without the presence of women is long gone." Continue reading → Continue reading

The 22-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate shared photos of the celebration on Twitter, writing that it's "hard to express my joy and gratitude right now."

22-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai has graduated from Oxford University! The world-famous girls' education advocate, who survived an assassination attempt by the Taliban eight years ago, shared her good news on Twitter, posting pictures from the celebration which included a "trashing," an Oxford tradition in which new graduates are covered with foam, confetti, and food. She wrote that it's "hard to express my joy and gratitude right now as I completed my Philosophy, Politics and Economics degree at Oxford."

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In the face of the coronavirus crisis, the non-profit Row Venice, which describes itself as a group of "passionate women and expert vogatrici," said that "we were more than happy to volunteer our boats and crews to lend a hand."

An all-female group of gondola rowers in Venice, Italy has been providing grocery deliveries for vulnerable people during the coronavirus crisis! Row Venice, a group of "passionate women and expert vogatrici" — the Italian word for rowers — is dedicated to preserving the traditional Venetian style of rowing. After Italy announced a lockdown in March, the nonprofit organization decided to deliver groceries to elderly and immunocompromised people to help meet the huge increase in demand for such services. As the group wrote in a Facebook post, "We were more than happy to volunteer our boats and crews to lend a hand." Continue reading → Continue reading

The 55-year-old Girl Scout leader was scheduled to run in this year's Boston Marathon; after it was postponed due to the pandemic, Tandy Wilson decided to use her training to lift the spirits of the girls in her troop by visiting each one at home.

Tandy Wilson had been training for years to qualify for the 2020 Boston Marathon — so after the coronavirus led to the historic marathon's first postponement in 124 years, the long-time Girl Scout leader decided to put all of her marathon preparation to good use by lifting the spirits of the girls in her troop! The 55-year-old troop leader laid out a 46-mile route across the San Fernando Valley in California — 20 miles longer than a marathon — that allowed her to run past the homes of all 52 of her Girl Scouts over 11 hours. Calling it "Tandy's Purple Unicorn Run" after the troop's official color and the Boston Marathon's mascot, Wilson stopped at each girl's house to chat while observing social distancing, take safe-distance selfies, and leave them each a Purple Unicorn Sticker celebrating the troop and her run. "I’m so excited just to see all of them," she said before setting off on the 46-mile run. "Seeing them. That’s what’s going to keep me going." Continue reading → Continue reading

"It feels like we've accidentally created a community of young people who just really wanted to help right now."

It all started with a Facebook post. "Is there a way for an able-bodied 25-year-old to volunteer to help deliver groceries/supplies to elderly tenants around the city? Does anyone know of something like this?" Simone Policano, an actor and producer who lives in New York City, wrote on March 12 as the number of coronavirus cases were starting to rise.  When she couldn't find an organization already coordinating volunteers for at-home deliveries, Policano and her friend Liam Elkind created Invisible Hands, a "free, volunteer-based delivery service for those most impacted by and most at-risk for severe complications due to COVID-19." Only a few weeks later, over 10,000 predominantly young volunteers are now part of Policano's network, which covers the greater New York area and parts of New Jersey. "We completely did not expect this," Policano says. "In this time where we are stuck in our homes, it's amazing to see young people wanting to help." Continue reading → Continue reading

"The ability to offer help is one of our greatest gifts," says Becky Hoeffler.

A Durham, North Carolina woman has stepped up to help elderly neighbors stay safe during the coronavirus threat by getting their groceries! Becky Hoeffler, a Duke University employee who's currently working from home due to the virus, was inspired to start her project when she called to check in on her grandfather. "He told me, 'I’m on my way to the grocery store' and I was just kind of concerned because he’s 91 and I thought, 'is there a reason you have to go to the grocery store?... So that’s what made me think, maybe I can go grocery shopping for others since I do live in a community that has several senior citizen neighbors." Since then, Hoeffler has helped several of her at-risk neighbors avoid crowded stores by getting their groceries on her lunch break. "I think utilizing people power is one of the best ways that we can combat the virus," she says. As Hoeffler told A Mighty Girl, "The ability to offer help is one of our greatest gifts." Continue reading → Continue reading

Saleha Jabeen was commissioned as a second lieutenant by the Air Force Chief of Chaplains, who said, "Any time we advance religious freedoms, it’s a win for all persons of faith."

In a ceremony filled with family, friends, and mentors, Saleha Jabeen made history by becoming the first female Muslim chaplain in the history of the U.S. military! At the December ceremony in Chicago, Jabeen was commissioned as a second lieutenant by the Air Force Chief of Chaplains, Major General Steven Schaick. "Any time we advance religious freedoms, it’s a win for all persons of faith," asserted Schaick. "The fact is America is a place where the Constitution guarantees your freedom to embrace or abstain from religious ideals, and the Chaplain Corps, which Jabeen just entered, exists to ensure every Airman has a religious freedom advocate.... I could not be more proud of our Air Force for being willing to commission and embrace the first female Imam in the Department of Defense." Continue reading → Continue reading

"I feel like I'm one of her sons. All I can say is, 'Thank you, Mama Lori. Thank you. I love you."

After passing out and ending up in the hospital last year, 27-year-old Jonathan Pinkard learned that he needed a heart transplant — but that he couldn't go on the transplant list because he was homeless and had no support system to help him recover. "It was a pretty scary situation to be in," Pinkard told The Washington Post. "I had no idea what I was going to do." But when he met 57-year-old ICU nurse Lori Wood, who had been assigned to care for him, his life changed forever: Wood invited him to come live with her. Today, following Wood's adoption of Pinkard last summer, the pair are officially mother and son, and Wood has been honored by the hospital for her dedication to ensuring Pinkard received the care he needed. "He would have died without the transplant," she asserted to Today. "I had to help him. It was a no-brainer." Continue reading → Continue reading

During their historic spacewalk, NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir replaced a power controller on the International Space Station.

NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir made history today when they conducted the first all-female spacewalk in more than five decades of spacewalking! The two ventured outside of the International Space Station at 7:50 this morning for a 7-hour mission to replace a failed power controller. Of the 227 people who have participated in spacewalks since the first one took place in 1965, only 14 have been women. Prior to their spacewalk, Meir spoke of its historic significance and the long fight for women to have equal access and opportunity to participate in the space program: "What we’re doing now shows all of the work that went in for the decades prior, all of the women that worked to get us where we are today." Continue reading → Continue reading