Zuriel Oduwole

Speaker Zuriel Oduwole is a Los Angeles–born education advocate and youth leader whose work spans Africa, the Caribbean, and beyond. She focuses on girls’ education, leadership, and empowerment, and she began this journey remarkably early. At just 10 years old, Forbes profiled her work, and by 2015, ELLE magazine named her among “33 Women Who Changed the World.” In 2017, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry described her as “the world’s most powerful girl” and honored her at the U.S. State Department for her efforts to end child marriage and champion education for girls.

Over the years, speaker Zuriel Oduwole has met face-to-face with more than 36 world leaders, including presidents and prime ministers, to discuss education, development, and the challenges facing children and teenagers. She has also spoken directly to over 56,000 young people in 23 countries, encouraging them to see education as a powerful tool for agency and change.

In 2018, Zuriel visited Mozambique to meet President Filipe Nyusi and highlight the human cost of child marriage and the transformative impact of keeping girls in school. A year later, in July 2019, Mozambique formally outlawed child marriage, marking a significant milestone in a broader movement she actively supports.

Understanding how conflict disproportionately affects girls and women, Zuriel also engages in informal peace dialogue. At 13, she met President David Granger of Guyana during rising tensions with Venezuela at the UN. Four years later, she held discussions with President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in Egypt during the Arab blockade of Qatar, which ended peacefully in 2021.

Beyond advocacy, Zuriel teaches basic filmmaking skills to unemployed older girls and young women, primarily in Africa, helping them gain practical tools for economic independence and storytelling. She has trained more than 500 participants across several countries. Global outlets such as BBC, CNN, Bloomberg, Forbes, and ELLE have covered her work.

In 2022, former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon presented her with the Ban Ki-moon Leadership Award. For 2025, professors, lawmakers, and a prime minister’s office jointly nominated Zuriel Oduwole for the Nobel Peace Prize, recognizing over a decade of impact in peace mediation, gender equality, and education for girls.