When I was young, I read a book called Finding Wonders: Three Girls Who Changed Science by Jeanne Atkins. It quickly rose to become one of my favorite books. The book followed the stories of three girls: Maria Merian, Mary Anning, and Maria Mitchell. Each of these women became famous for their explorations of science that changed how we viewed the world. Maria Merian made significant contributions to ecology by studying the life cycles of insects, especially butterflies and moths. Mary Anning was a fossil hunter who revolutionized paleontology with her findings of several complete or nearly complete dinosaur skeletons, and her study of coprolites. Maria Mitchell was an astronomer who became the first American to discover a comet. Throughout my life I have always been drawn to stories of curiosity and scientific discovery, so on this year’s International Women’s Day, March 8, I decided to explore some pioneering women who are revolutionizing the world today.
Innovators
Chemistry
Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer A. Doudna
These two women were the co-inventors of the revolutionary gene-editing system known as CRISPR-Cas9. The two won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2020 for their work. Emmanuelle Charpentier is a French scientist with a degree in biochemistry from Pierre and Marie Curie University, and a doctorate in microbiology from Pasteur Institute. Since then, she has researched DNA and RNA in many places across Europe and the US. She met Jennifer Doudna in 2011, leading to their joint discovery in 2012. Jennifer Doudna is an American scientist with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Pomona College, and a doctorate in biochemistry from Harvard University. She went on to work as a Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of California, Berkeley.
Medical
Katalin Karikó
Katalin Karikó is a biochemist who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2023. Working at Penn Medicine, she and colleague Drew Weissman discovered a method for modifying mRNA that helped the immune system respond to disease. This discovery later became crucial to developing the Covid-19 vaccine. Katalin has a bachelor’s degree in biology, and a doctorate in biochemistry from the University of Szeged.
Olesja Bondarenko
Olesja Bondarenko is the CEO and co-founder of Nanordica Medical, a health company that works to develop antibacterial nanotechnology designed to prevent infection up to 8 times more effectively than traditional antibacterial products, while at the same time helping to heal wounds. Olesja has a doctorate in gene technology from Tallinn University of Technology, and was a finalist for the 2025 European Prize for Women Innovators in the Women Leadership Category.
Sustainable Technology
Fanny Bardé
Fanny Bardé is the co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of SOLiTHOR, a company that leads development in lithium and solid-state battery technology designed to be clean, safe, and environmentally friendly. Fanny has a doctorate in Material Science from Picardie Jules Verne University, and has authored and co-authored around two dozen patent applications. Fanny was also a finalist for the 2025 European Prize for Women Innovators in the Women Innovators Category.
Débora Andreia Campelo Campos
Débora Campos is the CEO and founder of AgroGrin Tech, which creates eco-friendly and cost-effective solutions to the problem of food waste in fruit production, and helps food companies to be more sustainable. Débora has a doctorate in Biotechnology, as well as a doctorate in Food Science and Engineering, from Universidade Católica Portuguesa (Portuguese Catholic University). She also developed “SMARTCHAIN”, an H2020 project to accelerate the short food supply chain. Débora was a finalist for the 2025 European Prize for Women Innovators in the Women Leadership category.
Activists
Amanda Gorman
Amanda Gorman is an activist who uses poetry to advocate for equality and justice in race and gender, as well as the environment. She makes it her goal to inspire other young activists to take action for the future. Amanda is the youngest poet in US history to speak at a presidential inauguration. She has been the recipient of awards such as ‘Youth Poet Laureate of Los Angeles’, ‘US National Youth Poet Laureate’, a ‘Genius Grant’ from OZY Media, and the ‘Poets & Writers Barnes & Noble Writers for Writers Award’, among other recognitions.
Autumn Peltier
Autumn Peltier is an Anishinaabe Indigenous activist from Canada who advocates for Indigenous rights, water rights, and the environment, with the main goal of campaigning for clean, safe water for First Nations people in Ontario, Canada. She was appointed the Chief Water Commissioner for the Anishinabek Nation in 2019, but began her activism journey at 8 years old. She received nominations for the International Children’s Peace Prize three years in a row, and has spoken at the Assembly of First Nations, the United Nations General Assembly, and the United Nations Global Landscapes Forum.
Greta Thunberg
Greta Thunberg is an environmental activist from Sweden whose goal is to bring awareness to environmental issues and fight against inaction on climate change. She founded a global climate movement called Fridays for Future when she was 15 years old, after holding the first “School Strike for Climate” in 2018. Greta has been a nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize from 2019 to 2023. She has also won the ‘Right Livelihood Award’, Amnesty International’s ‘Ambassador of Conscience Award’, and became the youngest person to be named ‘Time Person of the Year’, among other recognitions.
Vandana Shiva
Vandana Shiva is an Indian activist who advocates for food sovereignty, anti-globalisation, the environment, and ecofeminism. She founded the Navdanya Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology, is the president of Navdanya International, and is a member of the World Future Council and the board of the International Forum on Globalization. She has won awards such as the ‘Right Livelihood Award’, and authored many books. Her main focus is advancements in the fields of agriculture and food security.
Mya-Rose Craig
Mya-Rose Craig is an avid birder who advocates for the environment, ornithology, diversity, and helping young people connect with the natural world. She wrote a memoir called Birdgirl which received a nomination for the ‘Jhalak Prize’ and reflects on dealing with mental illness, and founded the charity Black2Nature, which encourages minority children to spend time in nature. Mya-Rose has received awards such as an Honorary Doctorate of Science from the University of Bristol, the ‘Malcolm X Young Person’s Award for Excellence’, and was selected as a ‘National Geographic Society Young Explorer’.
Today, women facilitate change and innovation in every area of science, technology, and social action, all over the world. If you enjoyed learning about all of these amazing women, I encourage you to take the time to do some research of your own, and explore the many many incredible women who are shaping our world beyond those featured in this article.
Happy International Women’s Day!