16 Under 16 in STEM: NJ Teen Employs Tech for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Kavya Venkatesan believes innovation and STEM can solve social issues affecting everything from bias in healthcare to sustainability

This summer we’ve been celebrating America’s 16 under 16 in STEM — young learners who have already made a meaningful mark in their schools and communities. 

We met an inspired 15-year-old STEM activist, Kavya Venkatesan, from Old Bridge, New Jersey who believes innovation and STEM can solve social issues affecting everything from bias in healthcare to sustainability. Kavya is also dedicated to building the nation’s female STEM workforce pipeline

She has developed strategies to mitigate the impact of climate change on her home state by creating an app, NJ X Connect, that connects individuals in low-income, coastal communities with flood relief organizations and resources in the event of an emergency. “Because right now, our strategy in those communities should be helping them be more resilient,” she said.

Kavya’s second app, Helios, a heat advisory system, aims to educate users about their risk of being hospitalized from heat strokes.

Her passion for STEM as a means of social change led her to the national organization Society of Women Engineers, where she brings industry professionals and students together to develop solutions for social change.

“I realized diversity, equity and inclusion — it has to be something that we need to focus more on in the STEM field,” Kavya said.

See our full interview — and celebrate our full 2022 class! 

Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter