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Hear from our last finalists

Bright Future Prize is all about empowering aspiring community leaders. Already, the prize has invested over £185,000 in young people from around the world to help them make their bright ideas to do good a reality.

2026 marks Bright Future's fifth anniversary. Over this time the prize has evolved and grown, but as ever our shortlist of finalists each exemplify ambition and commitment to make a positive impact on the world around them.

Over the coming weeks, we're showcasing all eight of our finalists – representing Australia, Brazil, New Zealand, Portugal, Singapore, and the UK – to provide the opportunity to get to know more about their bright ideas and what drives their passion projects. 

This week we hear from Santusht, Mackenzie and João, each with a unique project to spearhead change.

Combatting food waste for a sustainable future

Santusht Narula
Singapore

A budding engineer, Santusht is passionate about tackling sustainability challenges by developing systems to lead long-term change, with waste recycling being a key element.

In Singapore, there is a bustling food culture, but behind the scenes much of the waste from restaurants and eateries is not disposed of with sustainability in mind.

However, Santusht sees food wate not as waste at all, but a resource with potential – and which has led him to develop Waste Fellows.

Alongside Young Founders’ Summit in Singapore, what began as a small-scale experiment on breakfast waste has turned into a project which closes the loop on food production.

By engaging with local farms and restaurants, the initiative recoups value from waste by collecting food waste and then processes it into fertiliser to go back into food production, protecting the planet and supporting industry in one!

I want to see the environment becoming a better place. Singapore has one of the lowest recycling rates of food waste in the world, less than 20%. Waste Fellows aims to convert all types of food waste into value. It makes my heart ache that there is food waste all around me, but I know I can do something about it.
Santusht

Enabling young diverse people to navigate healthcare

Mackenzie Li
Melbourne, Australia

Mackenzie aspires to improve systems to better support young people’s health and wellbeing, particularly those from culturally diverse background and the LGBTQIA+ community.

She’s seen how difficult it can be to understand and access support, which is where The Aletheia Project steps in.

Named after the Greek goddess of truth and sincerity, The Aletheia Project aims to address the gap between understanding of available services, access and provision of support.

At its heart, the project is a youth-led health literacy and inclusion initiative which improves young people’s confidence to navigate healthcare and mental health systems, to ensure all young people can get the help they deserve and need.

I want young people to feel more empowered during their next GP visit or when there's something wrong, they know they can find resources to understand where to seek help and not feel trapped. I want everyone to be able to step out into the world confident in their own bodies.
Mackenzie

Providing tailored offline education in remote communities

João Marcos Almeida dos Santos
Arapiraca, Brazil

Having grown up in a region where internet connection was not consistent, João has experienced the challenges of getting online to learn – inspiring his project, Pré Parei (“Prepared”).

Pré Parei is a hybrid, 100% offline educational program which João has been developing over the past two years – with the aim to now expand to rural and low-connectivity schools in his home state of Alagoas.

Using a portable solar kit to generate a local Wi-Fi hotspot, students can learn inside and outside the classroom environment, which is especially important in rural areas.

By combining the technology with an education app focussed on literacy, tutoring, and logic at each student’s individual pace and learning style.

I want to make a viable and lasting impact on people's lives. Students should be taught in the way they learn best, which is important because I firmly believe that education can transform a person's future. When a system adapts to a student, that's what leads to the strongest outcomes.
João

What happens next?

In June, our ACT Trustees will select the four winners, who will each win £10,000 to take their idea to the next level, investing in our young leaders' dreams.

Stay connected with Bright Future Prize and ACT

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