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The teen coder who wants to change the world

A 16-year-old determined to bridge the gender gap in tech

Sixteen-year-old Dea Kurti is juggling school and a social life while trying to bridge the tech gender gap and empower refugees.

Encouraging more girls to study STEM – science, technology, engineering and mathematics – is a key educational cause across the world. But based on statistics, there’s still much work to be done.

According to the Pew Research Center, women make up 25% of computer jobs in the US and just 14% of engineering jobs. In the UK, just 11% of engineers are women, and the UK has the lowest percentage of female engineers in the whole of Europe.

But that’s why bright sparks like 16-year-old Dea Kurti are on the case. Kurti helps lead a programme that ships educational books about coding and STEM to girls far and wide, in an effort to spread a passion for STEM among young women and help bridge the gender gap in these industries.

Video by Elettra Fiumi.

Field producer: Rachel Elizabeth Seed

DP: Joseph Michael Lopez and Rachel Elizabeth Seed

Additional editing: Bernadette Young

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