Headshot of Mhairi, who has long curly hair tied back, is wearing a grey hoodie, and is standing in front of water, with hills in the background.

Meet the Youth STEM 2030 Core Team

Mhairi McCann

Founder & CEO

  • Mhairi’s (she/her) work at Youth STEM 2030 is fuelled by a deep drive to create possibility for other young changemakers in STEM, and her expertise lies in creating meaningful, inclusive and participatory youth inclusion in decision-making. A generalist, Mhairi brings a strategic approach to the pursuit of our mission, and enjoys thinking of the bigger picture and ‘joining the dots’.  She has a strong focus on equity & inclusion, is especially passionate about ocean conservation and, in her free time, enjoys volunteering and spending time in nature on long walks with Gordon the dog. For her work at Youth STEM 2030, she was named Winner of the 2022 Young Scot Environment Award. Mhairi is a 776 Foundation Climate Fellow, and a 2021 National Geographic Young Explorer.

    📧 mhairi@youthstem2030.org · 📍 Inverclyde, Scotland

Headshot of Ayomide Oshinjo

Ayomide Oshinjo

Partnerships & Programmes Officer - Consultant

  • Ayomide is a venture operator and a current graduate student of molecular medicine at the University of Oulu, Finland. With a background in business and life sciences, he excels at leading strategic initiatives and managing diverse stakeholders for organisational outcomes. In his previous roles, he has built and fostered engagements across industry, academia, and government. His work has straddled cross-functional areas in sectors ranging from healthcare to education and technology. Now, he is channelling this expertise to create and strengthen meaningful partnerships at Youth STEM 2030. Outside of work, you’d often find him listening to Afrobeats and trying out food recipes.

    📧 ayomide@youthstem2030.org · 📍 Oulu, Finland

Helena Norman

Youth STEM Changemakers Programme Officer

  • Helena is a recent graduate of a master’s degree in Ecology and Environmental Biology, based in Glasgow, Scotland. Having tutored STEM subjects to young people as part of the University of Glasgow’s Widening Participation programme, Helena is passionate about making science accessible and engaging, amplifying diverse voices in STEM, and empowering young people, particularly marginalised youth, to pursue STEM. As the Youth STEM Changemakers Programme Officer, she is excited to facilitate opportunities for youth to gain skills and knowledge, while working towards impactful change. Outside of work, Helena can be found reading, crocheting or wild swimming in Scotland’s chilly waters!

    📧 helena@youthstem2030.org · 📍 Glasgow, Scotland

Lizzie Bourn

Youth STEM Matters Programme Officer

  • Lizzie has recently graduated with a degree in Biology from the University of Leeds. With experience working in the pharmaceutical industry, she has a passion for innovation and efficiency and excels at identifying pragmatic and effective solutions. Having previously been a volunteer at the journal Youth STEM Matters for over three and a half years, Lizzie is passionate about the power of STEM to inspire young people and solve global challenges. Now, Lizzie is using these skills to increase the journal’s impact and sustainability by creating training resources for science communication reviewers, developing metrics to explore data for oversight of the publication and review processes and supporting the journal volunteers. In her free time, she enjoys playing hockey, experimenting with new recipes, and visiting art galleries.

    📧 lizzie@youthstem2030.org · 📍 London, England

Safa Haroon

Youth STEM Summit Intern

  • Safa is a storyteller, social entrepreneur and peace builder. She first joined Youth STEM 2030 as a 2020 Youth STEM Summit Design Team member, and the experience was so impactful that it kickstarted the rest of her journey towards the SDGs. She was the youngest member of the UNOCT’s first regional Youth Engagement and Empowerment to prevent and counter violent extremism in South Asia. Safa was the Founder & Executive Director of Harmony- a youth organization with a pledge to combat food insecurity, and has also worked with the Sisterhood Initiative to uplift Muslim women's rights in Sri Lanka. Safa is currently pursuing an undergraduate degree in Information Technology at Curtin University and runs its first Social Impact Club.

    📧 safa@youthstem2030.org · 📍 Colombo, Sri Lanka

Kimberly Anindo

Youth STEM Summit Intern

  • Kimberly is an aspiring data scientist, an inclusion and accessibility advocate, and environmentalist. She graduated from USIU-Africa in 2021 with B.A. in Criminal Justice. For the past 3 years she has volunteered within social impact spaces, including Youth STEM Matters, where she is part of the Executive Team. She has challenged gender norms with Politics4Her and brought African (his)stories to the global stage with her writing at afrorama. She has represented the voices of young Kenyans at Local Conference of Youth – Kenya in 2022 and recently completed an externship with Greenpeace USA x Paragon One. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, watching movies, and being in nature biking or hiking.

    📧 kimberly@youthstem2030.org · 📍 Nairobi, Kenya