Young Futurists Young Futurists is our annual list of the 25 best and brightest young African-Americans who excel in the fields of social justice and activism, arts and culture, enterprise and corporate innovation, science and technology, and green innovation. Whoever said youth is wasted on the young, clearly didn’t know the 25 brilliant, creative and passionate young people who make up this year’s Young Futurists list. Since 2011, The Root has celebrated 25 exceptional African Americans who’ve excelled in the fields of arts and culture; enterprise and corporate innovation; green innovation (the environment); science and tech; and social justice and activism. This year, we expanded the age range to honor those ages 10 to 24 (from 15 to 22) because, as this year’s group has shown, excellence isn’t limited by age. Take 11-year-old Mari Copeny. The young activist has been advocating for clean drinking water for her hometown of Flint, Mich., since earning the title of Little Miss Flint in 2015—when she was eight. She has raised over $350,000 for her cause and has collected thousands of bottles of water. She told The Root that the residents of Flint are not “victims; they are fighters.” Or 11-year-old Elijah Precciely, who…