Aravindan Balakrishnan

Indian educator creating mobile science labs to transform rural STEM education

Dr. Aravindan Balakrishnan (b. 1978) is transforming education in India's remote regions through his Knowledge Wheels initiative. Since 2012, his fleet of 50+ converted school buses equipped with solar-powered science labs has delivered hands-on STEM education to over 500,000 students in 23 states. The program's "Science on Wheels" curriculum includes VR simulations and 3D printing workshops. His partnership with NASA's Space Grant Program introduced 15,000 students to astrophysics through portable planetariums. Balakrishnan's research on gamified learning apps won the 2019 UNESCO King Hamad Prize for Innovation. He recently launched Girls TechNIC, a scholarship network supporting 2,000+ female engineering students from tribal communities. His TEDx talk "The Bus That Changed Everything" has over 3 million views.