Sofia Fernandes

Brazilian social entrepreneur revolutionizing education access

Sofia Fernandes, a 28-year-old Brazilian educator, created the Escola Aberta platform connecting 1.2 million marginalized students to free online courses. Her blockchain-based credentialing system allows rural students to earn internationally recognized certifications. After surviving Amazon deforestation as a child, she developed the Rainforest Labs initiative training indigenous communities in digital literacy. Her 2022 partnership with Google.org provided 50,000 low-cost tablets to favela students. The UNESCO 2023 report cites her model as reducing school dropout rates by 40% in Brazil's poorest regions. Fernandes' TED Talk 'Education Without Borders' (2024) introduced AI tutors in local Indigenous languages. Her recent collaboration with UNICEF expanded the program to 12 Latin American countries, reaching over 3 million students. Forbes named her among 2024's 30 Under 30 in Education Technology.