Great Thinkers

Meet the great minds whose ideas have shaped the world — philosophers, scientists, artists, leaders, and revolutionaries whose thinking still matters today.

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Subject: Politics × Era: Contemporary ×

1974-2025 · United States

Alice Wong was an American disability activist, writer, and editor. She founded the Disability Visibility Project, which gathered and amplified the stories of disabled people…

Creative expression Ethical thinking Cultural heritage and identity Emotional intelligence +1

"Disability is so much more than pain, trauma and tragedy. There's creativity, adaptation, and talent that comes from living in…"

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1933-2012 · United States

Elinor Ostrom (1933-2012) was an American political economist. She was born in Los Angeles and grew up during the Great Depression, a period of severe…

Environmental thinking Citizenship Systems thinking Financial literacy +1

"A lot of models in economics assume that human beings are fundamentally selfish. But the evidence shows that many people…"

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1906-1975 · Germany / United States

Hannah Arendt (1906-1975) was a German-American political philosopher. She was born into a Jewish family in Hanover, Germany, and studied philosophy under Martin Heidegger and…

Citizenship Ethical thinking Civic media and democracy Critical thinking +1

"The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good…"

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1921-2002 · United States

John Rawls (1921-2002) was an American political philosopher, widely regarded as the most important political philosopher of the twentieth century. He was born in Baltimore,…

Ethical thinking Citizenship Critical thinking Systems thinking +1

"Justice is the first virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought."

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1947-2023 · United States

Judith Heumann was an American disability rights activist. She is often called 'the mother of the disability rights movement'. She was born on 18 December…

Ethical thinking Critical thinking Cultural heritage and identity Emotional intelligence +1

"Some people say that what I did changed the world. But really, I simply refused to accept what I was…"

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1909-1972 · Ghana, West Africa

Kwame Nkrumah (1909-1972) was the first president of independent Ghana and one of the most important political thinkers and leaders of the twentieth century. He…

Citizenship Systems thinking Civic media and democracy Financial literacy +1

"The independence of Ghana is meaningless unless it is linked up with the total liberation of the African continent."

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1893-1976 · China

Mao Zedong was a Chinese revolutionary and political leader. He founded the People's Republic of China in 1949 and ruled it until his death in…

Critical thinking Ethical thinking Cultural heritage and identity Problem solving +1

"The Chinese people have stood up."

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born 1993 · Iraq

Nadia Murad (born 1993) is a Yazidi human rights activist from the Sinjar region of northern Iraq. In 2014, when she was twenty-one years old,…

Critical thinking Resilience Intercultural competence Critical literacy

"I want to be the last girl in the world with a story like mine."

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Patrice Lumumba

1925-1961 · Democratic Republic of the Congo

Patrice Émery Lumumba was a Congolese political leader and the first Prime Minister of the independent Democratic Republic of the Congo. He was born in…

Critical thinking Ethical thinking Cultural heritage and identity Creative expression +1

"We have known the mockery, the insults, the blows we had to endure morning, noon, and night because we were…"

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Rigoberta Menchú

born 1959 · Guatemala, Central America

Rigoberta Menchú Tum (born 1959) is an indigenous Maya K'iche' woman from Guatemala and one of the most important human rights activists of the twentieth…

Citizenship Ethical thinking Cultural heritage and identity Research skills +1

"I am still keeping secret what I think no-one should know. Not even anthropologists or intellectuals, no matter how many…"

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1946-1977 · South Africa

Steve Biko (1946-1977) was a South African activist and philosopher. He was born in King William's Town in the Eastern Cape, and grew up under…

Citizenship Ethical thinking Cultural heritage and identity Self regulation +1

"The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed."

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Wangari Maathai

1940-2011 · Kenya

Wangari Muta Maathai was a Kenyan environmental activist, scientist, and politician. In 2004 she became the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize.…

Ethical thinking Problem solving Scientific thinking Cultural heritage and identity +1

"It is the little things citizens do. That's what will make the difference. My little thing is planting trees."

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