Hello everyone,

We are excited to celebrate our two talented newspaper writers, Ayush Ranjan and Dev Rai, along with their teammate Austin Chen, as they shared their story in a live interview on Fox 5 DC.

They discussed their DECA project, which earned 1st place at the Virginia DECA State Leadership Conference in March 2026, and also talked about their future plans, including a financial literacy game called TAYU.

You can watch the interview here: https://www.fox5dc.com/video/fmc-nsz4uh655jl7z59n

Ayush and Dev are incoming seniors at Oakton High School in Virginia, USA, and have been part of INSPIRE YOUTH JOURNAL since November 2025.

Ayush was shortlisted for the Economics category in the John Locke Institute 2026 Global Essay Prize. 

He is also one of 12 talented Newspaper Writers worldwide whose work was selected to be featured in the Edition of the Year 2025. 

In addition, his research paper was selected as one of the two best papers in the newly released Summer 2026 Edition of the IYJ Social Science Research Journal.

Dev recently received a congratulatory letter from U.S. Senator Mark Warner, recognizing his selection as a 2026 YoungArts Award Winner with Distinction in Writing/Nonfiction. He was also recently selected as a finalist in the Pulitzer Center’s 2026 Fighting Words Poetry Contest in the Peace and Conflict category.

We’re also proud to share that Ayush and Dev are both recipients of INSPIRE YOUTH JOURNAL’s Honorary Ambassador titles. The Honorary Ambassador for INSPIRE YOUTH JOURNAL is a prestigious title for youth who can connect young people worldwide who care about global issues and peace. The Harvard Crimson Global Essay Competition, one of the world’s most prestigious essay contests, congratulates its Regional Winners on receiving our Honorary Ambassador title.

We are truly proud of Ayush and Dev, and we wish them continued success in their studies and beyond.

Sincerely,
The INSPIRE YOUTH JOURNAL Team
Global Platform for Youth Journalism