Akash Patel

Akash Patel, an ILA 2021 30 Under 30 honoree, is the founder of Happy World Foundation Inc. (www.happyworldfoundation.us), an international nonprofit organization that promotes global citizenship education in schools and communities worldwide. In 2018, Patel, a Spanish and mathematics teacher with Dallas Independent School District, was selected as a top 50 finalist from over 30,000 teachers for the Global Teacher Prize, a $1 million award that is granted annually to one teacher who has made an outstanding contribution to the profession. In 2020, Patel was elected to the National Council of the United Nations Association of the United States of America (UNA-USA) to serve the 2020–2022 term. He was also appointed as the chair of the Global Engagement Summit, the largest gathering of U.S. grassroots changemakers and global activists in the General Assembly Hall at the United Nations (UN) and the chair of the UNA-USA Educators Affinity group that helps educators from across the United States champion the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals in their classrooms. Patel is a recipient of several national and international honors for his work with anti-bias global education. He speaks six languages and has traveled to over 50 countries.