Talita Boodhram is heading to an international gathering of 10,000 young people, taking a proudly South African education solution along for the journey.
South Africa (07 September 2026) – A school science project dreamed up by a South African teenager is about to be showcased to young people from across the globe!
This September, Talita Boodhram, Chief Impact Officer at MiDesk Global, will head to Yekaterinburg, Russia, to represent MiDesk at the International Festival of Youth 2026, taking a proudly South African education solution onto an enormous international platform. Running from the 11th to the 17th of September, the festival will bring together 10,000 young people from 191 countries to exchange ideas, develop solutions and build connections across borders. For Talita, it is a chance to share what South African innovation looks like while meeting young people tackling challenges in their own communities.
MiDesk is a wheeled schoolbag that transforms into a desk and chair, complete with a solar-powered light and USB charging capability.
The idea began as Talita’s school science project after she saw children trying to learn without proper desks and wanted to create a practical solution.
“South Africa has no shortage of young people with ideas. We are creative, resourceful and used to finding ways to solve the challenges around us,” says Boodhram. “Being part of this festival is an opportunity to show what that looks like and to take a South African-developed solution onto a global stage and one that could have an impact across the world.”
At the festival, Talita will share MiDesk’s journey and the lessons learnt along the way while connecting with innovators from other countries and discovering what they are building. It is exactly the kind of exchange that can help locally developed ideas grow beyond the communities where they began.
“I’m excited to see what young people from other countries are building and what inspired their ideas. But I’m equally eager to share what we have created here at home – solutions that are purpose led with generational impact,” she says.
While organisers have confirmed that participants from 191 countries are expected, a full public list of delegates by country has not been released, so we cannot confirm whether Talita will be the only South African attending. What we do know is that she will be taking an incredible piece of South African ingenuity with her.
“South Africa has ideas and solutions worth taking to the world, and this is an opportunity to demonstrate exactly that and I am so incredibly proud to represent my country.”
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They are already building solutions for it, and now the world gets to see what South Africa can bring to the table.
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