Guyanese medical student and nonprofit founder Kelly Anetta Hyles has met King Charles III at St James’s Palace in London following her selection as one of 100 young leaders recognised by the Queen Elizabeth II Commonwealth Trust for their contributions to communities across the Commonwealth.
Hyles shared the milestone in a social media post, describing the meeting with His Majesty as an honour. She said she was selected from thousands of applicants representing the Commonwealth’s 56 member countries.
During the meeting, discussions focused on her nonprofit organisation, Gears for Success, and her commitment to expanding access to educational opportunities for students in underserved communities in Guyana.
“I was selected from thousands of applications among the 56 Commonwealth countries,” Hyles said, expressing excitement about the opportunities ahead.
The recognition highlights Hyles’ efforts to address educational inequalities and improve opportunities for young people, particularly through access to learning resources and science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education.
From Vryheid’s Lust to international recognition
Born and raised in Vryheid’s Lust on the East Coast of Demerara, Hyles founded Gears for Success in 2017 to help students in underserved schools overcome barriers to education.
The organisation began by working with Vryheid’s Lust Primary School, where Hyles had studied. Its early initiatives included establishing a mathematics room and helping revive the school’s reading room with more than 500 donated books.
The initiative grew out of Hyles’ experience mentoring students at Harvard University’s Ed Portal in the United States. Seeing the educational resources available to students there inspired her to explore how similar opportunities could be made accessible to children in Guyana.
Rather than assume what the school needed, she consulted teachers and administrators before developing projects aimed at strengthening literacy and mathematics. Gears for Success subsequently expanded its activities to include science camps and STEM-focused initiatives.
Hyles’ work has also drawn attention to the importance of exposing students, including those in rural and underserved communities, to educational and career pathways that might otherwise remain beyond their reach.
A Commonwealth-wide recognition
The Queen Elizabeth II Commonwealth Trust established its 100 Young Leaders Awards in 2026 to mark what would have been the late Queen Elizabeth II’s 100th birthday. The programme recognises young changemakers from across the Commonwealth whose work addresses challenges in areas including education and employability, health, the environment, food and agriculture, and social inclusion.
According to the Trust, the awardees were selected through a competitive process involving thousands of applications. The initiative is intended to increase the visibility of their work and connect them with potential supporters, mentors and other leaders.
The programme continues the late Queen’s legacy of supporting young people and community-led initiatives, under the patronage of King Charles III.
For Hyles, the meeting at St James’s Palace represents international recognition of work rooted in Guyana and focused on expanding opportunities for its next generation.
Beyond education
Hyles has also pursued a career in medicine and has worked on initiatives aimed at improving healthcare access in Guyana.
She previously studied at Harvard University, where she focused on human developmental and regenerative biology, alongside studies in ethnicity, migration and rights. She later undertook medical and business studies at Stanford University, reflecting her interest in the relationship between healthcare delivery, policy and equitable access to services.
In 2020, she returned to Guyana through the Richardson Postgraduate Public Service Fellowship, working with the Ministry of Health and the 5G Dialysis Centre on efforts to expand access to dialysis services.
Her work has therefore extended beyond education to include healthcare initiatives directed at vulnerable populations.
Hyles’ latest recognition places her among a select group of young Commonwealth leaders whose community-based work has attracted international attention. Her stated ambition remains centred on ensuring that students in underserved communities in Guyana have greater access to the resources and opportunities needed to pursue their educational goals.
The meeting with King Charles III marks another milestone in that effort, as Hyles looks towards the next phase of Gears for Success and its work with young people.
