Meet the winners of The Queen’s Commonwealth Writing Competition 2026!
The Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS) is proud to announce the winners of The Queen’s Commonwealth Writing Competition (QCWC) 2026, the world’s oldest international writing competition for schools.
This year’s competition reached a historic milestone, attracting a record-breaking 53,840 entries from 54 nations. For the first time, Regional Winners were selected from each of the Commonwealth’s five regions: Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and Americas, Europe, and the Pacific.
This year’s winners were chosen by a distinguished panel of judges, including:
Sir Ben Okri OBE, Chair of the judging panel and Booker Prize-winning novelist and poet
Imtiaz Dharker, Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry recipient
Dr Paul Edmondson, Head of Research, Shakespeare Birthplace Trust
Annie Garthwaite, author of Cecily and The King’s Mother
Caroline Haines CC, educator and Deputy Chair, Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Chetna Makan, cookbook author and former Great British Bake Off contestant
Portia Subran, Trinidadian writer and visual artist
Meet the young writers behind this year’s winning entries:
Itumeleng Mhlongo
Age 18 from Johannesburg, South Africa
Overall and Africa Regional Winner
Foundation
Itumeleng Mhlongo is an 18-year-old first-year medical student at the University of KwaZulu-Natal and the founder of Bridge the Gap, a zero-data telemedicine project that connects underserved communities with volunteer doctors using USSD technology. Born and raised in Tshepisong, a township in Johannesburg, she is the daughter of security guards and the first in her family to attend university. This year, she represented South Africa at the AFS Youth Assembly in Geneva, where she received an Outstanding Youth Research Award from the United Nations and the World Health Organisation. She is also a Young Researcher at the 13th Heidelberg Laureate Forum and a recipient of the Abbe Grant from the Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung. She writes because she believes stories can build bridges between people, communities and nations.
Aarav Roy
Age 15 from Ahmedabad, India
Asia Regional Winner
The Weight of a Hand
Aarav Roy is a Grade 11 student at Ahmedabad International School, currently in the IB Diploma Programme. His entry, The Weight of a Hand, explores a moment of unexpected connection between two very different beings.
Aarav has been writing since he was six years old, across short stories, essays, and journalism. He writes articles regularly and keeps getting published, covering topics like sports, social issues, ethics, and current affairs. He has also co-authored two short story anthologies and been recognised at the Cambridge Re:Think Essay Competition and the Lumiere Education Scholars Essay Award.
Writing sharpened his public speaking. This led him into Model United Nations, where he won at international conferences such as the Harvard PAIR Sustainability Impact Summit and the Harvard Crimson Global Case Competition, and secured spots in highly selective ambassador cohorts.
He also has a strong interest and passion for finance and business, alongside being a competitive chess player and long-distance runner.
Emma Cai
Age 18, from Brampton, Ontario, Canada
Caribbean and Americas Regional Winner
Between the Cracks of Silence
Emma Cai is a first-year student at the University of Connecticut studying Allied Health Sciences as a Stamps Scholar in the Honors Program. As a musician, she plays piano, violin, and flute, performing in ensembles and community settings. Her curiosity about science and healthcare has led her to pursue research, clinical experiences, and community service, from volunteering in hospital and long-term care settings to shadowing physicians. She is also the founder of SUNFLOWER ORG., a nonprofit dedicated to giving free access to music education for all children. Beyond academics, Emma has been involved in athletics, including competitive swimming, while also pursuing interests in mock trial and STEM. As the president of her high school’s Girls in STEM Club, she worked to encourage girls to explore STEM through workshops and hands-on activities. Emma also greatly enjoys writing, using her own experiences, emotions, and introspection as inspiration. She aims to paint a simplistic, but layered image in her stories.
Lydia Siqing
Age 13, from Paphos, Cyprus
Europe Regional Winner
Punch the Monkey
Lydia (Ni Siqing) is thirteen years old and originally comes from Shanghai, China. She is an only child and currently lives in Paphos, Cyprus, where she studies at Aspire Private British School. Lydia moved to Cyprus when she was ten years old.
Her favourite colour is yellow, and her favourite animal is a fox. She has a particular interest in Maths and Biology. Autumn is her favourite season because she enjoys the comfortable weather, making pumpkin lanterns and celebrating Halloween. She is not particularly interested in sports, especially during the summer.
In her free time, Lydia enjoys listening to music while sketching, playing the drums and spending time with her friends. Although she describes herself as a little introverted, she enjoys meeting new people and trying new things. She believes that these experiences help her grow, learn and develop as a person.
Kangwoo Moon
Age 15, from Christchurch, New Zealand
Pacific Regional Winner
Affinity for the Fallen
Kangwoo Moon is a fifteen-year-old writer, filmmaker, and scholar based in Christchurch. Three words that best describe him are ‘diligence’, ‘innovation’, and ‘polymathy’. After publishing a short novel in sixth grade, Kangwoo discovered his greatest joy in uncovering complex and poignant narratives from the seemingly mundane corners of his life. His work was shortlisted in the 2025 New Zealand National Flash Fiction Competition. At school, he focuses on his academic endeavours, qualifying at the international level in both Ethics Olympiad and Future Problem Solving. Beyond the classroom, he is involved in musical productions as well as being a part of a nationally acclaimed choir. Despite his fascination with a wide range of disciplines, Kangwoo is a storyteller at his core, aspiring to become a filmmaker who brings his stories to life. He approaches his goal with discipline and passion, continually seeking ways to challenge his creativity.
The Royal Commonwealth Society extends its heartfelt gratitude to all participants, the hundreds of volunteer judges, and the supporters and partners across the Commonwealth who make this competition possible. Their passion, dedication, and belief in the power of young voices have helped The Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition reach record heights in 2026, inspiring creativity, empathy, and shared purpose among tens of thousands of young writers worldwide.
