Marina Michaelidou-Kadi is a children’s book author based in Nicosia, Cyprus, and an advocate for peace, social justice, and animal welfare. With a background in psychology (BA) and environmental policy and management (PhD), she is known for her short but powerful stories about social and environmental issues, which cultivate empathy towards humans and animals, inspiring young children to care for the world around them and become agents of change. Her books touch upon themes of migration and uprooting, women’s role in building peace, social isolation and loss, animal exploitation, and the interconnection between humans and the natural world. 

Her work has been honoured with multiple awards and distinctions, including the National Literature Award for Young children (2013, 2018), the Peter Pan Prize of Sweden (2016), the IBBY Honor List 2016, and the White Ravens Catalogue of the International Youth Library of Munich (2014, 2017, 2019, 2025).

Awards and Distinctions

• Selected for the White Ravens catalogue of the International Library of Munich 2025, 2019, 2017, 2014.
• International Limassol Book Fair Award 2023 (given to a Cypriot author for their significant contribution to children’s literature).
• Cyprus National Literature Award for Young Children 2018, 2013.
• Cyprus IBBY Honorary Award 2018 (given to female writers for their significant contribution to children’s literature).
• IBBY Honor List 2016.
• Peter Pan Prize of IBBY Sewden 2016 (given to a foreign/translated book for children with artistic and contextual qualities).
• Children’s book award by the Cyprus Bibliographical Society 2011.
• Shortlisted for the Cyprus National Literature Awards for Young Children, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2018, 2019 and 2021.
• Shortlisted for the Greek IBBY picture book awards, 2013, 2015, 2016.
• Shortlisted for the Greek National Children’s Book Awards 2017.