Meet the Team from India!

Great News! The Indian team has received their visas and is eager to travel to Minnesota in July to meet with the other teams! 

The Indian team comes from a great organization called Shaishav, meaning childhood, that works to promote a society where all children have the opportunity to be educated and to develop to their full potential. Shaishav has set up several Community Education Centers, where child-labor and non-school-going children can come in the evening to be educated in both practical and motivational subjects to help prepare them to leave work and go to school.

Their Platform for Action Plank

At the summit the Indian team plans to work to make the law of equal rights for children in India, especially girls, a reality. They plan to work to increase equal school enrollment of girls, and decrease child labor, sexual abuse, and child marriage by increasing awareness of these issues in the community.  They plan to start with  home visits with girls and parents, and build pressure for government action to provide compulsory education for children, ages 6-14, and to reject a recent amendment that allows marriage at age 15.

Read on to meet the amazing girls who are part of this team.

Krishna is 14 and dreams of a world where there is no gender discrimination. She wants to help girls who have had few educational opportunities. She believes in the value of girls helping each other. At the summit she hopes to improve her skills  to be more effective in persuading girls and their parents of the value of education. Krishna loves to problem-solve, help others and use her creative skills. Her favorite food is pani puri.

Heena dreams of a future where all girls have equal opportunities and the chance to attend school. She wants to see an end to child labor so girls can be educated and gain literacy skills. At the summit she expects to learn from other girls and to return home better prepared to tackle these problems. Heena enjoys cultural programs and working with children. Her favorite foods are bhel puri, pani puri, and ice cream.

Shachi hopes one day to live in a world where all girls will receive their rights and there will be no sexual violence. She feels the biggest obstacle facing women in her community is receiving education which could help them work together to find solutions to their problems. She is looking forward to meeting girls from other countries and working together to solve problems. Shachi enjoys drawing, dancing, traveling, and practicing English.

Meera wants to become a scientist and help end gender and caste discrimination. She dreams that one day all girls will be able to go to school and girls will no longer be harassed in the streets. She feels that sexual harassment is a significant issue in her community and says girls always take second place in their families. At the summit, she hopes to make friends with girls from around the world and go home with more techniques to organize other girls. Meera loves to sing, travel, and do science experiments.

Nirali dreams that one day girls will be able to make their own decisions and go to school. She wants to help girls who are working and cannot go to school, and hopes to learn more at the summit about how to change laws and attitudes to make this possible. She looks forward to learning many new things and teaching them to girls in her community. Nirali likes to play games, attend meetings and drink chocolate milk.