March-April 2017 by SPAN magazine

MARCH/APRIL 2017 Rs. 20

Partnering

for Empowerment The Internet Saathi initiative by Google India and Tata Trusts is helping rural women go online.

EmpoweringThrough

Technology By MICHAEL GALLANT

Courtesy Google

The Internet Saathi initiative teaches rural women to use and benefit from the Internet.

March/April 2017

V O LU M E LV I I I N U M B E R 2

https://span.state.gov

2. Periodicity of Publication:

Bi-monthly

3. Printer’s Name: Nationality: Address:

C.J. Jassawala Indian Thomson Press India Ltd. 18/35, Delhi Mathura Road Faridabad 121007

4. Publisher’s Name: Nationality: Address:

Jeffrey R. Sexton American 24, Kasturba Gandhi Marg New Delhi 110001

5. Editor’s Name: Nationality: Address:

Deepanjali Kakati Indian 24, Kasturba Gandhi Marg New Delhi 110001

6. Name and address of The Government of the individuals who own United States of America the newspaper and partners or shareholders holding more than one percent of the total capital: I, Jeffrey R. Sexton, hereby declare that the particulars given above are true to the best of my knowledge and belief. Date: February 1, 2017

Jeffrey R. Sexton Signature of Publisher

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Empowering Through Technology



Crafting Development All Aboard the Entrepreneurship Train

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Ringing the Bell

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Words and Action

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Building Peace

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Defending for a Cause

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Nurturing Through Education

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Roots and Spices

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Game Changer

Left: Internet Saathis are provided Internet cycle carts to travel around villages. These are modeled on India’s traditional distribution system that uses carts to deliver everything, from ice-cream to industrial supplies.

Editor in Chief Craig L. Dicker Printed and published by Jeffrey R. Sexton on behalf of the Government of the United States of America and printed at Thomson Press India Ltd., 18/35 Delhi Mathura Road, Faridabad, Haryana 121007 and published at the Public Affairs Section, American Embassy, American Center, 24 K.G. Marg, New Delhi 110001. Opinions expressed in this 44-page magazine do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S. Government.  Articles with a star may be reprinted with permission. Those without a star are copyrighted and may not be reprinted. Contact SPAN at 011-23472135 or editorspan@state.gov

Courtesy K. C. Mahindra Education Trust and Naandi Foundation

Public Affairs Section American Embassy American Center 24, Kasturba Gandhi Marg New Delhi 110001

DENNIS VAN TINE/STRMX2 © AP Images

1. Place of Publication:

CONTENTS Breakthrough/Courtesy Flickr

The following is a statement of ownership and other particulars about SPAN magazine as required under Section 19D(b) of the Press & Registration of Books Act, 1867, and under Rule 8 of the Registration of Newspaper (Central) Rules, 1956.

Courtesy Yuwa

STATEMENT FORM IV

Ready for Takeoff Opening Doors to Technology

Reviewing Editor Branden L. Young

Editor Deepanjali Kakati Associate Editor Suparna Mukherji Hindi Editor Giriraj Agarwal Urdu Editor Syed Sulaiman Akhtar Copy Editors Bhawya Joshi, Shah Md. Tahsin Usmani Editorial Assistant Yugesh Mathur

Art Director Hemant Bhatnagar Deputy Art Directors Qasim Raza, Shah Faisal Khan Production/Circulation Manager Alok Kaushik Printing Assistant Manish Gandhi

Front cover: Photograph courtesy Google Research Services : Bureau of International Information Programs, The American Library

Internet Saathi

Go Online

Photographs courtesy Google India

https://goo.gl/aeo2Qb

4 MARCH/APRIL 2017

Helping Women Get Online https://hwgo.com

Saathi stories

https://hwgo.com/ stories

G Courtesy Google

oogle’s goals transcend simply making it easy to search on the Internet. In fact, its central mission is quite ambitious—to organize the world’s information and make it accessible to everyone. “We strongly believe that easy and quick access to information can transform lives,” says Sapna Chadha, head of marketing for Google India. With a groundbreaking initiative called Internet Saathi, Google India, in partnership with Tata Trusts, is working to make that belief a reality, specifically for India’s rural, less technologically educated women. The phrase “Internet Saathi” translates into “Internet friend.” The program has been designed keeping the specific needs of rural women in mind. “We modeled the entire initiative around India’s traditional information and communication distribution system,” says Chadha, “where the Internet Saathis are akin to the village postman, who is the single-point contact between the village and the outside world, in terms of information as well as communication.” Trained by Google, these saathis are roving educators and activists who travel to villages, armed with smartphones and tablets, and spend a minimum of two days per week, over a period of six months, teaching local residents about the Internet. They work hard to make sure their students become adept at using the Internet independently to gain knowledge that can benefit them in various aspects of their lives.

Left and above left : Gayatri (right), an Internet Saathi in Sarani Khera village, Rajasthan, trains women in her area to use Google Voice Search. Far left: Trained by Google, Internet Saathis teach basic Internet skills to rural women in India.

To share articles go to https://span.state.gov MARCH/APRIL 2017 5

Right and below right: Gayatri (left), an Internet Saathi, teaches her neighbor Lakshmi to search for new designs and sewing techniques on the Internet, to help advance her tailoring business.

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We strongly believe that easy and quick access to information can

transform

“Once an Internet Saathi has completed the training in a cluster of three villages, she moves to an adjoining cluster of villages where she trains women to get online,” says Chadha. Google India works with local groups and organizations to continue the educational momentum in rural areas, even after the saathis have moved on. Chadha describes Internet Saathis as “change agents,” tenacious teachers who take great pride in their work. And, their efforts have paid off. She shares the story of Chetna, who lives in the Alwar district of Rajasthan and joined the program in December 2015. “Chetna not only learned about mustard farming techniques to run her farm, but her own experience also inspired her to train over 500 girls and women in a span of four months,” says Chadha. “Several women still reach out to her for a range of issues, including quick remedies for day-to-day health conditions and information on MGNREGA and other government schemes.” MGNREGA is the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, which guarantees 100 days of wage-employment in a year to a rural household. Chadha also tells the story of Bujii, an Internet Saathi in Somavaram, Andhra Pradesh, who trained her neighbor to advance her business of stitching and tailoring in various creative ways. “She is now able to use the extra money she makes to send her daughter to the best school in the area,” says Chadha, adding there are thousands of such success stories. The Internet Saathi program was launched in July 6 MARCH/APRIL 2017

Photographs courtesy Google

lives.

2015 to address a troubling trend observed by Google India team members. “As Internet penetration started gaining momentum in India, we realized that the usage of the Internet amongst women in India was lower than that in most countries in the world,” says Chadha. “Only onethird of India’s online users are women.” The situation is much worse in rural India, she continues, where only one in 10 Internet users is a woman. In response, Google India first launched an initiative called Helping Women Get Online in November 2013, which sought to encourage daily Internet usage among women. But, it soon became clear to Google staff that specially crafted strategies were needed to reach those living in rural areas. “We took all the learnings [from Helping Women Get Online] and launched the Internet Saathi program,” says Chadha. Spread across

approximately 40,000 villages now, the program aspires to reach over 300,000 villages, or half of the country’s villages, in the next few years. While trained Google educators have already worked with more than one million Indian women, there is still much to be done. “There are still a lot of women in rural and urban areas who do not know how to operate smartphones or are not aware about the benefits of the Internet,” says Chadha. “So, the best and easiest way to contribute is to help those women who are around you. These can be your domestic help or an elderly woman of the house who doesn’t know about the benefits of the Internet.” Michael Gallant is the founder and chief executive officer of Gallant Music. He lives in New York City.

MARCH/APRIL 2017

Photographs courtesy Breakthrough

Right and below: Street theater artists perform at New Delhiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s The Park hotel and Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College of the University of Delhi, respectively, to spread the message of the Bell Bajao! initiative. Far right: Mallika Dutt, founder, president and chief executive officer at Breakthrough, speaks at the World Economic Forum on India 2012. Bottom: A Bell Bajao! video van at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi airs public service announcements on domestic violence against women. Bottom right: The launch event of the Bell Bajao! video van at Hindu Kanya Inter College in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh.

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Ringing the Bell By STEVE FOX

ike many groundbreaking ideas, the Bell Bajao! initiative, which asks men to step up and “ring the bell” to counter domestic violence against women, was born out of frustration with old ways that weren’t working. As a program officer for human rights and social justice at Ford Foundation in India, Mallika Dutt helped organize a number of conferences on combating violence and discrimination against women. But, she soon realized the message wasn’t really getting out. “I would go to meetings and it

would be the same people, over and over again—it was essentially ‘preaching to the choir,’ ” she says. “That led me to wonder about what might enable us to engage a much larger group of people, and also at a more personal level rather than at a policy level. There was an enormous gap between what I call the ‘rhetoric of law’ and the actual realities of women’s lives. So, I began to explore how we might close that gap and create a situation where the cultural norm was to treat women fairly.” Dutt’s explorations ultimately led to

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GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE

World Economic Forum/Courtesy Wikipedia

The Bell Bajao! campaign calls on boys and men to combat domestic violence against women.

Photographs courtesy Breakthrough

Above: A puppet show at the launch of the Bell Bajao! video van in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. Above right: A member of the Bell Bajao! initiative addresses students and staff members of Hindu Kanya Inter College in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh. Right: A Bell Bajao! member speaks on gender-based violence issues at an event in New Delhi. Below: The Bell Bajao! video van visited various schools in New Delhi to talk about violence in private and public spaces.

Mallika Dutt

https://goo.gl/Lubxvb

Breakthrough

http://us.breakthrough.tv/ 10 MARCH/APRIL 2017

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We need to understand that we really are going to be able to shift cultural norms only if we work with men to challenge the idea of what it means to be a man and engage men in becoming part of the solution.

Bell Bajao!

www.bellbajao.org

#AskingForIt

https://goo.gl/O07bwI

an award-winning music album and video called “Mann ke Manjeeré: An Album of Women’s Dreams” and to the launch of the human rights organization, Breakthrough, with offices in New Delhi and New York. The album brought to the forefront the problem of domestic violence by celebrating a woman leaving an abusive marriage and becoming a truck driver. In 2008, Breakthrough launched the innovative cultural and media campaign, Bell Bajao!, in India. The award-winning series of public service announcements, which show men and boys stepping up and “ringing the bell” to interrupt overheard domestic violence against women, has been viewed by more than 130 million people. Breakthrough also sent video vans through Indian cities and villages, which screened these announcements and involved people through games, street theater and other cultural tools to spread the message. The tactics and messages from the Bell Bajao! campaign, which went global in 2013 as Ring the Bell, have been used in many other countries, including Canada, China, Pakistan and Vietnam, notes Dutt. “What the Bell Bajao! campaign has done is bring the issue of violence against women into public dialogue, into the public eye,” says Dutt, who serves as the president and chief executive officer at Breakthrough. “Bell Bajao! invites everyone to be part of the solution. Men have to be engaged and involved. In the past, most programs have focused on providing legal remedies to women who have been abused. Those are critical pieces, but we need to understand that we really are going to be able to shift cultural norms only if we work with men to challenge the idea of what it means to be a man and engage men in becoming part of the solution,” says Dutt. Another Breakthrough campaign, #Askingforit, focuses on the role of bystanders,

who usually ignore instances of sexual harassment and often blame the victimized woman. Breakthrough urges anyone witnessing sexual harassment to check in with the victim, confront or distract the harasser, summon the police, help the victim file a complaint and call upon others to intervene collectively. The campaign stresses that women are never #Askingforit. Breakthrough seeks to make discrimination and violence against women and girls unacceptable everywhere, in all its forms, including domestic violence, sexual harassment, early marriage and gender-biased sex selection, says Dutt. “These changes require challenging the power relationships between men and women,” she says. “It’s not that violence against women just happen by accident—there are underlying causes and there are people who benefit. If you have a situation where you keep one group of people down and empower another group, then you create benefits for one group. Men have better pay, own more of the resources and assets, and have more power in the corporate world. We have to acknowledge that before we can change it.” Despite occasional setbacks, Dutt is optimistic about achieving the change. “After working in this space for 30 years, I know there are now many more women who are standing up and saying ‘enough is enough,’ ” she says. “It requires an honest conversation with men to demonstrate that violence against women ends up hurting not just women but men as well, and the whole community. We hope that by framing it as: ‘What kind of world do you want to live in?,’ we will enable men to change harmful attitudes and behaviors, so all of us can have a better existence.” Steve Fox is a freelance writer, former newspaper publisher and reporter based in Ventura, California. MARCH/APRIL 2017

Courtesy Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni Courtesy Simon and Schuster

Wordsand Action

“

I believe my writing is an important part of my activism, and my activism fuels my writing.

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have recently become very interested in mythology and epics,” says Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, an Indian American author and poet who lives in Houston, Texas. “It seems that many of our current ideas about male and female roles in India are influenced by the epics and, perhaps, by our misunderstanding of these texts.” Myths and stories, gender roles and culture, questioning and change—these are just a few of the compelling themes that Divakaruni explores in her popular and award-winning novels. Her first story collection, “Arranged Marriage” (1994), which examines the life of women who have immigrated from India, both from within and without, was honored with the

By MICHAEL GALLANT

American Book Award in 1995. In 2005, her novel “The Mistress of Spices” (1997), which traces the story of an Indian immigrant woman with magical powers, was turned into a movie by Paul Mayeda Berges and Gurinder Chadha. Two of her other novels might also be made into movies—“The Palace of Illusions” (2008), which is based on a feminist retelling of the “Mahabharata,” and “One Amazing Thing” (2010), which discusses how immigration shapes American identity. Divakaruni has so far published over 20 books of long-form fiction, short stories and poetry. She has no plans to stop anytime soon. To maintain her prolific pace, Divakaruni adheres to a regular writing schedule, sitting

writing community to share your work with are extremely valuable for young writers,” she says. Divakaruni advises reading a great deal and a wide variety of books. “Although I did not become a writer until much later in my life, I was always an avid reader,” she says. “I am certain that all the reading I did had a definite and positive impact on my writing. Great books became my teachers as I struggled to form my first few works.”

Left and far left: Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s critically acclaimed book “Oleander Girl” (2014) and her latest work, “Before We Visit the Goddess” (2016).

Michael Gallant is the founder and chief executive officer of Gallant Music. He lives in New York City.

Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

www.chitradivakaruni.com

Maitri

http://maitri.org

Daya

www.dayahouston.org

Indian American author

Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

writes powerful stories about South Asian immigrants and works hard to make their lives better. To share articles go to https://span.state.gov MARCH/APRIL 2017 13

ARTS

and poet

Courtesy Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

down at her computer for roughly three days a week when she is not working as a creative writing professor at the University of Houston. A wife and mother of two sons, she lives a full life and still manages to devote considerable time to pursue another key passion: activism. Divakaruni has spent years working with nonprofit organizations and considers this involvement to be vital to her life and identity. She serves on the advisory board of Maitri, a San Francisco-based group she helped found in 1991, and Daya, a Houston-based nonprofit. Both organizations help South Asian and South Asian American women struggling with situations of abuse, trafficking or domestic violence. Divakaruni first became involved in activism during her years as a graduate student, when she volunteered at a women’s center at the University of California, Berkeley, and later at domestic violence shelters in the San Francisco area. “I became aware that there was a great need for such services in our Indian American and South Asian American communities as well,” she says. “There was a very sad case in our community, where a young woman tried to commit suicide because she felt she had no one to help her. That is what led me to co-found Maitri.” Divakaruni’s activism and writing intersect in powerful ways. “It is very important for me to write stories of women, and to place women at the center of my stories as the protagonists,” she says. “It is important for me to show complex women in many different roles, often undergoing difficulty and emerging stronger as a result of it.” “Through both my activist work and my writing, I hope I am raising consciousness about the complex field of changing women’s roles and the continued support women require so that they can live with dignity and independence,” she continues. “Often, women write to me to say that my work has given them courage and inspiration to go through their own problems. It always makes me very happy when I read this. I believe my writing is an important part of my activism, and my activism fuels my writing.” For aspiring writers hoping to make an impact with their words and action, Divakaruni recommends taking creative writing classes, which are now offered both in Indian and U.S. universities, and available online. “Having regular instruction and a

Buildiingng Buil

Peace By STEVE FOX

HEMANT BHATNAGAR

An Indian think tank—Women in Security, Conflict Management and Peace—places women at the heart of the discourse and decision-making processes on security and conflict.

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Women in Security, Conflict Management and Peace http://wiscomp.org/

Partners in Wellbeing https://goo.gl/Gmmjpz

outh Asia has long struggled with a host of destructive conflicts that have often defied the efforts of established authorities to resolve them. However, a brighter future may be on the horizon as an under-utilized resource— women—moves to the forefront through the efforts of an Indian think tank, Women in Security, Conflict Management and Peace (WISCOMP). Launched in 1999, the organization is an initiative of the Foundation for Universal Responsibility, which was established with funds from the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the Dalai Lama in 1989. WISCOMP brings different stakeholders together in workshops, symposiums and training on issues like gender, conflict, peace and leadership. It has also produced over 300 academic and institutional publications. The organization evokes the qualities of wisdom and compassion associated with women, says founder and director Meenakshi Gopinath. “Women bring special skills to conflict resolution,” she says. “Their informal networks provide them access to information that is often missed in ‘official’ dispatches. They are effective at grassroots work, especially as part of mothers’ fronts that can effectively intervene between warring factions to stop bloodshed. They seldom work with either/or scenarios, and they are able to explore multiple options in the conceptual ‘gray zones’ that provide greater flexibility.” Men, too, have a vital role in peace building, says Gopinath, while emphasizing that all those affected by conflict deserve to be heard. “WISCOMP does not subscribe to the essentialist position that all women are somehow, biologically or socially, preconditioned toward peace or that ‘men make war and women make peace.’ Our position is if you leave out the voices of a substantial section of the population, you also effectively leave out some valuable solutions to resolve conflict,” she says. “Also, having experienced marginalization themselves, women are able to effectively foreground issues of justice to appeal to sections of combatants. Women constitute a substantial group, even as we believe both women and men have to co-create a more humane and inclusive world. What we wish to harness are the positive attributes of the feminine energies—not passive femininity—in both women and some men to

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CONFLICT RESOLUTION

Go Online

Courtesy WISCOMP

Right: Meenakshi Gopinath, founder and director of WISCOMP, speaks at a national consultation on Effective Intervention and Communication Strategies to Counter Violence Against Women, held in New Delhi in November 2016.

U.S. Embassy New Delhi/Courtesy Flickr

Above: MaryKay Loss Carlson, Chargé d’Affaires a.i. at the U.S. Embassy in India, during the WISCOMP National Consultation.

“

Our position is if you leave out the voices of a substantial section of the population, you also effectively leave out some valuable solutions to resolve conflict.

”

engage with skills that need to be brought into the public domain when making peace...,” says Gopinath. The organization takes a long view of conflict resolution, with a primary achievement being the creation of a group of young people from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and other South Asian nations, who have been mentored by it to develop complex and nuanced views of the conflicts involving their countries. “We invest in the future, recognizing that peace is a process, not an event,” says Gopinath. “We have consciously, from the beginning, invested in young people, or ‘future influentials’ as we call them, exhorting them to understand ‘the other’ and develop a stake in peace building in South Asia. This has, we believe, paid dividends. Today, we have an active cohort of over 500 young people who have participated in our conflict transformation workshops, and many have told us that these workshops have been perception game changers, especially in terms of the ways they see conflict and the possibilities of interventions that they can make.” WISCOMP also focuses on the problem of gender-based violence through a program called Partners in Wellbeing, which aims to change the attitudes, beliefs and behavior of young women and men to counter and prevent violence against

women and girls. Gender-sensitization dialogues and capacity-building workshops on gender equity bring together youth from urban and rural areas and disadvantaged communities. The program, supported by the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy in India, focuses on “effective methods young people have and can employ to combat the cultures of violence impunity and silence around gender-based violence that seem endemic in our country,” says Gopinath. While acknowledging that the road to lasting peace and gender equality will continue to be bumpy, Gopinath is optimistic about the future, noting that her organization plans to extend its efforts to other countries as well. “We believe that through the work of the remarkable women in our network, we have been able to create awareness about the importance of women’s voices,” she says. “But a lot more needs to be done—a paradigmatic shift in policy circles is yet to be achieved. So, our work must continue with persistence, creativity and innovation. We will continue to work in a way that makes despair unconvincing and hope practical.” Steve Fox is a freelance writer, former newspaper publisher and reporter based in Ventura, California. Courtesy WISCOMP

Below: The WISCOMP National Consultation brought together stakeholders from across India to review the work undertaken at various levels to change mindsets and attitudes on violence against women, post the 2012 Delhi gang rape incident.

Defending for a Cause

s a young child, Pooja Nagpal found inspiration in old Indian mythological stories. “The goddesses were my superheroes,” she says. “Powerful women who had a unique, symbolic fighting spirit, and helped and protected the vulnerable.” These fierce, strong women warriors fueled Nagpal’s passion for tae kwon do, in which she became a second-degree black belt by the age of 16. Now, she is using her martial arts skills to inspire other girls, both in India and the United States. Her nonprofit organization, For a Change, Defend, aims to eliminate gender-based violence and empower young women. Nagpal is also working on a safety app for college students. After learning about cases of assault, harassment and domestic abuse targeted toward women across the world, Nagpal felt that her training in tae kwon do and street fighting could help make a difference. She cites the 2012 gang rape and murder of a girl in New Delhi as a seminal moment in her decision to join the cause for women’s safety. The horrific incident had sparked nationwide protests and demand for better laws against gender-based violence.

Pooja Nagpal teaches self-defense to girls in India and the United States.

SELF-DEFENSE

DAVE BAIOCCHI/TEDxManhattanBeach/Courtesy Flickr

During the TEDxManhattanBeach 2015 in California, Pooja Nagpal talks about how she uses tae kwon do to empower girls.

By JASON CHIANG

To share articles go to https://span.state.gov MARCH/APRIL 2017 17

Go Online

Courtesy For a Change, Defend

Right: Pooja Nagpal (left) teaches tae kwon do to girls of Arya Public High School Subath in Himachal Pradesh.

For A Change, Defend www.forachangedefend.com

TEDx talk by Pooja Nagpal https://goo.gl/p5MLhU

In August 2013, Nagpal visited Arya Public High School Subath in the village of Subathu in Himachal Pradesh and taught self-defense and mental empowerment techniques to 40 girls. “I wanted to teach them to have a fighting spirit, and the determination to prevail,” says Nagpal. “So many girls are defeated before they learn to dream.” The students quickly learned selfdefense techniques, ranging from hand and foot moves to pressure points, for defending themselves from attackers and escaping dangerous situations. Nagpal spent a month in India, devoting over 100 hours to develop a self-defense curriculum, training her new students, and leaving behind a toolbox to instruct future pupils. Her two-part curriculum not only focused on improving the girls’ physical abilities, but also sharpened their mental acuity through discussions and activities centered on leadership, community service, confidence building and education. She led daily motivational discussions with her students on how to become a leader by using their self-confidence and

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physical strength. The overwhelmingly positive feedback she received about the improvement in her students in India, encouraged Nagpal to further her work in her hometown of Manhattan Beach, California. For a Change, Defend has teamed up with the California-based New Star Family Justice Center to provide self-defense and mental empowerment training to teen students in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County. Nagpal also organized a selfdefense workshop at the Anne Douglas Center, a shelter and rehabilitation facility for women in Los Angeles, with the help of the city’s police department and a few former Federal Bureau of Investigation personnel. In the summer of 2015, Nagpal returned to India, traveling to New Delhi to spread the message of her organization to government schools, women’s colleges, institutes for visually-impaired girls, villages and other areas. Along with self-defense, she continues to emphasize the importance of mental empowerment and

confidence gained through physical strength. While her initial trip to India impacted a small group of 40 girls, Nagpal estimates that over 500 students became involved with her organization during her 2015 visit. That same year, she was honored by the Girl Scouts of the USA as one of the 10 National Young Women of Distinction. The 10 were chosen for this honor to acknowledge their demonstrations of extraordinary leadership and impact on local or national issues. Nagpal also won a 2016 Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes, which celebrates inspiring, public-spirited young people from diverse backgrounds all across North America. Nagpal hopes to continue to lead an international movement where physical defense and mental empowerment go hand-in-hand to foster gender equality. She believes one day, women will walk the streets without any fear. With her continued hard work, the fight grows stronger every day. Jason Chiang is a freelance writer based in Silver Lake, Los Angeles.

Game Changer By CANDICE YACONO

Yuwa,

Above: Franz Gastler, co-founder and executive director of Yuwa. Above left: Apart from soccer, Yuwa also puts a lot of emphasis on education. It has a sevenroom school facility, where girls are taught by expert teachers. Left: More than 600 girls from tribal backgrounds have played soccer with Yuwa. To share articles go to https://span.state.gov MARCH/APRIL 2017 19

SPORTS

Photographs courtesy Yuwa

a Californiabased nonprofit organization, is using girlsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; team sports as a platform for social development in Jharkhand.

Go Online

Yuwa Photographs courtesy Yuwa

www.yuwa-india.org

Yuwa school http://ket.to/yuwa

very morning before dawn, about 150 girls wake up and make their way to empty soccer fields in Jharkhand. The girls are among the 250 members of Yuwa, a girls’ soccer program founded in India in 2009. More than 600 girls from tribal backgrounds have played soccer with Yuwa till date, which also teaches life and leadership skills. The program is run by Yuwa, Inc., a California-based nonprofit whose mission is to advance social progress in rural India through this youth-driven initiative. Franz Gastler, co-founder and executive director of Yuwa, moved to India from the United States in 2007. He studied international political economy at Boston University and served as a consultant at the Confederation of

20 MARCH/APRIL 2017

Indian Industry before forming Yuwa, which aspires to change the region’s perception of the rights, role and value of girls in society. In Jharkhand, less than 56 percent of girls and women can read or write, and six out of 10 girls drop out of school to marry young, usually by age 15. The girls who are able to go to school, attend overcrowded classrooms which often lack basic facilities, including toilets and drinking water. Yuwa offers girls a way out of their traditional life path. Older girls work independently with younger players, recruit team members and run their local teams. After practice, many of the girls go to Yuwa’s seven-room school facility, where teachers help them learn subjects like computer

science, English, mathematics and science. They are also guided on matters like transferring to better schools. Yuwa teams encourage girls to stay in school and take care of their own health and needs, as well as those of their teammates. Team captains monitor their team members’ attendance. Every week, hour-long discussion-based life skills workshops, led by local women staff members or the girls themselves, are designed based on the girls’ concerns. These cover topics like health, gender, violence, sexuality, self-esteem and finances. Parent meetings are another component of Yuwa. Girls, coaches and parents meet to talk about issues like whether the girls want to defer marriage in favor of further education, which is a radical concept for many families. The program started when Yuwa realized that despite being given scholarships to stay in school, the girls in the region continued to miss classes. There was no change in their parents’ expectations of their futures. When some of the scholarship recipients asked if they could start playing soccer, it was a game changer. They developed a tight-knit social community that encouraged school attendance. Yuwa girls also help with household chores to ensure their friends can attend practice, and check in with each other. Yuwa participants speak at TED events and universities in India. And, they have already competed on three continents. In 2013, a team of 18 girls traveled to Spain to compete in two tournaments—the Gasteiz Cup and the Donosti Cup. For many of the girls, it wasn’t just their first time playing on synthetic turf but also their first time leaving their village in Ormanjhi, outside Ranchi, and flying on an airplane. The team placed third in the Gasteiz Cup. To celebrate their win, the girls donned saris with sneakers and danced on the field.

Photographs courtesy Yuwa

Left, below left, right and center right: By teaching soccer to rural girls in Jharkhand, Yuwa is offering them a way out of their traditional life paths. Bottom right: Yuwa girls placed third among the 10 international teams playing for the Gasteiz Cup in 2013.

MARCH/APRIL 2017

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Photographs courtesy Yuwa

Left: Yuwa aspires to change people’s perception of the rights, role and value of girls in society. Right and far right: Yuwa girls donned traditional red and white saris to celebrate their win in the Gasteiz Cup.

At the Donosti Cup, they competed against 35 other teams and qualified for the quarterfinals. They became known as “supergoats” when they played barefoot in the friendly matches, in order to save their limited quantities of footwear. Yuwa has gained massive popularity within Jharkhand as well as worldwide. The

organization now plans to build a school for 300 girls and offer soccer training to 1,600. The planned facility will have a soccer field, along with modern facilities like a computer lab and more than 100 soccer coaches. Candice Yacono is a magazine and newspaper writer based in southern California.

MARCH/APRIL 2017

CraftingDevelopment By PAROMITA PAIN

IVLP alumna Hema Balakrishnanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s eco-socio enterprise strives to empower terracotta artisans in India. Right: Hema Balakrishnan (right) works with 12 groups of terracotta artisans from six states. Her ecosocio enterprise, Color D Earth, showcases predominantly handcrafted terracotta jewelry (bottom right and far right) and operates on the fair trade model.

Go Online Hema Balakrishnan https://goo.gl/qg7pMC

Color D Earth http://colordearth.com/

https://goo.gl/cqf5Ea

International Visitor Leadership Program http://eca.state.gov/ivlp 24 MARCH/APRIL 2017

Photographs courtesy Hema Balakrishnan

10,000 Women

In 2009, Balakrishnan was part of the Goldman Sachs-funded 10,000 Women initiative, an entrepreneurship program of the U.S. State Department. She is also an alumna of the 2012 International Visitor Leadership Program, the U.S. State Department’s exchange program for professionals, on women and entrepreneurship. In 2014, Balakrishnan set up a three-month mentorship program for 10 women entrepreneurs, in collaboration with two fellow exchange program alumni and the U.S. Consulate General in Hyderabad. “I realized that there were a lot of options in the market for handcrafted jewelry, but no standard for the finished product,” she says. “Terracotta jewelry dates back to the Indus Valley civilization, long before metals like gold became the norm. The terracotta jewelry our artisans handcrafted had to stand the test of time.” Starting out by showcasing her work in different boutiques over a period of three to four years taught Balakrishnan a few important lessons. “Most retailers in this area work on the consignment model,” she explains. “You give your work to stores and you get paid for what is sold and take back or exchange what is not sold. There is no monetary commitment from the stores, so they have little motivation to sell your work.”

Structuring the business Balakrishnan started looking for ways to overcome this challenge when she got selected for the 10,000 Women program. “I didn’t think I would be able to make it,” she says. The program, tailor-made for women

Giving back Balakrishnan attributes a lot of her business and entrepreneurship ideas to the International Visitor Leadership Program. “This was an opportunity to learn from successful women entrepreneurs in a country that is very advanced,” she says. “Besides the best practices we shared, I understood the importance of giving back to the community.” Balakrishnan is inspired by businesswomen who can create a niche for themselves and take charge of their work. “A lot needs to be done for entrepreneurship, in general, and women entrepreneurs in particular, in our country,” she says. “It’s important to convince women that they can follow their passion and take charge of their lives.” Paromita Pain is a journalist based in Austin, Texas.

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CRAFTS

For and by women

entrepreneurs and facilitated in India by the Indian School of Business in Hyderabad, encouraged Balakrishnan to make her first business plan and articulate her goals. “It gave my work structure and was a huge confidence booster. Networking with 29 other women from diverse businesses was a huge learning experience too,” she says. Until then, her work was being retailed from home, appreciated by friends and family. “I am the first entrepreneur in my family and this was like a prayer answered,” says Balakrishnan, adding her children were her strongest supporters and promised to do their best to help her. “They still are my rocks,” she says. “We do the craziest things together!” Balakrishnan opened her first store in Mumbai. “It was just 50 square feet,” she says. Later in 2009, she brainstormed with her mentor and friends and came up with the name Color D Earth. In 2010, she moved back to her hometown, Hyderabad, with her kids. Today, Color D Earth works with 12 groups of terracotta artisans from six states. “I met these artisans either at fairs or tracked them down from very remote areas,” she says. “Terracotta-related work was always looked at as a seasonal occupation; for example, making diyas during Diwali. But, jewelry can be made year round.” Color D Earth showcases predominantly handcrafted terracotta jewelry and operates on the fair trade model. It is also India’s first social e-commerce store that sells only terracotta products.

Photographs courtesy Hema Balakrishnan

ema Balakrishnan discovered the joy of working with terracotta by chance. In 2003, in a clay modeling class with her children, Balakrishnan felt she had “unfinished business” with the materials in her hand. Today, she is the owner and founder of Color D Earth, an eco-socio enterprise that strives to empower terracotta artisans in India. “Entrepreneurship is a very empowering concept,” says Balakrishnan. “I don’t run an NGO [nongovernmental organization], but a social enterprise that believes in generating profits to support all stakeholders. We don’t need to knock on doors for someone to fund us. When we work with materials like terracotta, the NGO model isn’t a feasible one.”

Jagriti Yatra sparks creative enterprise and encourages development through a journey across India.

All Aboard the Entrepreneurship Train By CARRIE LOEWENTHAL MASSEY

26 MARCH/APRIL 2017

Top and left: Jagriti Yatra participants at Deoria, Uttar Pradesh. Above and above left: The yatra takes about 450 youngsters on a 15-day train trip across India to inspire them to start a movement of “building India through enterprise.”

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ENTREPRENEURSHIP

FAHAD YUNUS MOHAMMED/Courtesy Jagriti Yatra

Photographs courtesy Jagriti Yatra

(Karnataka), on to Madurai and Chennai (Tamil Nadu), Vishakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), Berhampur (Odisha), Rajgir (Bihar) and Deoria (Uttar Pradesh), up to New Delhi, and then back through village Tilonia (Rajasthan) and Ahmedabad (Gujarat). In each location, the participants meet successful entrepreneurs, or role models, who share their stories of starting out and building their businesses, both in the for-profit and nonprofit sectors, along with tips and advice for pursuing entrepreneurial goals. These entrepreneurs have expertise across seven sectors tied to development: agriculture; education; energy; health care; manufacturing; water and sanitation; and art, culture and sports. While the participants gain great exposure and knowledge from their off-train experiences, much of the learning and connection-building happens on the train itself. Days are filled with scheduled debates, presentations and conversations, along with events centered on art, music and poetry. The journey gives participants a once-in-alifetime “experience to meet about 450 other

FAHAD YUNUS MOHAMMED/Courtesy Jagriti Yatra

agriti Yatra isn’t your average train trip. This 15-day ride through 12 Indian cities, covering about 8,000 kilometers, embodies its name, which means “a journey of awakening.” “We are trying to awaken the spirit of entrepreneurship among the youth of the country, so they become job creators rather than job seekers,” says Ashutosh Kumar, executive director at Jagriti Yatra. These youth can go on to “build solutions to the development challenges our nation is facing today,” he adds. Kumar participated in the International Visitor Leadership Program, the U.S. State Department’s exchange program for professionals, on “Innovations for Social Entrepreneurs and Innovators” in 2013. Headquartered in Mumbai, Jagriti Yatra is set up under a nonprofit organization Jagriti Sewa Sansthan, which is based in Deoria, Uttar Pradesh. The yatra has run annually since 2008, carrying about 450 youngsters, or “yatris” as Kumar calls them, on one train from December 24 to January 8. The train starts from Mumbai (Maharashtra), heading south to Hubballi and Bengaluru

Photographs courtesy Jagriti Yatra

Top, top right and above right: Jagriti Yatra participants visit Barefoot College in Tilonia, Rajasthan. The college provides a self-sustaining model where local villagers are involved in the solar sector and women above 40 years of age are given specialized training to fabricate and repair solar devices. Above: The Biz Gyan Tree exercise, held in Deoria, Uttar Pradesh, where participants were divided into groups to develop business plans and assess them in a rural environment, before presenting them to a panel of judges.

entrepreneurs and collaborate with them; learn the art of entrepreneurship from the role models of the country; understand the development challenges of the country; and build long-lasting solutions through enterprise methods,” says Kumar. For Jagriti Sewa Sansthan, the meaning of the word “enterprise” extends beyond business ventures to teaching, medical professions, social work and art— anything that can fulfill the organization’s 28 MARCH/APRIL 2017

mission of encouraging development across “Middle India.” According to Jagriti Yatra’s website, this segment encompasses 600 million Indian youth who are literate, have roofs over their heads and eat three meals a day, but are “without a sense of purpose.” Each year, thousands of applications are received for the Jagriti Yatra. A majority of the participants are selected from the 20- to 27year-old age group. Some spots on the train are reserved for facilitators, who are experienced professionals over 25 years of age able to mentor the younger participants. Applicants answer around seven essay questions and submit them to a committee of 30 selectors, consisting of entrepreneurs, academics, industry experts, youth leaders and Jagriti Yatra alumni. Three selectors review each application and send their top choices to a chief selector for a final decision. Along with

“ ”

We are trying to awaken the spirit of entrepreneurship among the youth of the country, so they become job creators rather than job seekers.

Jagriti Yatra www.jagritiyatra.com

Jagriti Sewa Sansthan https://goo.gl/nLI3rB

Selection process for Jagriti Yatra https://goo.gl/XkDKkW

MARCH/APRIL 2017

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Above, left and below left: Visual minutes of Jagriti Yatra participants’ visit to Infosys, an information technology company, in Bengaluru; to the Royal Enfield factory, a motorcycle manufacturing company, in Chennai; and of a panel discussion focused on agriculture as the next entrepreneurial opportunity in India. Above left: Jagriti Yatra participants take a tour of Kalkeri Sangeet Vidyalaya in Kalkeri, Karnataka, which provides education to children from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

Photographs courtesy Jagriti Yatra

Top: Parthasarathy N. S. (Partha), president and chief operating officer of Mindtree Consulting Pvt. Ltd, addresses Jagriti Yatra participants in Bengaluru. Mindtree is an information technology company. Top right: Participants meet Adam Woodward, director of Kalkeri Sangeet Vidyalaya in Karnataka and one of the role models of the yatra. Above: Senthil A. Kumar, chief manager of projects at SELCO Solar Pvt. Ltd in Bengaluru, interacts with the participants. SELCO provides sustainable energy solutions and services to underserved households and businesses. Above right: Sanjit “Bunker” Roy, founder of Barefoot College and a role model of Jagriti Yatra, interacts with the participants.

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the essay questions, facilitators have to complete a telephonic interview. “While screening, we look for the passion inside the applicant to become an entrepreneur, the zeal to build innovative and scalable enterprise solutions to the various development challenges our country is facing,” says Kumar. “There are no other academic or professional barriers.” Jagriti Sewa Sansthan tries to reduce financial barriers for the candidates by permitting different levels of contribution depending on their financial status. Almost 40 percent of them pay only the compulsory registration fee of Rs. 6,000 ($90 approximately), says Kumar. In addition to the yatra, Jagriti Sewa Sansthan also runs the Jagriti Enterprise Network and the Jagriti Enterprise Center. The network is meant to serve as an ecosystem to support young entrepreneurs from “Middle India.” The center “is a regional incubation program to support small and medium-sized entrepreneurs through services like mentorship, market access and connection to funding,” explains Kumar. Jagriti Yatra aims to support 100,000 entrepreneurs by 2022, creating a million jobs in the process. The participants are helping it reach its goal through their successful ventures, which include a network of hostels operating in

Bengaluru and looking to expand across India; a technology company striving to bring mobile products to underserved markets; a company working to make organic food more readily available while recognizing the farmers that produce it; and a health care start-up that helps connect people with doctors and provide access to medicines. Jagriti Yatra also inspired Patrick Dowd, a 2010-11 Fulbright scholar, to create the Millennial Trains Project in the United States. The project, which had its inaugural voyage in 2013, encourages entrepreneurship in the millennial generation. It carries about 25 young people from Portland, Oregon, to New York to help them learn about the opportunities and challenges faced by entrepreneurs in the United States. Kumar sees Jagriti Yatra as a starting point for a network of entrepreneurs who can come together to “connect, collaborate and create” the programs India needs to develop further. Its impact can be as far reaching as participants dare to dream and pursue their visions. “Such a network of like-minded people has the potential to transform the landscape of the country and the entire world,” he says. Carrie Loewenthal Massey is a New York City-based freelance writer.

Archives/iStock/Thinkstock

Ready Takeoff

for

By JENNIFER CHU | MIT NEWS

ver the next 25 years, the number of passengers flying through U.S. airport hubs is expected to skyrocket by almost 70 percent, to more than 900 million passengers per year. This projected boom in commercial fliers will almost certainly add new planes to an already packed airspace. Any local delays, from a congested runway to a weather-related cancellation, could ripple through the aviation system and jam up a significant portion of it, making air traffic controllers’ jobs increasingly difficult. “The system is large and there’s a lot of connectivity,” says Hamsa Balakrishnan, associate professor of aeronautics and astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “How do you move along

today’s system to be more efficient and, at the same time, think about technologies that are lightweight, that you can implement in the tower now?” These are questions that Balakrishnan is seeking to answer. She is working with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and major U.S. airports to upgrade air traffic control tools in a way that can be easily integrated into the existing infrastructure. These tools are aimed at predicting and preventing air traffic delays, both at individual airports and across the aviation system. They will also ultimately make controllers’ jobs easier. “We don’t necessarily want [controllers] to spend the bandwidth on processing 40 pieces of information,” says Balakrishnan, who is a member of MIT’s

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TECHNOLOGY

Hamsa Balakrishnan develops algorithms to reduce airport congestion.

www.mit.edu/~hamsa/

MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics http://aeroastro.mit.edu/

MIT Institute for Data, Systems, and Society https://idss.mit.edu/

MIT School of Engineering

http://engineering.mit.edu/

Balakrishnan has developed a queuing model that predicts the wait time for each plane before takeoff, given weather conditions, runway traffic and arrival schedules. 32 MARCH/APRIL 2017

Institute for Data, Systems, and Society. “Instead, we can tell them the three top choices, and the difference between those choices would be something only a human could tell.” In 2016, Balakrishnan developed algorithms to prevent congestion on airport runways. Large hubs like New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport can experience significant jams, with up to 40 planes queuing up at a time, each idling in line—and generating emissions—before finally taking off. Balakrishnan found that runways run more smoothly, with less idling time, if controllers simply hold planes at the gate for a few extra minutes. She has developed a queuing model that predicts the wait time for each plane before takeoff, given weather conditions, runway traffic and arrival schedules, and she has calculated the optimal times when planes should push back from the gate. In reality, air traffic controllers may also be balancing “human constraints,” such as maintaining a certain level of fairness in determining which plane lines up first. That’s why a large part of Balakrishnan’s work also involves talking directly with air traffic controllers and operators, to understand all the factors that impact their decision making. “You can’t purely look at the theory to design these systems,” says Balakrishnan. “A lot of the constraints they need to work within are unwritten, and you want to be as nondestructive as possible, in a way that a minor change does not increase their workload. Everybody understands in these systems that you have to modernize. If you’re willing to listen, people are very willing to tell you about what it looks like from where they are.”

First flight Balakrishnan was born in Chennai and raised by academics—her father is a retired physics professor at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, and her mother is a retired professor of physics at the Institute of Mathematical Sciences in Chennai. Her brother, Hari Balakrishnan, is now at MIT as the Fujitsu Professor of electrical engineering and computer science. “A lot of people we knew were academics, and people used to talk about their research at our home,” recalls Balakrishnan. “I was surrounded by [academia] growing up.” Following the family’s academic path

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Hamsa Balakrishnan

wasn’t necessarily Balakrishnan’s goal, but as an undergraduate at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, she found she enjoyed math and physics. She eventually gravitated to computational fluid dynamics, as applied to aerospace engineering. “My parents are physicists, and maybe I wanted to rebel, so I went into engineering,” says Balakrishnan, half-jokingly. “I liked practical things.” She applied to graduate school at Stanford University in California, and after she was accepted, she took her first-ever plane ride, from India to the United States. “Air travel is much more affordable and common now, even in India,” says Balakrishnan. “It didn’t used to be that way, and a lot of work has been done, even in more developing economies, to make air travel more accessible.”

Hamsa Balakrishnan, associate professor of aeronautics and astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a member of MIT’s Institute for Data, Systems, and Society.

Clearing the runways At Stanford, Balakrishnan shifted her focus from fluid dynamics to air traffic and control-related problems, first looking at ways to track planes in the sky. “That got me interested in how the rest of the system works,” says Balakrishnan. “I started looking at all the different decisions that are getting made, who’s deciding what, and how do you end up with what you see eventually on the data side, in terms of the aircraft that are moving.” After graduating from Stanford, she spent eight months at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Ames Research Center in California, where she worked on developing control algorithms to reduce airport congestion and optimize the routing of planes on

the tarmac. In 2007, Balakrishnan accepted a faculty position in MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, where she has continued to work on developing algorithms to cut down airport congestion. She’s also finding practical ways to integrate those algorithms in the stressful and often very human environment of an airport’s control tower. She and her students have tested their algorithms at major airports including Boston’s Logan International, where they made suggestions, in real-time, to controllers about when to push aircraft back from the gate. Those controllers who did take the team’s suggestions observed a surprising outcome: the time-saving method actually cleared traffic, making it easier for planes to

cross the tarmac and queue up for takeoff. “It wasn’t an intended consequence of what we were doing,” says Balakrishnan. “Just by making things calmer and a little more streamlined, it made it easier for them to make decisions in other dimensions.” Such feedback from controllers, she says, is essential for implementing upgrades in a system that is projected to take on a far higher volume of flights in the next few years. “You’re designing with the human decision-maker in mind,” says Balakrishnan. “In these systems, that’s a very important thing.” Reprinted with permission of MIT News (http://news.mit.edu). MARCH/APRIL 2017

Girls in Tech India strives to

Photographs courtesy Girls in Tech

make STEM and entrepreneurship opportunities more accessible to women, especially in rural areas.

Opening Doors to

Technology

By CARRIE LOEWENTHAL MASSEY

n March 2015, when Sree Divya Vadlapudi P. joined Girls in Tech India as the managing director, she faced an immediate challenge: getting people to understand her organization’s purpose. Girls in Tech India focuses on engaging, educating and empowering women in the fields of technology and entrepreneurship, and to raise their visibility in these and other STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) and innovation-driven fields. But, as opportunities in STEM and entrepreneurship already seem abundant in India, Vadlapudi was asked what her organization would do differently. Vadlapudi knew exactly what it would do: close the gaps in access to these opportunities for women in India, especially in rural areas. “When you are an NGO [nongovernmental organization], you have to provide what is not provided to people,” she says. Prior to the official launch of Girls in Tech India in January 2016, Vadlapudi and her team assessed the status of Indian women in STEM fields. They found girls represent only 39 percent of students in STEM education, 10 percent of tech company founders and 12.7 percent of people in the industry. They also found that 40 percent of

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female engineers are unemployed. Based on these findings, the Girls in Tech India team decided to focus on five areas: facilitating mentor-mentee relationships; creating industryspecific institutes to support women entrepreneurs; providing recent college graduates with exposure to industry; helping mothers return to work as their children grow up; and providing a network and communication platform to women entrepreneurs to help cultivate ideas, learn new skills and advance their careers. To generate momentum in each of these areas, Vadlapudi decided to localize her organization’s mission and programming. Girls in Tech India, based in Hyderabad, is a chapter of the international nonprofit organization Girls in Tech, which was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. Vadlapudi and her team receive support and resources from Girls in Tech and other organizations, depending on the nature of the events they host. They also do their own fundraising and decide how best to engage their audience. “What works in the U.S. or in Europe might not work exactly the same way in India,” says Vadlapudi. “It may need a totally new approach,

Go Online Girls in Tech India

http://india.girlsintech.org

Girls in Tech India launch https://goo.gl/ItvlJ3

new definition, modifications and customizations.” Vadlapudi and her staff, who all work as volunteers, have seen great success so far in their efforts to localize their programming. For instance, in November 2016, the organization hosted a bootcamp in Hyderabad on power tools: confidence, leadership and entrepreneurship. The first day focused on building confidence and teaching women what it means to “show up” for themselves, as Vadlapudi puts it. For instance, attendees were shown pictures of women in saris conducting business—an image they could clearly identify with, versus a woman in a pantsuit. On day two, the attendees came up with business ideas. And on day three, they pitched their ideas to the group. Several attendees reported learning “valuable information that helped enhance their mindsets toward entrepreneurship and leadership,” says Vadlapudi. Following Girls in Tech India’s first bootcamp in Hyderabad in March 2016, which focused on entrepreneurship basics, some participants received acceptances to management courses at universities which had earlier rejected them. These acceptances resulted from the women gaining the skills they needed to “speak better about their qualifications,” says Vadlapudi. University admissions and job placements are, however, not the end goals of Girls in Tech India’s programming, she says. Instead, she

hopes to provide women with a start by equipping them with skills gained through exposure and education. Through partnerships with technology companies, universities and government, Vadlapudi aims to bring the possibilities in STEM fields and entrepreneurship to light for women across India, no matter where they live and what their previous understanding of technology and innovation might be. “We want to change the perception about what’s available,” she says. Girls in Tech India aims to reach at least 1,000 women every year. They will do so by organizing bootcamps, which accommodate around 250 participants; speaker series; hackathons; appbuilding workshops; and more. Vadlapudi is eager to have the organization’s mentor program up and running in 2017. The mentor program will facilitate one-to-one mentor-mentee relationships centering around a curriculum. Five years down the road, Vadlapudi hopes to see significant progress in all of the organization’s five focus areas, especially in rural regions that have the highest school dropout rates and the least access to entrepreneurial opportunities. “We believe exposure and education are meant for all,” she says. “That’s what we stand for.” Carrie Loewenthal Massey is a New York City-based freelance writer.

STEM

Courtesy Girls in Tech

Top left, above left and right: Girls in Tech India aims to reach at least 1,000 women every year through their bootcamps, speaker series, hackathons, app-building workshops and more.

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Nurturing Through

ducation of women is acknowledged as an effective mechanism to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty. In India, where approximately 64 percent of girls drop out of school before they complete the secondary level, the education of millions of girls is considered a daunting task. So, in 1996, Anand Mahindra, chairman of Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., began Project Nanhi Kali at the K.C. Mahindra Education Trust, with the aim of providing primary education to underprivileged girls in India. He believes that educated women contribute to the economy and help in rooting out regressive social practices like the dowry system and child marriage. By 2004, 3,500 girls were educated under the project, in partnership with 20 small nongovernmental organizations in Mumbai and New Delhi. Sheetal Mehta, executive director of the K.C. Mahindra Education Trust, decided to build on that success. In 2005, she contacted the Hyderabad-based Naandi Foundation to discuss joining forces to provide daily educational support to underprivileged girls. Mehta says Manoj Kumar, chief executive officer of the foundation, envisioned no limits in scaling the project, “to reach 100,000 immediately, and hopefully, empower one million girls in the future with academic and material support.” Since 2005, Project Nanhi Kali is jointly managed by the K.C. Mahindra Education Trust and Naandi Foundation. One decade later, the project received the 2015 Times of India Social Impact Award for supporting the education of a quarter million underprivileged girls in 10 states in India. Currently, the project supports over 120,000 girls in urban, remote rural and tribal parts of India. Project Nanhi Kali is funded by 8,000 individual donors and 400 global corporate supporters, including Google Inc., Johnson & Johnson Ltd., Teradata, AT&T Inc., Nestlé, Mahindra Group, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd., Titan Company Limited and Tata AIG General Insurance Company Ltd.

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Project Nanhi Kali aims to provide 10 years of quality education to girls from economically disadvantaged families in India.

Project Nanhi Kali

is helping girls across 10 states in India get quality education.

By HILLARY HOPPOCK

EDUCATION

Courtesy K. C. Mahindra Education Trust and Naandi Foundation

Education

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www.nanhikali.org

K. C. Mahindra Education Trust www.kcmet.org

Naandi Foundation www.naandi.org

Photographs courtesy K. C. Mahindra Education Trust and Naandi Foundation

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Project Nanhi Kali

Changing community mindsets KATRINAKU/iStock/Thinkstock

Kumar defines the project’s inclusive process of enrolling every girl in a village or hamlet as “not just putting a girl in school and educating her. It is 6 to 12 months of fighting to legitimize girls attending school and to change the community mindset that a girl has no other purpose than fetching water or to be married off.” Often, the reason for a girl’s absence is she is going to get married. Early counseling with her parents and village elders help in preventing such cases. 38 MARCH/APRIL 2017

With the project’s persistent focus on ensuring girls learn, daily attendance at the Nanhi Kali academic support classes is mandatory, and tracking their attendance is a priority. Ninety percent of the girls who join the project complete class 10. “When illiterate parents realize that their girls are learning, they develop dreams and aspirations for their daughters to become engineers, scientists or doctors,” says Mehta.

Parents to 120,000 girls In 2015-16, a third party evaluation

of A Story Inspiration

Left: All girls under Project Nanhi Kali are provided school bags, uniforms, shoes, socks and stationery. Far below left: A girl recites a poem at a Nanhi Kali academic support class.

team spent six months visiting 41 Academic Support Centres of Project Nanhi Kali across seven locations and declared it “unique among NGOs and nonprofits for providing daily intervention of one to two hours to every girl they serve.” At these centers, classes are conducted before or after school hours. Girls are taught concepts in mathematics, science and language to bridge the gaps in learning levels, which enable them to achieve grade-specific competency levels. Carefully selected from within the community, and trained in Project Nanhi Kali’s pedagogy of cooperative and reflective learning, the mentors at these centers are the local resource and friends to each of their 30 to 40 students. The mission to educate underprivileged girls involves taking on a parental role by providing “dignity kits with a school bag, uniform, shoes, socks, stationery and even undergarments and personal hygiene materials to every Nanhi Kali,” says Mehta.

eing born as a girl into poverty is sometimes like a double-edged sword. Almost every Nanhi Kali has an endearing and heartwarming story to share. Here’s one. Hajiya Begum lost her father when she was very young, and her mother deserted her for being a girl. It was left to her grandmother, Karima, who worked as a maid in a Hyderabad suburb, to raise her. Hajiya was sent to a free government school in Shaikpet. With a meager earning of Rs. 2,000 ($30 approximately) per month,

With no endowment and a “shoestring budget,” Kumar says the project, “can’t afford billboards. [We] depend upon our loyal donors for support. We recently established a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization in the U.S., the Mahindra Foundation, to generate awareness and raise funds toward the cause of female literacy.” Donors receive a photograph, profile and three progress reports yearly for the child they sponsor. The annual sponsorship costs $50 (Rs. 3,000 approximately) for primary and $72 (Rs. 5,000 approximately) for secondary education. Ninety percent of the cost is spent directly on the project, while seven percent covers administration and fundraising. The program reserves three percent as a cushion for donors who do not renew. “We will never drop a girl—that is our commitment,” says Mehta. Project Nanhi Kali continues to “reach for the stars” as they update their goals to support a million girls, roll out digital education through tablet-based learning and establish N-Star Centres for adolescent girls who complete class 10. Hillary Hoppock is a freelance writer, former newspaper publisher and reporter based in Orinda, California.

Courtesy Twitter.com/NanhiKali

One million girls’ education goal

Hajiya’s grandmother did not even have the money to buy her a school bag, so she stitched one together using an old cement sack and cotton rags. In 2006, everything changed. Hajiya, then in class 4, became a Nanhi Kali. Hajiya continued her education and went on to score 93 percent in her class 10 exams, for which her photograph appeared in local newspapers. In the 2014 Board of Intermediate Exams, equivalent of class 12, she scored 944 out of 1,000 marks. Her dreams, too, have grown: she now wants to work in a company like Microsoft. —H.H.

MARCH/APRIL 2017

Roots Spices

and

P Photographs courtesy Padma Lakshmi

By SUPARNA MUKHERJI

adma Lakshmi is an Indian American actress, model, businesswoman, food expert and award-winning author. She is the Emmy-nominated host of Bravo’s competitive cooking reality show “Top Chef.” Lakshmi is also the co-founder of the Endometriosis Foundation of America, which has educated over 16,000 teenagers on this devastating illness. In 2016, she received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor of the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations, which pays homage to the immigrant experience and the contribution made to America by immigrants and their children. Lakshmi visited Chennai, Mumbai, Hyderabad and New Delhi in February for a series of book readings of her memoir, The New York Times best-selling “Love, Loss, and What We Ate,” and for the launch of her latest book, “The Encyclopedia of Spices & Herbs.” Excerpts from an interview.

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How different was the process of writing your memoir, “Love, Loss, and What We Ate”? They were very different! In a lot of ways, the encyclopedia was a much easier endeavor. The information is more scholarly; it was a much easier project to navigate. The memoir contains very personal information about my life, and actually took me nearly five years to write.

What influence did your time in India have on your writing? I think my time in India has affected much of my writing. It has shaped much of my world view. For the memoir, I wrote a great deal about the feeling of straddling two worlds—my home in India and my home in America. I think, for a lot of people who have emigrated to someplace new, you have sort of a hard time figuring out where exactly you fit in, never quite wholly belonging to one place or the other. And, India certainly affected my writing of the spice encyclopedia, as so many of the spices used around the world originated in my ancestral state of Kerala. How are the stories of your family and food intertwined in your life? I think some of my most significant memories are all tied to food in some way or another. My curious palette led me to climb the shelves of my grandmother’s kitchen as a child, reaching out for the spicy pickles she’d keep in glass jars. My diabetic grandfather used to send me out for ice cream cups for the two of us to share when everyone else in the house was taking their afternoon naps. After my divorce, my mother sent me a box of kumquats from her garden in California. I used them to create a chutney that lifted my spirits when nothing else could. When my lover was dying, I made him a comforting applesauce. Every Tuesday, my daughter and I look forward to taco night. Food and family are very much intertwined in my life.

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DIASPORA

Please tell us about your latest book, “The Encyclopedia of Spices & Herbs.” My new book is a compendium of every dried spice and fresh herb you could possibly think of. I’ve always wanted a book like this— a real user-friendly reference guide for spices and herbs—but couldn’t find one that encompassed all of the information I was looking for. I have “[The New] Food Lover’s Companion” and the “Cambridge World History of Food,” which are great, but not quite what I wanted. So, I decided to write my own encyclopedia. It includes much more detailed information like the history, biology and medicinal uses, as well as suggested food pairings, for each spice or herb.

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India certainly affected my writing of the spice encyclopedia, as so many of the spices used around the world originated in my ancestral state of Kerala.

When and how did you become interested in the culinary world? I’ve always been interested in food. Whenever I traveled the world on various jobs, in my down time, I would go explore the markets and call my aunts and grandmother asking for advice on how to use funky pieces of produce. I’ve always been the kind of person who starts planning my dinner as I’m finishing up the last few bites of lunch. At the end of my life, I don’t want to have any regrets thinking, “I could have eaten that!” What role do you think food plays in strengthening people-to-people connections between countries? Food is sort of a universal language understood by all people—we all have to eat! Sharing a meal is a way for us to better understand where we come from and what is important to us. You experiment a lot with international cuisine; which is your favorite one? I love Middle Eastern cuisine! I love using spices like sumac or za’atar in my own cooking. It’s a great way to add more flavor to a dish, without adding extra calories. What are some of the challenges you faced as a female food expert and celebrity of Indian origin in the United States? I think women in food, especially those of us on TV, are held to a much different standard than our male counterparts. We have to be glamorous and slender, in addition to being knowledgeable about the subject matter. Whenever I get interviewed on red carpets, the questions I get asked compared to what my male colleagues get asked are so completely different. No one ever asks Tom Colicchio, for

example, how he maintains his figure. Being Indian, I didn’t have too many professional role models to look up to who’d navigated this territory before. So, in a lot of ways, I had to figure it out for myself. How was the experience of hosting Bravo’s Emmy award-winning show “Top Chef”? I’m so proud of our show. The people at home don’t get to see all of the hard work that goes on behind the scenes, but we have such a tremendous group of talented people that make the show the success it is. From the lighting guys, to the sound technicians, to the camera operators and culinary producer, everyone works so incredibly hard to make it all possible. Because we’ve been on the air for over 10 years, we’re like a very tight-knit family. No other show produces the level of talent we do and, I think, that’s why we remain the gold standard for food competition shows. What role did your immigrant experience play in shaping the person you are today? It played a huge part. I think, it gave me a very international perspective of the world. I also think when you spend your life feeling like an outsider or minority, it can often make you more nimble in adapting to various situations or types of people. We all have our own set of beliefs and prejudices, of course, but straddling two cultures gives you two different points of view for which you can call on at any given time. It’s two different touchstones with which I’m able to form an opinion. You have been a strong advocate for women’s rights; and are the co-founder of the Endometriosis Foundation of America; and an ambassador for Keep a Child Alive.

Left: Padma Lakshmi holds the Emmy for outstanding reality-competition program for “Top Chef” during the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards, held in Los Angeles in 2010. She is the host and executive producer of the show. Far left: Nasser J. Kazeminy, chairman of the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations, congratulates Lakshmi on receiving the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2016 in New York. Right: Lakshmi with her latest book, “The Encyclopedia of Spices & Herbs,” during the BUILD Speaker Series in New York in 2016.

Go Online Padma Lakshmi

http://padmalakshmi.com

What role does your philanthropic work play in your life? Despite having access to health care and insurance, it took until I was 36 to diagnose my endometriosis. Getting my period took me out of commission for about a week each month, and I’ve estimated that I missed out on about 25 percent of my life because of it. I co-founded our organization because I didn’t want another woman to go through what I went through. Through our ENPOWR [Endometriosis Nation Promoting Outreach and Wide Recognition] program, we’ve gone into schools and educated over 16,000 students about endometriosis and its symptoms. We’ve got a long way to go, but knowing what to look for is a huge step in the right direction. No matter the cause, we have to fight for the issues that matter to us. My work through Keep a Child Alive over the last decade has made me realize how many blessings I’ve had in my life. And it reminds me how important it is to keep my daughter grounded, and to make sure she grows up to be an empathic adult. Other than being a mother, my philanthropic work has proved to be the most gratifying.

www.bravotv.com/ top-chef

Endometriosis Foundation of America

www.endofound.org

Keep a Child Alive

http://keepachildalive.org

Ellis Island Medals of Honor www.neco.org/ medal-of-honor

Any message you would like to give to our readers? I’m so honored to have partnered with U.S. Embassy India for a cultural exchange program. It’s wonderful to do my part to improve Indian and American relations, especially at this time. It’s something I’ve been doing all my life privately, and it’s great to have had open discussions about it in a public forum. I’m glad to have met people at the various consulates around India. Thank you so much for this opportunity!

Top Chef

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Padma Lakshmi participates in AOL’s BUILD Speaker Series in New York in 2016 to talk about “Top Chef” and her memoir, “Love, Loss, and What We Ate.”