By Richa Wadhera
Cheques to sponsor a child’s education or help rebuild a village after a calamity, donating to blanket and clothing drives, or volunteering our time at various NGOs. The crew at LBBD consistently tries to do their bit and in our incredible journey, we’ve come across some fabulous groups of people and individuals who are doing more than their fair share to give back to society.
In December 2003, the alumni of the 78 batch of IIMA met in Ahmedabad to celebrate their 25th reunion. As the revelries subsided, the group decided that they needed to give back to society, to create something that would sustain their bond. While there were many social causes that were crying out for action in our country, the most compelling for this alumni group was the lack of education and social status among a large number of girls and women. Female literacy, they decided, had benefits that seep into many areas of social development. The dream now had direction - the focus was going to be primary education of girl children from socially and economically disadvantaged sections of society.
I met one of the founding members and ex president of IIMPACT {strategically spelt} about 5 years ago, and was very taken in by what a huge difference a group of determined batch mates and friends had managed to make. Looking to target the problem at the root, this group of about 10 founding members worked closely to create a scalable and replicable model - single room, multi level learning centers. Bringing schools closer to girls, each center takes about 30 girls between the ages of 6 and 14, and uses fun tools like song and dance to teach the 4 subjects - English, Hindi, Arithmetic and Social Studies. Each centre has one teacher, trained in the field by someone from Iimpact's very own training centre. The girls then take the Government Class V exams, and more than 90% of them have cleared the exams, a lot with a first division!
With their first centre in Alwar, Rajasthan, IIMPACT has come a long way since. The organization currently educates 30,000 girls across 9 states in India, and has a funding base of corporates and individuals, which includes Bryan Adams {yes, of summer of '69 fame}. In fact, 15 girls from a centre even made it to his concert in Dehi, and hung out with him! Another funding group was a class of 7 year olds in a school in the US, who heard about girls their age in India not having access to an education. The class pooled in money and sent across a donation to IIMPACT! On the 10th anniversary of IIMPACT last year, several girls from Learning Centres from far-flung villages joined well -wishers and donors at Westin in Gurgaon to share their heart warming personal stories.
Notes in our Little Black Book |
IIMPACT’s vision is to transform the lives of women, families and entire communities in India through the education of the girl child; Founders are alumni of the batch of 78 of IIMA.
Contribute | A contribution of any size is welcome and will make a difference.
It costs only INR 85,000 per annum per IIMPACT Learning Centre to change the lives of about 30 young girls. Sustained for 5 years, this effort could possibly change the lives of these young girls and of those around them, forever.
How to Contribute |
Online | The quickest way is to donate online with a major credit card {INR or US Dollars} using the secure payment page - http://www.iimpact.net/donate-to-iimpact/%3C/p%3E?utm_source=LBB&ref=lbbpost
Cheque | The cheque should be made in favour of ‘IIMPACT’ and mailed to The Treasurer, IIMPACT, M2/3, Ground Floor, DLF Phase II, Gurgaon 122002
{Donations are exempt under Sec. 80G of the Income Tax Act 1961}
Contact | info@iimpact.net or urvashi.nair@iimpact.net
For more information, check out their website www.iimpact.net
The crew at LBBD has come across some awesome NGOs that support a range of causes. Look out for our featured NGO every month, so you can stay up to date with the incredible work people out there are doing, and contribute in your own way. Until Next Month!