We are delighted to share a blog written by student Varyam, from The Doon School, who is part of team Project Pustak delivering a Global Goals project for the 2020-21 GSL Global Goals Competition.
Their project is among over 957 social action projects currently running as part of the GSL movement and we are excited to be supporting them to design and lead positive social change in their community.
My experience can be summarized by Vincent Van Gogh’s famous quote: "Great things are done by a series of small things brought together"
Project Summary
“Education is the most powerful weapon that you can use to change the world” and that’s exactly why we do what we do. Project Pustak is the ideal juxtaposition to achieve both the Sustainable Development Goal 4 of the UNDP alongside the Indian government’s campaign ‘Padhega India toh Badhega India’. We believe that education has no barriers like gender, race and other social divisions and thus support equitable education amongst the youth of the nation.
Problem at hand
Over 200 million students will still be out of school in 2030. We believe education equates to progress. We also identify that one’s social identity like gender, race, etc and income level has much to do with their fair share of quality education. Nearly 1/3rd of the world’s poor is from India and 1/3rd of India is under the poverty line. This pretty much illustrates the gravity of the situation with regards to education and literacy. We were fortunate enough to receive quality education and we believe in giving back to society and thus, Project Pustak was born to solve the cause.
What do we do?
We set up libraries in underprivileged schools, orphanages, old-age homes, and other public centres to inculcate learning and education amongst the disadvantaged masses. We understand that used books can be coated in daylight and not dust, so a surplus of them in various homes can be used to fill the voids that deficit and poverty leave behind. We collect unrequited books from our neighbourhood and set up a library in an underprivileged school.
The Journey
Our Impact
Initially when we started expanding, we received an overwhelming response to this mission and many were willing to contribute to the cause. Our team gradually expanded and carried out the same mission in their cities and this tiny idea started to impact the masses. We could carry out this mission in over 40 cities across 30 states in India. This idea started to have an impact internationally in countries like Azerbaijan and Nepal. We now have more than 60 ambassadors in total and famous corporate companies like Spicejet and JK Lakshmi Cement could spot the spark in our vision and thus sponsored us to scale our initiative.
Sustainable Development Goals:
- SDG 4
- SDG 10
- SDG 12
- SDG 17
In Collaboration with:
- United Nations Major Group for Children and Youth
- Spicejet
- JK Lakshmi
- Rotary Foundation
- Science Diaries
- Future Foundations
- Global Social Leaders
The Next Chapter
COVID 19, Our Progress and the Road Ahead
Every cloud has a silver lining. While we know that setting up libraries during the pandemic isn’t viable, it provided us with an opportunity to broaden our horizons online. We understand that social awareness regarding the issue at hand indirectly contributes to our mission. We have started a blog on SDG 4 and its impact on communities through the work that we do. We believe in the adaptability of our initiative and our willingness to expand not just physically but digitally throughout the world. And thus we surely have a podcast and an E-library on our bucket list this year. We wish to further enhance the educational experience of students throughout the horizons of this country and beyond, keeping in mind the digital age. Tackling an obstacle like the pandemic, we believe that our mission has no boundaries and we’re all ready to help every individual who couldn’t have had a chance to experience education.
