Empower 400 Girls and Boys to be Leaders in Nepal

Dear friends of Women LEAD,

A year ago, Women LEAD came my way and provided me with the platform for change that I had always sought. I remember hearing about Women LEAD for the first time two years ago when alumni came to my school and gave us a short description of the LEAD Course. I went home that day and researched all about the LEAD Course and because I was in Grade 11, I couldn’t wait for next year so I could apply when I was finally in Grade 12!

Women LEAD has exposed me to a whole new world of knowledge. During my time here, I’ve realized how passionately I feel about women’s empowerment and I am proud to identify myself as a feminist. Every day of the LEAD Course, I learned more and more. From sessions on public speaking to personality types, I grew more curious and excited for the future that lay in front of me. Through the School Leadership Program (SLP), I even co-led 14 workshops for Grade 9 students, which made me more responsible as a facilitator and as a mentor to those 28 young minds.

I want more young women to have the same opportunities I have had because of the LEAD Course. I am now working as a Communications Intern at Women LEAD to make sure that as many young women in Kathmandu as possible join the LEAD Course.

- Anukriti, 2016 LEADer and summer intern

Thanks to Anukriti and the rest of the WLEAD team, we reached over 2,000 female high school seniors across 44 high schools this summer as we recruited for the year-long LEAD Course. After interviewing ninety of the 240 students who applied, we selected the 30 most passionate, ambitious, and talented girls who demonstrated leadership potential and the desire to change Nepal. These future leaders spent the past two weeks learning about their own values and leadership styles, developing key skills like goal setting and public speaking, and met inspiring Nepali women- including a mountaineer who summited Everest and social entrepreneurs who founded their own businesses.

Over the next ten months, the 30 LEADers will each invest a minimum of 300 hours in furthering their own skills, developing advocacy campaigns, and training 400 middle school students. They will become mentors, advocates, bloggers, and peer-educators. And it doesn't stop there: by sharing their own learnings with their peers and families, they will collectively impact a further 1,750 people.

Thank you for investing in adolescent girls like Anukriti. Because of you, she not only empowered 90 other youth during her own LEAD Course but also selected the thirty 2017 LEADers who will go on to change the lives of thousands more. 

Links:

• 2017 Leadership Institute Photo Album
• Leadership Institute Overview Video