Imagine mostly inaccessible water, tainted with toxic chemicals. Then imagine being forced to travel long distances to drink that harmful water, because it is your only choice for survival. In the United States and other developed countries, access to clean water is something we take for granted. But in many parts of the world, such basic necessities are not so easy to obtain. According to Indian governmental surveys, 54% of homes in rural India do
Read more ... →
98 teddy bears – looking back, that’s what marks the beginning of my longtime commitment to volunteering. As a child (and with the help of an obliging mother), I volunteered several hours of my time to collect donations of teddy bears to be sent to a local children’s hospital. 98 bears and 15 years later, I can say that volunteering has been one of the longest “constants” in my life. However, my thoughts on the
Read more ... →
The concept of entrepreneurism is highly regarded by the general public, because it epitomizes the qualities of creativity, determination, and risk-taking. We root for entrepreneurs to be successful, because they show that such characteristics can lead to positive results. Social entrepreneurs augment this illustration of a business, because they aim to assist disadvantaged and impoverished communities. Social entrepreneurship is the backbone of development in third-world countries, providing opportunities for people to sustain economic prosperity. All
Read more ... →
Ever since I started my college life, about a year ago, I have always found myself extremely busy. Being very ambitious (to say the least), I decided to take 5.5 credits in school, besides all the extracurricular commitments I had already assigned to myself. I knew I wouldn’t have much time to dedicate to anything else other than studying when classes started. I couldn’t be more wrong. As days of classes and nights of study
Read more ... →
Although there is sometimes legislation to prevent it, caste systems are still in place in the 21st century. In some regions of India, such concepts have become ingrained in cultures. The most discriminatory practices victimize manual scavengers, who experience lifestyles that are hard to fathom to citizens of a first-world nation. Scavengers represent the lowest rung of the untouchables in India, a group of lower-class citizens that are legally considered equal citizens but are culturally
Read more ... →
