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Cooperation, mutual understanding and unity becomes the premise for peace and development across the local, national, and international arena. With this as the base, the United Nations General Assembly announced 20^th December to be observed annually as the International Human Solidarity Day, a step to combat poverty through solidarity and collective involvement. As stated by the United Nations (https://www.un.org/en/observances/human-solidarity-day), International Human Solidarity Day is a day to:

• Celebrate our unity in diversity.
• Remind governments to respect their commitments to international agreements
• Raise public awareness of the importance of solidarity.
• Encourage debate on the ways to promote solidarity for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals including poverty eradication.
• Take action to encourage new initiatives for poverty eradication.

Solidarity and its impact

Solidarity, compassion, and responsible actions can result in sustainable and impactful changes. From something as simple as helping a visually impaired person cross the road to providing school supplies to the underprivileged children in your neighbourhood to choosing to donate to NGO, and similar other actions can bring about a change in the grassroot level and upwards.

Bringing the focus to education, which is one of the most potential mediums to uplift communities, let’s take a look at the impact that can be created by uniting to make education accessible to all. When you help to educate an underprivileged child either on your own or by supporting an NGO helping poor students, you make a 360-degree impact on the child’s personal development, their family, and the country as a whole.

·        Education has a direct impact on the beneficiaries by contributing towards their basic literacy skills, specialised subjects, knowledge, cognitive development, skill and talent development, personality development, confidence, and goal attainment.

·        Educated individuals provide for and uplift their families that results in discontinuity of intergenerational poverty, better income and progress in socio-economic status, better education opportunities for children, better lifestyle choices, improved health, and practice of gender equality among parents and children. 

·       Educated citizens lead the country from the front as a skilled workforce and carve a place for the nation in the global platform facilitating steady economic growth, gender and socio-economic equality, better livelihood, and technological advancement.

Unite to educate

It is evident that opting to donate to NGO is one of the many ways to get involved in uplifting the society. And when it is about supporting the cause of education, Vidya Chetana should definitely be on your list.

Vidya Chetana is an Indian NGO helping poor students since 2009. This NGO provides financial aid in the form of scholarships for higher education to students who are from socio-economically less-privileged backgrounds, but are academically brilliant and promising. As an NGO helping poor students, Vidya Chetana has by far supported the education of 5,775 students across 12 states in India. The scholarships provided by Vidya Chetana helped these beneficiaries to pursue and complete their PUC (10+2), Degree, Engineering, and Medical studies. Apart from providing scholarships, Vidya Chetana also provides career counselling, and conducts life skill sessions, 21st-century skills sessions, and Employability Readiness Programme for all its beneficiaries. So, when you donate to Vidya Chetana, you not only provide the much-needed higher education, but also facilitate their overall development of potential students.

Sahana, an alumnus from this NGO helping poor students is an example of the impact of making higher education accessible. Today, she is an independent professional working in the IT industry. She was a passionate and ambitious student, but financial conditions of her family hindered her academic progress. The timely intervention by Vidya Chetana enabled her to complete BTech and she began her career by securing a job with IBM in Bangalore.

Empower the youth through education

Education is a potential medium to bridge the socio-economic gap. So, when you donate to NGO supporting education, you initiate a revolution to enable the next generation to become resourceful and responsible. This International Human Solidarity Day, unite to educate for an empowered tomorrow!

Author Profile: 

Vidya Chetana Scholarship Program is an initiative of Youth for Seva to support the higher education of socio-economically underprivileged students. Your support will help students wanting to pursue PUC (Intermediate), Degree, Engineering, and Medical Courses. Your contribution towards the Scholarship Program will help students continue their education as well as qualify you to receive tax exemption on your donated amount (₹500 & above).