YnD Campaign Debuts in Gujarat

Moving away from Eastern India, where YnD has seen engaged response from students across campuses, YnD debuted in Gujarat in early August.

We began at Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) where a mixed group of 60 students from the departments of business entrepreneurship and development studies attended. EDII is a premier institute which is committed to building and training young entrepreneurs for India. These students are confident, not only about securing employment but also in generating it as young entrepreneurs. This reflected in their attitudes – different from youth in smaller towns, studying “non-professional” courses, who are less confident in voicing their opinions. Ideas of discrimination and bias were openly challenged by India’s future entrepreneurs.

In Gandhinagar, the next stop, YnD campaign reached out to students studying in Gujarat National Law University (GNLU), where we were privy to some steaming debates on how they practice democracy in their everyday lives. The BSW-LLB course is an unconventional one, giving students a dual degree in social work and law. Several young faculty members participated actively along with the students in the conversations, adding fresh perspectives to the conversation. Existing language, regional and cultural stereotypes sparked arguments, but the students always communicated with respect for each other’s opinions. Making campuses disability-friendly and innovative ways to organically incorporate people with special abilities into existing infrastructure was also discussed.

The last and final leg was in Vadodara where the YnD campaign was jointly hosted by Maharaja Sayajirao University and Sumandeep University. Vadodara is a city bustling with youthful spirit and energy; there is a visible presence of young people just ‘hanging out’, in a most ordinary yet perceptible sense of (re)claiming public places. Department of Social Work was the focal department to host DIEL discussions and art based competitions over two days. In a fresh change of air, age was just a number during the focus group discussions, with senior faculty and young students interacting confidently. The students were not only aware and articulate, but sensitive and democratic when putting forth their views, listening with empathy to counter-arguments. A remarkable display of democracy in everyday life! YnD campaign has all the more reason to cheer.