April Allen | Arts & Life Co-Editor

Ravi Kumar, a 2010 Buena Vista University (BVU) alum and native of Nepal, started a non-profit organization in 2009 that has either built or renovated 16 different schools and sponsored 10 teachers in Nepal. His non-profit is called Grassroots Movement in Nepal (GMIN). There are branches of GMIN in four different countries around the world: the UK, Hong Kong, Finland, and Nepal. Kumar uses New York as its headquarters.

Kumar and three of his colleagues in New York founded GMIN. Kumar’s role was to coin the name of the organization and write the mission statement. So how exactly does this organization operate in NYC but somehow make a difference on the opposite side of the globe? Money is raised and then used to build schools and empower women through education. GMIN also provides educational materials and teachers for the schools it builds. The other part of the goal is to increase the amount of girls in school and teach them skills which can help support them and their families. Volunteers in the U.S. can lobby to affect policies that would benefit Nepal by using the power of influence.

Kumar was born to Nepalese parents; his father never went to college, and his mother never even attended school. He personally has felt the effects of the lack of proper education in Nepal, and when he came to BVU, he was inspired by the will to give back.

His source of motivation was Bruce Ellingson, Professor of Mass Communications at BVU.

“He supported me through the process, professionally and personally, and talked about the common good. Bruce was supportive of my dreams, and he was ambitious himself. This motivated me to the point of being able to make GMIN possible,” Kumar said.

Right now he is in the process of trying to win a grant for GMIN worth $250,000 through Chase Community Giving. Anybody can vote by logging into Facebook and going to the Chase Community Facebook page. Kumar says they hope to win this grant, but even if they don’t, there is still the possibility to win other supportive funds. More information can be found on the GMIN Facebook page.

“If every person at BVU voted, GMIN would be given 100,000 dollars, and we would be able to help twenty different schools,” Kumar said.

The voting ends this Wednesday, Sep. 19. Voting and lobbying for GMIN and better education systems will also help keep the dream alive. Kumar says a person doesn’t have to be in New York to help. Simply creating conversation through social media platforms and within organizations can make a world of difference.

Photo courtesy of Ravi Kumar