Girl Icons Change the World One Community at a Time

Imagine you have to persuade someone to change their stance on something. Do you think your chances of success might be higher if that person was a member of your community? 

Some of the most profound change starts at the grassroots level, and the reason is quite simple. People know how to speak to their own communities, and what matters to them. This is why we work at the grassroots level and support initiatives like Milaan Foundation's innovative Girl Icons program.

Girl Icons are identified through a rigorous interview process (Milaan's original 25 Girl Icon fellows were selected from a pool of 3,000 applicants in Uttar Pradesh.) As Girl Icon Fellows, young women engage in a two-year long leadership development program, which includes 120 hours of training on a variety of subjects meant to help them advocate for their rights to education, identity, safety, financial literacy, and health. Once their training is completed, Girl Icons return to their communities and form peer groups of 20 girls. Girl Icons lead these groups in advocacy projects focused on issues that directly affect their community.

We are very excited to have partnered with Milaan to help them develop a curriculum for their Girl Icons program, which will be piloted with their existing Girl Icons and used to expand their work to 500 new Girl Icon fellows this year. We recently received an update from Milaan sharing a recent triumph from Girl Icon Akshara and her peer group. Milaan writes:

Akshara’s dream is to be a renowned athlete and represent India in the Olympics. When Akshara used to practise at the Sports Stadium, Fatehgarh it was difficult for her to make her mark. “The place was dominated by patriarchal ideology. But I understood the need and importance of a safe space for girls to practice sports. Whenever girls would turn up at the stadium, they always ensured their legs were covered which would make them extremely uncomfortable to run especially under scorching heat,” says Akshara. With her peer group she organized a running competition amongst women as part of her Social Action Project. They invited women to participate wearing their tradition clothes. She wanted to prove that sportswear is a necessity and not just fashion.

Akshara (R) and Vandana (L) playing a game of Kabaddi

“The Girl Icon Leadership Building trainings have helped me enhance my communication skills and confidence,” says Akshara. After her first training, Akshara mobilized her peer group of 20 girls to work towards breaking the barriers to sports for girls and empowering them. “Being a Girl Icon has made me a local role model. Besides, the Girl Icon grants have helped me continue my education and buy my first pair of running spike shoes!," says Akshara.

Akshara is a celebrated 100 meter sprinter. She has been enrolled at KD Singh Babu Stadium in Lucknow where she is preparing for the national. She is a class 12 student at Nari Shakti Niketan in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.