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Devika Mittal, a corporate strategy manager at Microsoft who grew up in New Delhi and now lives in Washington, DC, knew that child trafficking and violence against women in rural areas in India was a growing human-rights crisis. But for a long time, the fate of at-risk Indian girls far away from her, while distressing, was something she felt helpless to change.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know that these problems exist, and you want to help,\u201d she said. \u201cBut you also feel lost and like you can\u2019t truly engage or help drive real impact when you\u2019re living far away in DC.\u201d<\/p>\n
That all changed when Mittal flew to Microsoft\u2019s Hyderabad office to meet Franz Gastler<\/a>, the founder of Yuwa<\/a>, a nonprofit soccer and school academy for girls in Jharkhand, India, whose students face the terrifying reality every day.<\/p>\n Gastler told Mittal the story of a student who had come to his soccer program every day for weeks. She appeared to be blossoming in the supportive environment that emphasized self-worth and self-determination. But then one day, she didn\u2019t show up to the academy. She was gone the next day, and the next; she never came back. He had no idea what happened to her; it wasn\u2019t until later that program leaders discovered that the girl had died, allegedly at the hands of an abusive family member.<\/p>\n Mittal was stunned. \u201cLearning about this girl\u2019s story in a real context motivated me to contribute whatever skills I could to help Yuwa\u2019s mission. The work they\u2019re doing is incredible, and I wanted to be a part of the tangible impact they\u2019re making on young girls\u2019 lives in India.\u201d<\/p>\n