It took just 21 days for Lila Poonawalla Foundation to transform 13 ordinary girls into Peace Ambassadors by taking them on a trip to UK

If you educate one woman, you educate a family," This was profound insight by Neelu Nanwani, one of the Lila Fellows chosen to attend a three-week training programme held at Gloucestershire, United Kingdom.

In collaboration with UK based Asha Foundation, started by human rights campaigner and author Zerbanoo Gifford, the Lila Poonawalla Foundation undertook an ambitious project of grooming young women into peace ambassadors. "This is the first batch that we sent and it has been a wonderful success. Many of these girls had never been out of Pune, let alone on an airplane to UK, they were neither familiar with poetry nor public speaking and had not got a chance to discover life beyond routine. Now they can confidentially act out sonnets from Shakespeare, skillfully manage time, assume leadership and respect other cultures," says Lila Poonawalla.

The project from August 10 to August 30, included trips to Oxford University, Tin Tern Abbey, Jane Austen Centre, Roman Bath and the Grange, a centre for people with learning disabilities. The girls attended a series of lectures on effective leadership, stress management, cultural appreciation and negotiation skills. They presented plays, dances, performed eurhythmy and cooked delicacies for an Indian tea party for the people at the Grange. "We had heard that foreign countries are clean and disciplined, but there we observed their social life, first hand. My English has improved I have become more punctual and learnt to listen, not just speak," says Madhuri Kad.

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