Insaaniyat "The Pledge to Humanity"

Aarti Kumar, founding member of Insaaniyat, shares her experiences and discusses her goals in establishing this organization.

Canada is made up of a cultural mosaic, which in my eyes makes Canada one of the most beautiful countries in the world. It is important that our different cultures never fade out or be assimilated. Sadly, I have noticed several youths from different cultural backgrounds attempting to fade into the background and this concerns me as a very cultural-minded individual. I am also very concerned about the materialistic lives we youth live today, and as a result I wanted to start an organization which encouraged our youth to hold onto their roots and somehow give back to the community.

This volunteer experience is like no other I have participated in the past. Here I am uplifting community spirit, educating others about culture, encouraging youth to keep in touch with their culture, raising money through community activities to provide education for underprivileged children and making us all thankful for what we have. This small organization has opened up several people’s eyes, it has shown them that we take education for granted here, unsatisfied and complaining about the education system, when other children in less fortunate countries only pray they will see the day when they are in a classroom.

Education is a privilege not just a right; the more youth I talk to about this organization, the more they appreciate life. Not only is this improving the community by increasing the awareness of global issues, but it has also changed me completely as an individual. It has forced me to see the world through a wider scope, and appreciate everything I have in life to the fullest. It may not be a paid position but helping others in this way is one of the most rewarding thing I have experienced and participated in during my youth. To me establishing this organization was one of the most challenging leadership experiences that I have faced. When I decided to start an organization to help children in India, I had my heart set on several visions that would eventually fulfill my overall mission. However, I soon realized that it was not as easy as I thought.

The process of registering my organization became a very tedious and difficult task which discouraged me, but never made me give up. Likewise, when I started talking to other youths about the problems several countries were currently facing, I got several disappointing responses from uninterested individuals. I found that the only people that seemed to be interested in my organization were adults, not my peers. I was further discouraged when I was told by several individuals that this organization would not work and that India was far too corrupt to make any differences. Being extremely dedicated to the welfare of children and giving them the basic needs they deserve, I ignored such comments, continued with my mission and today our organization has a successful website www.insaaniyat.org, we have several dedicated members, we are currently in the process of registration and are brainstorming ways to meet our objectives.

To find out more about insaaniyat visit www.insaaniyat.org