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(left) Founder, Santosh Shah discusses future projects with HPN staff. (middle and right) Junior high school students take part in a lively debate on controversial issues facing Nepal.

Today's Youth Asia

It starts with one

In 2001, Santosh Shah had a bright future ahead of him. He had a good job in New York City, lived in the Hamptons and looked forward to expanding wealth and a prosperous life. However, on June 1st, 2001, members of the Nepalese royal family, including King Birendra, were brutally masacred while eating dinner at the palace. When the smoke cleared, there were ten people dead and five wounded.

Then, only three months later, on September 11th, Santosh was in NY when the terrorists attacked the Twin Towers--where Santosh had visited 36 hours earlier. These two acts of extreme violence caused him to ask himself, "Do I want to spend my life getting rich, or do I want to go back to Nepal and change my country?" Santosh decided to go back to Nepal and spearhead a youth leadership movement. Today's Youth Asia is designed to educate and empower young people to create positive change in Nepal, through non-violent means.

HPN volunteers were privileged to meet with Santosh and other members of the TYA staff to observe first hand how they were working with youth. We watched a classroom of junior high students debate serious issues facing Nepal.They debated in English so we could understand the debate. We were amazed at how articulate and well-prepared these young people were to speak their minds. Youth Forum provides young people with a platform  to discuss, interact and express views on myriad topics, irrespective of the opinion and career they choose. TYA has trained over 700 young leaders. We hope that, in partnership with us, this tested, unique and highly successful program can be expanded to include students from poor families in Kathmandu and also in the villages of Nepal.

Today's Youth Asia launched a magazine in February, 2007. The students' articles and writings were featured, with topics focusing on global as well as local concerns. Santosh also hosts a Nepalese talk show called Power Talk. Santosh's guests have included the countries top leadership, including former Prime Minister Dahal, and the various international embassies.