A blank drawing sheet. A box of crayons. And the simple instruction: "Draw anything from your heart."

For many children in government schools in rural Kaushambi, Uttar Pradesh, this was the first time anyone had ever said those words to them.

On 14 November 2025—Children's Day—Vighneshwara Foundation visited 6 government schools in the Myohar area and conducted a drawing & emotional intelligence awareness drive that touched the lives of 520 students and 22 teachers.

This is their story.

In rural India, the pressure on children is immense. Many come from families struggling with poverty, labour, and daily survival. School, for many of these children, is not a joyful place — it is a place of rote learning, strict discipline, and little room for self-expression.

The result? Children who grow up suppressing their emotions, never learning to name what they feel, never knowing that their creativity has value.

Emotional Intelligence (EQ) — the ability to understand, express, and manage one's own emotions — is as important as academic intelligence for a child's overall development. Yet it is almost never taught in government schools.

Vighneshwara Foundation decided to change that — one drawing sheet at a time.

The Foundation team visited all 6 schools on a single day, coordinating with principals and teachers to ensure maximum student participation.

Schools Covered:

• English Medium Primary School Myohar (approx. 200 students)
• Junior Primary School Myohar (60 students)
• Primary School Gadarian Ka Pura Myohar (25 students)
• Composite School Naubasta Myohar (50 students)
• Composite School Bade Talab Myohar (150 students)
• Primary School Chak Ahmadipur Myohar (35 students)

Every single one of the 520 students received a complete stationery kit-drawing sheets, crayons, and writing sets. The distribution was fully inclusive, ensuring no child was left out regardless of their class, age, or background.

For many children, especially in the most remote schools like PS Gadarian Ka Pura, this was the first time they had received new stationery that was truly theirs to keep.

✏️ 2. Creative Mind Drawing Competition

The drawing competition had one simple, beautiful theme: "Draw anything from your heart."

No rules. No right answers. No pressure to draw a specific object or scene. Just pure, free creative expression.

The objective was to unlock natural creativity—to allow each child to show the world what lives inside their imagination without fear of judgment.

Top 10 students from each school were awarded Merit Certificates and gifts—recognizing not just talent but courage and creativity.

💬 3. Emotional Intelligence Reflection

After the drawing activity, students were asked a powerful question in their own language:

"यह कार्यक्रम मुझे कैसा लगा और मैंने इससे क्या सीखा?"(How did this program make me feel, and what did I learn from it?)

Students wrote or shared their responses verbally. The answers gave teachers and the foundation team a rare, honest window into the emotional world of these children,their fears, their joys, and their dreams.

🏅 4. Teacher Appreciation

The 22 teachers who participated and guided their students through the activities received Appreciation Certificates from the Vighneshwara Foundation, recognizing their invaluable, often thankless role in shaping the next generation.

The impact of a single day's activity may seem small in numbers. But the ripples go far beyond what can be counted.

For the students:

• Children who had never been asked to express themselves freely discovered that their feelings and ideas have value
• The act of drawing and being celebrated for it built confidence and self-worth
• Emotional reflection gave children a language to describe what they feel — a skill they will carry for life

For the teachers:

• Seeing their students light up with creativity reinforced the importance of holistic education
• The appreciation certificates acknowledged a community of educators who often work without recognition

For the schools:

• Principal partnerships and teacher involvement built the foundation for a long-term, school-based philanthropy ecosystem
• 6 schools are now connected to Vighneshwara Foundation's ImpactCreator network

"PS Myohar students' joyful creativity ignited an initiative that empowered 150 children with art, expression, and emotional awareness." — Principal Manoj Chaurasiya, English Medium Primary School Myohar

"Composite School Bade Talab students' joyful creativity ignited an initiative that empowered 150 children with art, expression, and emotional awareness." — Principal Balram Singh, Composite School Bade Talab Myohar

Programs like the Creative Minds Drawing Drive are made possible entirely through the contributions of donors, ImpactCreators, and Micro-CSR partners.

Your donation of even ₹1 goes directly toward stationery, resources, and the team effort that makes these drives happen.

Be the reason a child picks up a crayon for the first time.

📧 info@vighneshwara.org 📞 +91 723 399 6644 🌐 www.vighneshwara.org/donate

Give. Grow. Repeat.

On a cool October morning in Kaushambi, Uttar Pradesh, something powerful happened.

Sixty students and teachers didn't sit in a classroom. They didn't open textbooks. Instead, they picked up saplings, dug into the earth with their hands, and planted 30 trees in a local public park — committing, in the most literal sense, to a greener tomorrow.

This was the Green Givers Plantation Drive — Vighneshwara Foundation's initiative to make environmental stewardship a hands-on, lived experience for young students.

India loses millions of trees every year to urbanisation, agriculture, and deforestation. The consequences — rising temperatures, depleted groundwater, loss of biodiversity, worsening air quality — are felt most severely in rural areas like Kaushambi, where communities depend directly on natural resources for their livelihoods.

But beyond the environmental data, there is a deeper truth:

Children who plant trees grow up to protect them.

Environmental responsibility is not just a government policy or a corporate CSR checkbox. It begins in the hearts and hands of young people who are taught early that they are custodians of the earth — not just its consumers.

That is exactly what the Green Givers Plantation Drive set out to create.

The drive was organized through Vighneshwara Foundation's School Philanthropy Program, with three ImpactCreator partner schools coming together for a single day of collaborative environmental action.

Students from different schools—who might never have met otherwise—worked side by side, planting, watering, and labeling each sapling. Teachers guided and encouraged. Foundation team members coordinated and documented every moment.

The target location, a local public park in Kaushambi, was chosen deliberately. By planting in a public space, the students' efforts create lasting, visible benefits for the entire community. Every person who walks through that park in the coming years will breathe cleaner air and enjoy greener surroundings — thanks to 60 young ImpactCreators.

This was not a program done for students — it was done by them. Students took ownership of every step, from selecting planting spots to watering and caring for the saplings. This hands-on agency is what transforms a one-day activity into a lifelong attitude.

2. Inter-School Collaboration

Bringing together 3 different schools for a single shared mission created powerful peer bonds. Students saw that change is bigger when we act together—a lesson that goes far beyond environmental awareness.

3. Real, Measurable Impact

30 trees planted. These are 30 living contributions to local biodiversity, air quality, and climate resilience. As these trees grow over the next 10, 20, or 50 years, their impact will multiply exponentially.

4. Connection to the School Philanthropy Program

For the students involved, this was not just a field trip. It was a verified impact activity recorded in their Student Philanthropy Portfolios as a documented act of giving back to their community.

It is easy to read "30 trees planted" and move on. But let's understand what 30 trees actually mean over time:

• Carbon absorption: A single mature tree absorbs approximately 22 kg of CO₂ per year. 30 trees = 660 kg of CO₂ absorbed annually at maturity
• Biodiversity: Trees provide habitat for birds, insects, and small animals — restoring local ecological balance
• Temperature: Trees lower the temperature of their surroundings by providing shade and releasing moisture — critical in UP's hot summers
• Community wellbeing: Green public spaces reduce stress, encourage outdoor activity, and improve the mental health of communities

30 trees today. A greener Kaushambi tomorrow.

Vighneshwara Foundation's Green Givers initiative is just the beginning. The vision is to make environmental stewardship a regular, recurring part of the School Philanthropy Program, so that every ImpactCreator school plants trees, cleans public spaces, and takes responsibility for its local environment every year.

When students across multiple schools, multiple districts, and eventually multiple states each plant trees and care for their local environment — the collective impact becomes transformational.

You don't need to be in Kaushambi to support the Green Givers mission. Your donation to Vighneshwara Foundation funds the saplings, tools, transport, and coordination that make drives like this possible.

Plant a tree through us — even if your hands are far away.

📧 info@vighneshwara.org 📞 +91 723 399 6644 🌐 www.vighneshwara.org/donate

Give. Grow. Repeat.

A Student Philanthropy Portfolio is a personal record of every act of giving a student has done — donations made, causes supported, impact created, and social awareness gained over time.

Just like an academic portfolio tracks a student's learning journey, a philanthropy portfolio tracks their giving journey.

It includes:

• How much a student has donated (even ₹1 counts!)
• Which causes they supported (education, health, environment)
• What real-world impact their giving created
• Verified certificates and impact reports

India is home to over 250 million school-going children. If even a fraction of them develop the habit of giving early, the country's social fabric changes forever.

Research shows that children who learn empathy and generosity at a young age grow into more compassionate, socially responsible adults.

In a country where philanthropy is often seen as something only the wealthy do, teaching children that giving starts with ₹1 and a good intention is truly revolutionary.

The School Philanthropy Program by Vighneshwara Foundation is a structured, school-integrated initiative designed to

1.Make Giving Structured and Verifiable

Students don't just drop coins in a box. Every contribution is tracked, recorded, and linked to a real cause. At the end of the year, students receive a verified yearly impact report—proof of their giving journey.

2. Build Social Awareness Through Education

Students learn about real problems — poverty, lack of clean water, no access to education — and understand exactly how their contribution addresses these issues.

3. Create a Culture of Giving in Schools

When an entire class or school participates together, giving becomes a community norm—not an exception. Students celebrate each other's contributions and motivate one another.

4. Reward and Recognise Student Philanthropists

Students who build strong philanthropy portfolios are recognized through certificates, school announcements, and inclusion in the Vighneshwara Foundation's annual impact showcase.

How to Start a Student Philanthropy Portfolio — Step by Step

Step 1: Join the Program Schools or individual students can sign up for the Vighneshwara Foundation School Philanthropy Program at vighneshwara.org.

Step 2: Choose Your Cause Students can choose causes close to their heart — education for underprivileged children, digital literacy, rural healthcare, or women's empowerment.

Step 3: Start Small — Even ₹1 Counts Through the ImpactCreator platform, students can donate as little as ₹1. Parents can contribute on behalf of younger children. No amount is too small.

Step 4: Track Your Impact Every donation is tracked on the ImpactCreator platform. Students can see exactly how their money is being used and what change it is creating on the ground.

Step 5: Collect Your Impact Report At the end of the academic year, students receive a detailed, verified report of all their contributions — ready to be added to their personal portfolio.

Ready to Get Your School Involved?

Contact Vighneshwara Foundation today and bring the School Philanthropy Program to your school.

📧 info@vighneshwara.org 📞 +91 723 399 6644 🌐 www.vighneshwara.org

Give. Grow. Repeat.