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India
India's diversity is immense: over 1 billion people, 18 main languages, 844 dialects and six main religions. India's rise as a global super power is no longer in doubt. But important questions remain as to how India's legacy of caste, its multicultural mix and a crushing burden of poverty will impact India's economic future.

India is an ancient country with over 4,000 years of legend and history. It is located in Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan. Its terrain is marked by plains in the south, rolling plains along the Ganges, arid deserts in the West and the majestic Himalayan Mountains in the North. Eighty percent of the country is Hindu, but India is also the birthplace of Buddhism and contains a growing Muslim population.

India has capitalized on its large numbers of well-educated people, skilled in the English language, to become a major exporter of software and other outsourcing services. It is fast developing into an open-market economy and has been growing at a rate of seven percent (7%) per year since 1997. It is second only to the US in the number of cell phones in use by its residents.

World Leadership School works with communities in both Mumbai and Bangalore. Participants in the Mumbai program will spend the first two days exploring the city, then move to a community just on the outskirts of Mumbai to experience community immersion and participate in a service project. The Bangalore program also begins with a two day orientation in Mumbai, and then participants fly to Bangalore and settle into a community in Nandi Hill for the remainder of their trip.

Global Issues Background
Despite its dazzling economic growth, India is still a desperately poor country by most measures. The average person still earns less than $2 a day. Almost a quarter of India's population lives in extreme poverty, according to the World Bank. As a result of this poverty, about half of India's school children are malnourished – even higher then sub-Saharan Africa.

India's education system is also in critical shape. Children of the small elite in India receive excellent education in British-style private schools, but there is little or no education at all for people at the base of the pyramid, particularly women. Only about half of the female population is literate by the age of 15. According to a 2001 Census, female students receive an average 9 years of education, while boys attend school for about 11 years— and only 15% of students will ever reach high school.

State-run schools in India's rural areas are in critical shape. Both the primary and secondary schools are overcrowded and under-funded. According to a recent survey by the World Economic Forum, India's elementary schools are among the worst in the world. Even when children are in school, they are not receiving much of an education.

How India uses its economic growth to solve the twin issues of poverty and sub-standard education is a major question not only for India, but for the world..

Requirements
Participants should have a satisfactory level of physical fitness in order to participate in manual labor and other physical activities, such as hiking and swimming.

Participants are required to complete all required World Leadership School forms, including the Application and Terms & Conditions, the Acknowledgment and Assumption of Risks & Release and Indemnity Agreement, and the Medical Form. As part of the application, participants must respond to a detailed questionnaire expressing their reasons for wanting to go on the trip.

Students should remain flexible to changing circumstances, delays and other hurdles that are common in the Kenya. The specifics of volunteer work will be decided according to the needs of the community or organization shortly before the group's in-country arrival.

Risk Management & Safety
We strive to responsibly manage risks. Our itineraries minimize highway travel and maximize immersion in rural communities that we know well. We update our risk management protocols, integrate feedback into program design, and invest in safety and communication equipment. Despite these efforts, World Leadership School cannot guarantee safety nor can it eliminate the inherent and other risks of international student travel. For information regarding program activities and associated risks, risk management, and student and parent responsibilities, please contact us (303) 679-3412.