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Two St. Lawrence University students have been awarded one of the "100 Projects for Peace" grants for 2008, in the second year of the program. Yuki Poudyal '09, of Nepal, and Nicole Szucs '10, of Bolivia, plan a project that aims to provide 20 to 30 young people living on the streets of Kathmandu with the opportunity to be more productive and help them reintegrate into society.

Davis Projects for Peace is an invitation to undergraduates at the American colleges and universities in the Davis United World College Scholars Program to design grassroots projects that they will implement during the summer of 2008. The projects judged to be the most promising and do-able are funded at $10,000 each. The objective is to encourage and support today's motivated youth to create and try out their own ideas for building peace. The Davis Projects for Peace is made possible by Kathryn Wasserman Davis, an accomplished internationalist and philanthropist.Upon the occasion of her 100th birthday in February of 2007, Mrs. Davis, mother of Shelby M.C. Davis who funds the Davis UWC Scholars Program, chose to celebrate by committing $1 million for one hundred Projects for Peace. Because of the many marvelous achievements made by students in the summer of 2007, Mrs. Davis is continuing the Davis Projects for Peace for the summer of 2008.

Poudyal and Szucs plan to recruit, train and supervise 14- to 17-year-olds living on the streets in Kathmandu in a food-cart business. The project includes training the youths in basic cooking skills, monetary calculations, savings, investment and interpersonal skills of leadership, responsibility and team work. Following apprenticeships in restaurants, selected youths will be given capital and equipment to operate mobile food carts, with sales and management of the businesses monitored regularly.

Four St. Lawrence students were awarded grants through the program in its initial year.

More information: Davis Projects for Peace Web site

Posted: April 17, 2008