C20 Education Working Group Summit organized in Atlanta
Vibha, a nonprofit dedicated to providing quality education to underprivileged children; Amritanandamayi Centers, U.S.A.; and the Consulate General of India, Atlanta, came together to organize the C20 Education Working Group Summit on ‘Digital Transformation in Public Schools’ on June 25 in Atlanta.
[Left] Vibha and Mata Anandamayi Center Volunteers with the invited speakers.
The Summit brought together
distinguished experts, policymakers, and educators to deliberate on the role of digital transformation in providing equitable education and encourage participants to conceptualize policy recommendations that the C20 chair will present to the G20 Leaders.
The summit commenced with welcoming remarks by Raj Vuchatu and the ceremonial lighting of the lamp. The Consul General of India in Atlanta, Dr. Swati Vijay Kulkarni, delivered the keynote speech in which she emphasized the importance of inclusion and collaboration in shaping the future of public education. Dr. Kulkarni said, “I am delighted that this C20 Education and Digital Transformation Working Group summit is being organized here in Atlanta by Mata Amritanandamayi Centers of U.S.A. and Vibha. The keywords to note here are Inclusion and Collaboration.”
[Top] Rajesh Vuchatu invited the gathering and spoke about Vibha’s work.
Br. Ramanandamrita Chaitanya from the M.A. Center delivered a warm welcome and introduction speech, setting the tone for the engaging discussions that were to follow. “As pointed out by Amma in her video message, let the digital transformation of the education system take in its stride a change in the stereotypical approach, wherein students are encouraged to think ‘how can I give?’ more than ‘how can I get?’ from the education I receive,” he said.
[Left] Br. Ramanandamrita Chaitanya from the M.A. Center delivered a welcome speech.
The event featured an impressive lineup of invited expert speakers who shared their insights and expertise. Padma Bhushan Dr. Jagdish Sheth from Emory University provided valuable perspectives on the role of technology in education. “Digital transformation of all institutions is universal and inevitable. There is no way of resisting it. We must adjust and adapt to the emerging technology,” said Dr. Sheth.
Dr. Revi Sterling, an expert on gender equality in technology and education from CARE, contributed to the discussions by highlighting the importance of inclusivity in the digital age. “The most significant divide before was urban and rural, young and old, caste and religion, male and female. But now, the divide is between people who have information and those who don’t. We must bridge this gap,” he said.
[Right] Dr. Revi Sterling from CARE shared her experiences.
Julie Brennen, representing the Mentor Me Program and My Forsyth Magazine, shared her experiences as a volunteer and a mentor in this critical digital age. “To be impactful, we should truly consider volunteering and mentoring. When you volunteer, you become a little extra, you become a lot larger than who you are,” said Brennen.
Vijay Vemulapalli, Vibha’s Board Member, moderated an engaging Q&A session, allowing participants to delve deeper into the topics. His thoughtful questions sparked discussions and brought forth perspectives from the audience and panelists alike.
[Left] Julie Brennan from Mentor Me program shared her
experiences.
The summit concluded on a high note Vemulapalli delivering a heartfelt vote of thanks to all participants, speakers, and organizers. “Policy making is a slow grind. But a well-considered policy with inputs from all sections of people—especially civil society— is worth the effort. Vibha is proud that we have contributed to this endeavor,” said he.
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