The role of positive youth development initiatives in building a better world

Guiding young people toward a good path in life is not always an easy task for adults. There are many pressures in the world that could cause young people to go astray, and the adults in their lives may not always be available to provide guidance and support.

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The role of positive interactions in the lives of youth is vital to ensure that they can withstand the pressures and lures of alcoholism, drugs, and negative influences. For this, they can be encouraged to join communities with a wide range of activities that allow them to turn their focus to things apart from themselves. These activities can be anything from volunteering to participating in sports or the arts.

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By motivating their sons and daughters to engage in these productive activities, parents can make a significant impact in the development of their child’s life. Studies have shown that young people who were involved in activities that promote healthy lifestyles were less likely to get over-interested in alcohol and drugs. Meanwhile, young people who participated in youth development activities were also found to be doing better in their studies.

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The adults in the lives of youth play a crucial role in their development. While they may sometimes be busy, it is important for parents to also show their willingness to communicate and sometimes compromise in order to understand what their children are going through. In many times, all that a young person needs is the knowledge that he or she has someone who is willing to listen without judgment and someone who will help in finding the motivation to do better in his or her endeavors.


Ourmilla Sharma is the treasurer of the Radha Krishna Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that seeks to instill a sense of responsibility in young people through community activities. For more information, visit this Facebook page.

Rice – More Than Just a Meal to Billions around the Globe

When you think of rice, you may immediately imagine a flavorful starch that makes an excellent accompaniment to any meal: Take, for instance, dirty rice with fried chicken or rice pilaf with pork chops.  If you enjoy an occasional beer with your dinner, then you are consuming rice as well, as about 10 percent of rice consumed in the United States is used in beer production.  However, while rice often is seen as a delectable addition to a meal in America, it is viewed as a source of utter survival in many other parts of the world.

That is why AA Agri Industries, led by individuals such as Vice President OurmillaSharma, focuses so heavily on the rice industry; it owns and cultivates a whopping 500 acres of rice farms in Guyana.  This South American country features lands that are ripe for growing rice in an effort to meet world demand for this vital crop.  After all, about three billion rely on rice each year for survival – which equates to about half of the world’s population. 

The demand for rice has actually skyrocketed within the past few years because rice production has dropped across the globe.  Thus, Guyana is striving to expand its exporting ability, having already taken advantage of contracts with Venezuela and European nations.  North America and Europe are especially in need of rice because they cannot produce much of the crop, compared with other nations.

The leaders of AA Agri Industries indeed have the experience required to tap into Guyana’s resources and to manage a successful enterprise in the world’s critical rice industry.  If rice production does not increase by 30 percent by the year 2025, many people will simply starve.  The work of Ourmilla Sharma and AA Agri Industries, however, is providing hope to billions by enabling this fast-growing crop to reach many mouths around the globe – mouths of those who will literally depend on it for their survival in the coming years.

Ourmilla Sharma and the Radha Krishna Foundation

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Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is important in any type of organization. Company leaders have to be socially responsible not only in terms of policies and ethical norms, but also of what they truly believe as individuals.

For Ourmilla Sharma, her success in business goes beyond her company’s CSR. As the vice president of AA Agri Industries—the leading rice producer and exporter in Guyana and the Caribbean—Sharma has been a part of a foundation that aids people worldwide.

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The Radha Krishna Foundation isa privately funded, nonprofit organization established with the mission to serve humanity in the name of Shri Radha Krishna, the supreme being in Hinduism who represents both the feminine and masculine aspects of God. The primary goal of the organization is “to mobilize young people globally in an effort to revamp the purposefulness of Dharma by instilling a sense of responsibility, adherence and principles in each child while at the same time providing and creating pathways for personal development, enhance social structure, and improved socio-economic conditions.”

Among the activities that the Radha Krishna Foundation undertake in pursuit of is mission include granting scholarships to students in need, running community centers, and organizing programs that recognizes and awards excellent students.

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Visit this Facebook page to learn more about Ourmilla Sharma and her work in the global community.

Evoking Passion in Others for a Greater Cause

The ability to take proactive steps intended to make waves on a global scale is no longer a myth, considering a digital era in which progressive change can be attained from just about anywhere.  Humanitarian efforts once stalled by communication barriers are now opening up for entrepreneurs and philanthropists the world over.  If national policy change needs to be addressed, or the legitimacy and effectiveness of certain measures are in question, then information can be shared to establish and increase social awareness and foster relationships that improve upon ineffective initiatives, and/or examine alternative solutions yet to be explored.

Oftentimes we are consumed with injustices happening on a political, cultural, and social scale, whether it derives from social, print, television, radio, or web-based media outlets.  Regardless, we are continually updated and informed on world events that carry either fortunate reverberations or unfortunate repercussions.  Whichever the case may be, a number of pressing issues are taking shape in oft overlooked global conversations, including an underlying predicament that could have a lasting effect on the successful cultivation and exportation of rice.

Ourmilla Sharma, like many others who have taken it upon themselves to address and actively pursue organizational change, is working to raise awareness of a rice shortage that is inadvertently affecting nations outside of her home base, in Guyana.  By focusing on the rising shortage of rice on a worldwide scale, and the availability of a skilled labor force in Guyana, Mrs. Sharma and her team at AA Agri Industries have embarked on a mission to meet the increased need for a food source that sustains an estimated 3 billion people worldwide.

To say the efforts of Mrs. Sharma and her team are working on balancing the proportional scale of survival is about as precise as one can get.  To learn more about Ourmilla Sharma and the humanitarian goals her and her team wish to achieve in rice cultivation and agricultural change, visit their homepage for insight on how efforts underway may unknowingly be affecting you too. 

Fertilizing Progress for the Future

Fertilizing Progress for the Future

The rapid growth in population and ongoing expansion of metropolitan areas continues to climb and spread as our numbers increase on a daily basis.  As cities, towns, and villages become bigger and more populous, needs rise for adequate living conditions, safe drinking water, and a sustainable supply of food.  In order to ensure that people have the necessities they require, public initiatives must be put in place that address these issues and put proactive measures into action so that population growth does not overwhelm us.

The United Nations’ World Prospects Population report estimates that approximately 74 million people are added to the global population each year.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau and International Data Base, if population growth rates remain the same, the projected global population in 2040 could reach upwards of 9 to even 11 billion.  As of October 31, 2011, we just passed the 7 billion mark.  For some city dwellers, it can already feel like we have arrived at the 2040 mark.  Congestion, trash, bad living conditions, and rising crime can further magnify these sentiments, which is why proactive action should be implemented now to ensure that we anticipate the future smartly and prepare this world for others who will take the reins, and soon. 

Sustainable energy alternatives, environmentally-friendly consumer products, and high yielding crop rotation are some of the crucial steps that need to be made if we are to keep our planet healthy for the incoming populations.  There are already a number of different organizations and institutions working hand in hand to try and solve some of the projected issues we may face.  Luckily, there are a select few who have taken the time to start their own initiatives and to support the sustainability of our planet in more globally and socially-conscious ways.

To learn about one of the proactive initiatives currently underway, visit the homepage of OurmillaSharma, an advocate for faster and more sustainable rice cultivation whose organization is focused on achieving sustainable rice production in the country