Senior Nazeefa Loladia has just completed and received the most prestigious award in Girl Scouts, the Gold Award. Loladia has been a Girl Scout since fourth grade and has spent four years working towards the award.
The Gold Award recognizes Girl Scouts in high school who demonstrate leadership skills by completing a sustainable project which benefits the community. In order to receive this award, Scouts have to find an issue in their community, create a long-lasting solution and submit their proposal to the Gold Award Committee.
“For my Gold Award, I focused on the main issue of the digital divide, which is the gap between the people who have access to technology and those who don’t,” Loladia said.
Loladia partnered with Inspiredu in Atlanta and Leap to Shine in India. Inspiredu takes used electronics, refurbishes them and disperses them to individuals in Atlanta who don’t have access to technology. Leap to Shine serves a similar purpose, but is targeted towards students in rural areas of India and provides them with brand new tablets with educational software embedded. Loladia also worked with the Lambert National Honor Society to hold a fundraiser to collect used technology. She collected over $5000 worth of used electronics, which she donated to Inspiredu. With Leap to Shine, Loladia created fifteen video tutorials, educating students on how to use devices and the software on them. She also taught younger Girl Scouts about how to stay safe online and told them about her project.
“I really wanted to inspire girls locally, so I educated about 120 girls about the basics of cybersecurity and spreading awareness about the digital divide,” Loladia explained. “The Girl Scouts also earned their cybersecurity badge afterward.”
Although completing the Gold Award isn’t required for Girl Scouts, Loladia was inspired by her love for community service and the people in Inspireedu and Leap to Shine. After hearing their stories, she knew she wanted to do her project related to digital access.
Scouts need to be able to handle difficulties quickly to achieve the Gold Award, and Loladia faced many challenges throughout her project. She found that being flexible and asking for help when needed was the best way for her to tackle problems she faced.
“To anyone who wants to make an impact on the community, you have to be committed, passionate about what you are doing and not let setbacks discourage you,” Loladia advised.
Loladia’s Gold Award project did not just include recycling old electronics, but it also educated many about the skills they need to thrive in the digital world. By coordinating donations for used electronics, Loladia was able to give many people access to devices, and her videos helped individuals understand how to use the technology they were given. Her project did not only impact those nearby, but extended its impact globally by partnering with Leap to Shine in India. Loladia is a model Longhorn and has positively impacted her community and beyond.
