How a NASA scientist and a record-breaking mountaineer conquered an unknown mountain to raise money for girls’ education




CNN

Exploring the peaks of the highest mountains in the world or the secrets of the deepest labyrinths of space has become almost second nature to Poorna Malavath and Kavya Manyapu.

This brought Manyapu to NASA where her research included spacesuit design, and Malavath to the summit of Mount Everest when in 2014 she became the youngest woman to climb the world’s tallest mountain at just 13 years old.

Today, these two women have channeled their spirit of exploration by climbing some of the toughest mountains in the world as part of their campaign, Project Shakthi, which raises money to fund girls’ education.

In late August, they scaled a pristine 6,012m peak in Ladakh, India – a peak previously uncharted and untouched by human expeditions – with the aim of using symbolism to chart a trail both literally and metaphorically.

Never climbed before, the mountain presented difficult challenges even for an experienced climber like Malavath, as there were no trails to follow or advice from previous climbers to cling to.

“We have to mentally prepare ourselves to accept everything,” Malavath tells CNN Sport. “So it’s completely different and it’s given me so much more knowledge to guide others.”

Rainy weather that turned to snow at high altitudes added to the complexity of climbing a pristine peak.

“The night we planned to leave for our summit, it actually snowed at our high camp, which meant avalanche conditions on the mountain we wanted to climb that day,” Manyapu recalled to CNN.

“We had to come back quickly as a team, make a safety call and then prepare for the next day. So it was very difficult.

And for a relatively inexperienced climber like Manyapu, even though she had practiced a lot, the challenges were even greater.

“Poorna and I many times when we were in the tent, we were talking, ‘What if, you know, we can’t get to the top, you know, what if that? What if that was it? Manyapu says.

“But then we would always like to go back and encourage and motivate each other, you know, let’s take it one step at a time.”

In the group’s darkest moments during the trek, they found motivation in the purpose of the Shakthi Project and its slogan: “We climb so girls can read”, a deeply personal cause for Malavath and Manyapu.

Reflecting during the Covid-19 pandemic on her own childhood in which her family moved from India to the United States “to help her achieve her dreams”, Manyapu realized she could help. girls without the same support system to also access opportunities.

“I have a three-year-old daughter, so when I look at her, I feel like it’s my responsibility to make the world at least one percent better for her and her generation,” adds- she.

Manyapu comes from the same Indian village as Malavath, but the two women first met in 2019 when Manyapu was pregnant with her daughter.

“I have always been inspired by [Malavath’s] history since 2014,” says Manyapu. “I called her and told her it was something I wanted to start an initiative where we could climb for a cause.

“We’ve done things for our passion so far, but how about putting our passion to work for the purpose of empowering, educating and uplifting underprivileged school kids?”

When Malavath embarked on her climb of Mount Everest at the age of 13, she was unaware of the issues of inequality plaguing society.

“As I continued to climb the highest mountains on all seven continents, I got to know this society,” she says. “And there are a lot of girls struggling in the rural areas and they don’t have any opportunities.

“I always think of the students who study with me and the people who are in the villages… A friend of mine got married when she was 14 or 15, and now she has two children and they go to school. And I just finished my studies.

Malavath and Manyapu brandish their Project Shakthi logo at the top.

During this ascent of Everest, Malavath recalls throwing up from the exertion, being stuck in the expedition for “about 50 days because of the weather” and being determined to climb the Mountain.

“When I had the opportunity to climb Mount Everest, my goal was different to prove that girls can do anything,” she says. “Then after that I became a mountain lover maybe because the mountains taught me so much.”

In addition to raising funds for education, the project will aim to change the mindset about what women can achieve and elevate stories that can serve as role models.

As part of this, Project Shakthi will partner with the US-based AVS Academy to pair student volunteers with girls sponsored by the organization so they can receive one-on-one mentorship.

“I think we both bring a story that would really help them see what a person can do, what a girl can do,” Manyapu says. “Because I believe representation is important. And although we are at a generation where we see women in various fields, we still have a lot of gender gap to close.

Since August 2009, when the Indian parliament passed the landmark Right to Education Act which made education free and compulsory for all children under the age of 14, the number of girls attending school has increased, although National averages mask variations between states, depending on the country. Annual report on the state of education.

Around the world, while enrollment rates are almost equal between the sexes, completion rates are still disparate – according to the World Bank, only 36% of girls complete lower secondary school compared to 44% of boys in this which she calls low-income countries.

And to tackle this global problem, the Shakthi Project aims to expand its goals.

Manyapu and Malavath were accompanied by a team on their expedition.

Manyapu and Malavath will climb Mount Aconcagua, South America’s tallest mountain at 6,961 meters, in December as part of the next phase of Project Shakthi, inviting those interested in climbing to join them.

In the meantime, the project has already started selecting girls who will receive its sponsorship with the $12,000 it has raised so far.

“Poorna and I actually visited our village in India right after we finished our virgin peak expedition,” Manyapu explains. “And we start in our village because that’s where our roots are.”

Ultimately, the project will aim to sponsor girls across the world, empowering them and exposing them to opportunities that would otherwise remain hidden, as Malavath and Manyapu continue their mission so that girls can have an education.

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