There’s something very compelling about a child standing up to unfortunate traditions like child labor.

Young girl working in Aït-Ben-Haddou, Morocco. Photo by Zouavman Le Zouave

World Vision, the Christian humanitarian organization for child advocacy, sponsors children around the world. They recently wrote about 16-year-old Manjula Dharwad in Holtikolti, India and her role in turning the tide of the dropout rate from the school in her village.

Manjula has been sponsored by World Vision since she was six and has benefited from a children’s club formed by the organization. When one of the club members announced he was dropping out of school to work with his family on a plantation, Manjula mobilized her club to work with the boy’s family. As a team, they managed to convince the family that education would be more beneficial in the long run for any child, while at the same time they arranged practical financial support to keep their schoolmate in school.

Choosing education over income is a tough decision in Holtikolti, India, but ultimately it results in a far greater and more positive effect for individuals and the community.

In The Ring in the Rubble, we talk about inspiring leadership through our investments in the people around us.

To better lead change in the future, build better relationships with your upcoming ringleaders now. When change hits, ringleaders are the folks you can count on to pick up a shovel without being told. And, they are the ones that others willingly follow into the pile time and again to search for the ring. — From The Ring in the Rubble, by Gary Bradt

Likewise, by motivating families and their children at the grassroots level, Manjula and many others are incrementally overcoming generations of child exploitation.

It’s probably the same with any change initiative globally, locally and in our work.