2022-November-01

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Walking for the Women of Afghanistan

BY SANJAY KAUL AND BALASUBRAMANIAM MALLIKARJUNAN

WITH BRYAN CAMOENS AND KRYSTAL CHENG

4 MINUTE READ · 6 MINUTE LISTEN

In August 2022, the Asian University for Women (AUW) in Chittagong, Bangladesh sponsored the HERStory virtual walkathon.

AUW is a liberal arts institution dedicated to empowering women across Asia and the Middle East through the power of education.

The event marked one year since the United States withdrew from Afghanistan, resulting in several human rights and humanitarian crises. Among them, most Afghan women and girls were denied access to education.

To raise awareness and scholarship funds, AUW supporters from around the globe came together to walk, run, bike, and swim 3,000 kilometres. The distance symbolizes the path from Kabul to Chittagong that 600 young Afghan women took to study at AUW.

Overall, 478 people participated in the walkathon, and more than 250 were from Cisco.

Here are a few of their stories:

Sanjay Kaul, VP Asia Pacific and Japan Service Provider, Singapore

I joined the AUW Hong Kong board of directors two and a half years ago. When I heard the university’s stories of positively transforming and impacting women, I got goosebumps.

I’ve met many alumni, and I saw how they’re doing amazing things for their communities and society.

One woman I met grew up in Sri Lanka in an area that was ravaged by civil war. Growing up was a struggle for survival. Going to school for a basic education was difficult.

She left to attend AUW in 2008, a year before the civil war ended. It was there that she was able to study environmental science.

After graduating, she earned a scholarship for a master’s program in environmental technology at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. Now, she’s earning her Ph.D. while working on a patent application and a business plan.

Another brilliant woman I met was from Afghanistan and spent much of her early life in migration with her family. She entered AUW through the Pathways for Promise program and studied economics.

Today, she is a Fulbright Scholar in a two-year master’s program in economic development at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. Though the pandemic deferred her program for six months, she began the program remotely in the beginning of 2021. She recently travelled to the U.S. to start her second semester in person.

Her world and immediate future turned upside down when the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan. Thankfully, she arrived in the U.S. just one week before they entered Kabul.

Under the new regime, there are scant opportunities for Afghan women to work. Her status as an internationally educated woman makes it dangerous for her to return home. But she wills herself toward work she is passionate about.

For the HERStory walkathon, our goal was to fundraise for scholarships for 600 Afghan women. Given the state of Afghanistan, it was important to support this cause and help them receive an education. I participated in the walkathon by running.

On the first day, I planned to run for five kilometres, but ended up going for 28. In six days, I completed 210 kilometres between running and cycling. I’m very excited about this cause, so it was thrilling to see my Cisco colleagues jump in too. Among other corporate teams, Team Cisco topped the chart!

It was fulfilling to see our energy and how devoted we are to see women change the world!

Balasubramaniam Mallikarjunan, Project Manager, India
With the Cisco Runners Club

I’m a passionate long-distance runner. I started the Cisco Runners Club in 2013 with my colleagues — shout out to Brijesh and Naidu! — and it has since grown to over 600 members.

When Daisy Chittilapilly reached out to me to get involved with the AUW HERStory walkathon, it was natural for me to start organizing with the Runners Club.

I was confident we could pull it off successfully. From day one, I motivated the group while keeping them updated on our progress for our 3,000 kilometre goal. In just four days, we had already crossed the halfway mark!

It was a great way to do what we love while supporting 600 Afghan women who left their homes to study.

You can help Afghan women receive safe, secure educations

Although the walkathon has ended, you can donate to the AUW Afghan Scholarship Fund to help young women receive a high-quality education and become future leaders.

Cisco has committed $30,000 in corporate sponsorship, but your individual contributions can go a long way.

Together, we can help create a brighter future for these women and their country through the power of education. There is nothing we can’t achieve, especially when it comes to shaping an inclusive future for all.

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