On February 26th, 2017, Ekal Vidyalaya’s New England chapter held its annual Power Of Education Forum at the Hyatt hotel in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Guests were greeted at the entrance of the Charles View Ballroom by committed volunteers and Ekal Youth Leaders. The room overlooked the beautiful city and the evening was filled with a variety of speakers who shared their passion for education.

Keynote speaker, Dr. Kumble R. Subbaswamy, delivered an inspiring address about his personal educational journey and his experiences as Chancellor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He spoke with certain elegance about the promotion of diversity and academic excellence at the university. With many academic achievements and leadership positions, Dr. Kumble is the school’s first Indian-American Chancellor. His dedication to education motivates him to improve the undergraduate experience at UMass Amherst.

Dr. Purnanand Sarma’s story was equally touching as he described his humble beginning and success as an entrepreneur. This resonates with Ekal mission as well.

Guests were also blessed by Anuradha Palakurthi’s voice when she sang a line from the renowned “Apna Ek Kal” song, which was specially composed for Ekal and embodies the organization’s mission. This song has become the ‘Ekal Anthem’.

Ekal’s Youth Leadership (EYL) program encourages the youth to get involved with their own creative ideas to raise funds and awareness about the organization. The EYL panel consisted of four individuals - Ayush Upneja, Kriti Badola, Nandini Seetharaman, and Yusra Syed - who discussed their involvement and experiences with Ekal.

Another highlight of the evening were the majestic centerpieces, or terrariums, that were later distributed in a raffle. These were thoughtfully conceived and artistically designed by Ekal Ambassadors, Apurva Mehta and Meena Mehta. Here is an interview with the couple about their creations:

Tell us about terrariums and when you got interested in them as a hobby.

Apurva Mehta: Several years ago there was as part of the Sunday Morning show on CBS a segment on terrariums.  Being interested in gardening, both indoors and outdoors, this news segment caught my attention. Enamoured by the design of creating a theme or a landscape in a small glass container with plants and other materials, I set out to try a few on my own.  With many resources online and a little bit of reading, I created a few terrariums. Terrariums are generally enclosed, which create an ecosystem that requires little care and feeding. As terrariums became popular, people started creating them in open glass containers as well. The concept is still the same.

What motivated you to make Ekal-themed terrariums? How did you shape the idea?

Meena Mehta: Each year at the annual event, Ekal creates floral centerpieces for the POE event.  For this year we thought we should try something different or unique that might have a longer life. One thing led to another and I decided to enlist Apurva's expertise and work together and come up with ideas for the designs of 14 terrariums. Apurva was on board with the idea, and when we pitched the idea to Parveen at Ekal, she was all for it. So we set out to think about suitable themes such as education, learning, building blocks, rural, village, nature, growth, pathways etc. The result was quite a variety of tropical and cactus terrariums with a host of accents such as Ekal flags, Ekal building blocks, creatures in nature, little glass frogs, beautiful colorful butterflies etc. We also took our cues from nature and used a variety of soil, sand, pebbles, moss and rocks in the design. All this was showcased in beautifully shaped glassware, some of which had the words “Imagine and Dream” etched into the glass, which seemed like a perfect fit for the aspirations and goals of Ekal.

Please share with our readers tips to maintain their terrariums.

Apurva Mehta: You should water the terrarium once in two weeks, with just a little at the base of the plant. Care should be taken not to overwater as there is no way for excess water to escape. If you find the leaves drooping at any time, you can water a little then as well. It is good to keep them in a bright well lit room away from direct sunlight as the glass can sometimes magnify the rays of the sun, and cause the plant to burn. Hope this helps. Enjoy your terrarium!

On behalf of the Ekal New England team, I thank Meena and Apurva Mehta for the terrariums. Below are some thoughtful lines that were written on the raffle envelopes:

Add this easy to grow and maintain "Ekal Open Air Terrarium" to your indoor plant collection.  May this Terrarium bring health, peace, inspiration and joy to your home or workplace.

You don't need a Green Thumb to be an indoor botanist with this "Ekal Open Air Terrarium". May this Terrarium remind you of your generosity in bringing education to rural India.

Ekal Vidyalaya continues to make stride in its mission to bring education to rural India, thanks to the ever growing support from the community. For more information about Ekal, visit www.ekal.org; to get involved in Ekal New England, email: boston.ekal@gmail.com

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