Mumbai resident and poetess Harnidh Kaur has been selected to represent India at this year’s G(irls) 20 Global Summit, which places women in the 18-23 age group at the centre of decision-making processes.
Launched in 2009, the summit allows young women to discuss topics and policy solutions that are important to them. At the end of the summit, the delegates prepare a report, which is sent to the plenary session at the G20 Summit.
This year’s G(irls) 20 Summit will be held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, from October 14 to 19 and will address the issues of rural, digital, and financial inclusion of women.
Ms. Kaur (23), a leading feminist voice on the internet, published her first book of poems at the age of 20. She grew up reading books, which she said encouraged her to write poetry, and somewhere along the way, she started venting her ideas through her words.
“Words cannot change the world, but they can change people,” she said.
Having studied policy research at St. Xavier’s College, Ms. Kaur is now working as a sanitation analyst at Dasra, a philanthropic foundation. She also writes a weekly column on pop culture, political analysis, and gender perspectives on the news for The Print .
Speaking about how she was encouraged to apply for the summit, Ms. Kaur said, “I had seniors who had been delegates. They thought the work I was doing was good enough to be pushed out on a global forum. So I went ahead and applied.”
Talking about digital inclusion of women, she said she primarily works on political inclusion. “However, political inclusion lends itself to other inclusions very well. It cannot occur without labour, agricultural and digital inclusion.”
Ms. Kaur believes that the way for women to be in a position of power and decision-making is through inclusion. As co-founder of Shakti Political Action Committee, an NGO which she has set up with her sister, she wants to create paradigms that help women get elected to urban local bodies.
“Perhaps that was the idea that reverberated with the selectors,” she said.
Navigating digital space
A lot of Ms. Kaur’s work exists in the digital space, which is often a dark space for women. But she continues to be positive about it. “There are a lot of real-life biases that translate into digital biases. Compared to men, [fewer women] use the internet, and it’s a new age thing. Suddenly, we have a new shining weapon that we don’t know what to do with. Things will change as more women reclaim the digital space,” she said.
Ms. Kaur said India is a land of many contexts and stratifications, and some of the ways to bridge that gap could be as simple as sensitising urban women on how to use social media. Numerous women on social media share their experiences with her on a regular basis.
“It is great interacting with so many women and realising you are not alone. However, I don’t tell them what to do, as it is not up to me. I introduce them to the forums they can get help from and let them help themselves,” Ms. Kaur said.
Sharing her excitement for the summit, she said it was a “huge honour and responsibility”.
“I hope that it creates a channel of communication with women who are in the decision-making capacity in other countries. And of course, I am excited about Argentina. I can finally use the Buenos Aires filter on Instagram when I’m there!”
