From an early age, Meixi Ng has been aware of injustice that exists in the world. Meixi, a Singapore native, has worked for Blessing Home since her early teen years, a hostel located in Changrai, Singapore that boards high school students from rural villages. Meixi often developed friendships with some of the students, and in the case with her friend Da, the friendship ended prematurely. Da, a 16 year old, was sold by her parents. “I remember how much Da loved education,” Ng said. “I didn’t know why I deserved to keep pursuing an education while she could not.” Since this tragic and revealing moment, Meixi has felt compelled to raise awareness and take action against human trafficking and injustices similarly attacking human dignity.

Meixi and her classmate and friend Suraj Prakash, also from Singapore, co-founded The Amber Initiative, a non-profit organization that strives to preserve and restore human dignity and compassion through creativity and education. In the early stages of its growth, Meixi attended the 2008 GES conference as an American delegate (Apply Today). “The delegates challenged each other’s ideas with mutual respect, and everyone was passionate about making change,” Ng said. The exchange of ideas and networking led Meixi to partner with Gitika Mohta, her fellow delegate, to connect their GES project to The Amber Initiative.

In July 2008, Meixi and Gitika traveled to Calcutta, India to do an art workshop with some children living in a community center run by Sanlaap India, located in the heart of the red-light district area in Calcutta. They organized an art project titled “I want to be…” where the children dreamt about their future profession, and drew pictures of what they wanted to be when they grew up. They all had big dreams and these ranged from a flower to a professional cricket player. “The artwork gives the children hope, which gives me joy,” Ng said.

In the future, Meixi hopes to expand The Amber Initiative by building new ties with organizations from around the world that share a common goal of preserving and restoring human dignity. Their next project will involve working with a youth group in Thailand and Cambodia to organize theatrical performances about safe migration. The non-profit organization SCARDP will team with The Amber Initiative to sponsor this event. Ultimately, Meixi hopes that The Amber Initiative will partner with organizations led by former GES delegates to fulfill its mission.

“The one sad thing about GES is that you probably will never see everyone all together again,” Ng said. In order to reconnect with some of her fellow delegates, Meixi hopes to collaborate with the Southeast Asian delegates to create the Southeast Asia Leadership Institute. The Institute would provide Southeast Asian students who demonstrate leadership with a similar experience to GES.

Aside from her service and organizational work, Meixi is a junior completing her double major in International Studies and Social Policy and a minor in Communication Sciences and Disorders. With a sound education, promising non-profit organization, GES experience, and inspiration, Meixi is well on her way to making change in the world.