When young Nepalis opt to study outside their native land, they often do so with the hope of improving their own lives. But Ashraya Dixit used the opportunities in America to make a difference back home in Nepal.

A student at Grinnell College, Ashraya is a recipient of the prestigious Davis Projects for Peace, 2011, which grants US$10,000 to youth with innovative methods of building peace.

Ashraya’s project titled Straws of Steel took place in the summer of 2011 and aimed to “introduce a new, efficient, low cost, and safe building technique using straw bales to Shivagadi village in the Kapilvastu district of Nepal, an area that frequently faces flashfloods, droughts, fires and earthquakes.

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