Aamber Fatima Leads I.I.M.U.N. Gandhi Jayanti Peace Initiative Across 5 Countries

The youth-led programme takes Mahatma Gandhi’s message of peace and non-violence to Brazil, South Korea, South Africa, Belgium and Mali through dialogues with young people.

Swati Bhat

Mumbai, October 2, 2026: Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy of non-violence is travelling beyond India this Gandhi Jayanti through a distinctly young voice. India’s International Movement to Unite Nations (I.I.M.U.N.) is taking its Gandhi Jayanti Youth Dialogue on Peace and Non-Violence to five countries, with the international initiative conceptualised and spearheaded by Aamber Fatima, a 20-year-old from Kashmir.

The programme is being conducted across Brazil, South Korea, South Africa, Belgium and Mali, in collaboration with Indian Embassies and Consulates, bringing young people together for conversations around peace, tolerance, coexistence and mutual understanding.

What gives the initiative particular resonance is the journey of the young woman leading it. Born and raised in Srinagar, Fatima joined I.I.M.U.N. at the age of 14 before moving to Mumbai, where she is currently pursuing law. At 20, she is now leading a team of young people aged between 15 and 24 to take Gandhi’s ideas to an international audience.

From Srinagar to a Global Youth Dialogue

Speaking about the initiative, I.I.M.U.N. founder Rishabh Shah said Fatima had conceptualised and spearheaded the programme. “What warms my heart most is that this entire initiative was conceptualised and spearheaded by Aamber Fatima, a 20-year-old young woman from Kashmir who joined I.I.M.U.N. when she was just 14,” Rishabh Shah said. Highlighting the significance of her journey from Srinagar to leading an international peace initiative, he added: “There is something incredibly powerful about a young Kashmiri carrying a message of peace from India to the world. I suspect Gandhi Ji would be smiling at that.” The initiative is designed to be more than a commemorative programme. Young I.I.M.U.N. leaders are expected to travel to the participating countries and engage directly with local students, placing young people at the centre of both the organisation and execution of the dialogues.

Each session is expected to involve approximately 50 to 100 students, depending on the capacity of the respective Indian Embassy or Consulate.

Taking Gandhi’s Ideas Beyond the History Books

The discussions will centre on four interconnected themes: peace and non-violence, dialogue and mutual understanding, tolerance and coexistence, and the role of young people in peacebuilding. The larger objective is to encourage participants to examine Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy not merely as part of India’s historical legacy, but as a framework through which contemporary disagreements and divisions can be approached. That gives the Gandhi Jayanti initiative relevance beyond ceremonial remembrance. At a time when societies across the world are confronting conflict and polarisation, the programme seeks to place dialogue and non-violent engagement before a generation that will increasingly shape public institutions, communities and international conversations. The fact that the initiative itself is being driven by young people also reinforces its central message: Gandhi’s ideas remain meaningful only when succeeding generations find ways to interpret and practise them within their own circumstances.

I.I.M.U.N.’s Growing Youth Network

Founded by Rishabh Shah in 2011, India’s International Movement to Unite Nations (I.I.M.U.N.) describes itself as a youth-run non-profit focused on developing conscientious leaders through programmes spanning leadership, public affairs, literature and social impact. Over 15 years, the organisation has expanded its presence to 275 cities and 40 countries and says it has reached more than 75 million people. More than 30,000 young people have worked with the organisation since its inception.

Through conferences, leadership programmes, literature initiatives and social-impact projects, I.I.M.U.N. has sought to create spaces where students can engage with issues extending from their communities to international affairs.

This Gandhi Jayanti, that youth-led model is being taken into a particularly symbolic space: a 20-year-old from Srinagar leading young Indians in carrying a message associated globally with India; peace through dialogue and non-violence across national borders.

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I.I.M.U.N. Takes Indian Students on 20-Day U.S.A. Leadership Tour Across Eight Cities

From Harvard and MIT to NASA, the UN and leading technology companies, the 2026 USA Leadership Tour offered students direct access to global institutions and influential leaders.

Swati Bhat

India’s International Movement to Unite Nations (I.I.M.U.N.) has concluded its 2026 USA Leadership Tour, taking Indian students across eight major U.S. cities over a 20-day programme designed around experiential learning, leadership and global exposure.

The tour covered Boston, New York, Washington D.C., Dallas, Houston, Seattle, Portland and San Francisco, bringing students into conversations with prominent figures from science, technology, business, academia and public policy.

Among those who interacted with the delegation were Nobel Prize-winning virologist Charles M. Rice, National Geographic Society CEO Jill Tiefenthaler and entrepreneur and investor Vinod Khosla. The students also had a surprise meet-and-greet with television host Jimmy Fallon.

From Harvard and MIT to NASA and the United Nations

The programme included visits to some of the world's leading universities, including Harvard University, MIT, Stanford University, New York University and Dartmouth.

Students also visited global companies and institutions including Google, Microsoft, Nike, Starbucks, HP, Cisco, Intel, L'Oréal and Nasdaq. The itinerary further included engagements with the United Nations during the period of the UN General Assembly sessions, the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and NASA.

The delegation also interacted with organisations such as the Rockefeller Foundation, Gates Foundation, Dow Jones and The Washington Post, alongside engagements with Toyota, Nokia, SAP, ServiceNow and Bain & Company.

Rather than limiting learning to conventional classroom settings, the tour focused on direct conversations and first-hand exposure to organisations that students often encounter through textbooks, lectures and news coverage. “There is only so much leadership one can learn from a textbook,” said Rishabh Shah, Founder of I.I.M.U.N. “Bharat of today demands global thinkers who can take the best from the world and make our country better. This is to ensure that this happens.”

For participating students, the experience also offered an opportunity to understand how some of the world's leading institutions function from the inside. One student described the programme as their first journey outside India and said the experience helped them understand what makes institutions and leaders of such calibre work.

Building on the 2025 U.S. Leadership Tour

The 2026 programme builds on I.I.M.U.N.'s inaugural USA Leadership Tour in 2025. That edition covered five cities and featured more than 40 engagements with universities, global institutions, technology companies and financial organisations. The delegation also met Second Lady Usha Vance during that programme.

Following the expanded U.S. programme, I.I.M.U.N. is set to take 50 Indian students on a Switzerland Study Tour in 2026.

I.I.M.U.N.'s Global Youth Leadership Platform

Founded in 2011, India’s International Movement to Unite Nations (I.I.M.U.N.) is a youth-run non-profit organisation focused on connecting young people with global perspectives and leadership opportunities.

Its programmes include simulations of the Indian Parliament and international organisations, leadership programmes, literature festivals, public affairs initiatives and experiential learning programmes.

In its 15th year, I.I.M.U.N. says its programmes have reached 275 Indian cities and 40 countries, engaging more than 7.5 crore adolescents through its various initiatives. Its platforms have brought young people into conversations with Heads of State and Government, Nobel Laureates, members of the judiciary, diplomats, scientists, entrepreneurs, artists, authors, policymakers and professionals from diverse fields.

The 2026 USA Leadership Tour reflects that broader approach: taking education beyond classrooms and creating opportunities for young Indians to interact directly with institutions, ideas and individuals shaping the world around them.

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