Jain Digest 2018 10

Author(s): Federation of JAINA
Publisher: USA Federation of JAINA

Page 29

CONVENTION ON STAGE ivention Committee, particularly the Site Hospitality, and Security com Poal bush bhag mentis Z-DC JIA FROM THE GROUND UP Six teams of five YJA attendees, each team led by a dynamic YJA peer mentor, were given the challenge two months before Convention to develop "a creative, forward-thinking, community-based solution to a pressing problem we face in our local Jain communities." They worked together remotely, and eventually in-person, hackathon-style, to brainstorm an idea, test it at their local Jain Centers, and finally present on stage to the entire YJA audience. From a service to help young people get rides to events at their Jain Sanghs, to a Jain Mentorship Program, the ideas were incredibly diverse! The winning JIA team was "Maharaj Saheb Messages". The team created a platform where youth could post their questions and they would be sent to Maharaj Sahebs across India and the US, who would post the answers back in a forum like style so everyone could see post like tidbits of knowledge. They prototyped this with 30 real questions and sent it to Maharaj Sahebs at Siddhayatan US in Dallas, TX. "We hope students will ask questions for curiosity and to strengthen their faith in Jainism instead of asking questions as "doubts" to poke holes in Jainism so that Jainism and the values it preaches can be spread to the next generations instead of dismissed for "lack of proof". --Sheily Shah Other JIA teams are also continuing to work on their projects now that Convention is over - look out for their initiatives in your own Jain sangh! The Jain Academic Bowl (JAB) is a team-based competition for young Jains. Topics range from Jain scriptures, prayers, and philosophy to Jain geography, history, and Jainism in the modern world. 20 JAB Semifinalists competed for 1st place! Winning Team: Nitya Jani Rihi Jain Riya Shah Shreyal Gandhi Vaarin Shroff Admin Team: Ayush Jain Darshi Shah Divya Shah Juhi Shah Milan Jain Parin Shah Daytime Team: Bansari Shah Foram Shah Neelam Savla Parshva Vakharia