21- October 2012: The Kashmir Creative Education Foundation (KCEF) &Global Peace Initiative of Women (GPIW) organized Kashmir Youth Dialogue in Srinagar, Kashmir on October 19 and 20, 2012 with young leaders on the theme: Community Led Development. This program included young professionals working on environmental preservation and community building in Srinagar and the surrounding areas.This gathering got together a group of young leaders from throughout Kashmir with their counterparts from other parts of India who are working on alternative and sustainable development models. GPIW also invited environmental leaders, such as Vandana Shiva, to inspire the creation of organic industries since Kashmir still has an agriculture based economy. The inspiration for this meeting arose after an information session in 2011 with the Kashmir Creative Education Foundation. They shared with GPIW the growing need for exchange between Kashmiri youth and the world, as its geographic isolation presents difficulty for travel. We also learned of their great desire for information that could help Kashmir maintain its rich ecological heritage; there is a generation of young Kashmiri awakening to the water crisis of Dal Lake, which is now half the size it once was, and where the natural springs that feed it are clogged from the pollution. The other imminent concern is the tourism trade, which threatens to heighten the environmental stresses. In addition to growing environmental awareness, many young people are supporting efforts for a pluralistic society in which religious and sectarian violence does not threaten the diverse cultural traditions of the region. Through this gathering, GPIW facilitated Kashmir Creative Education Foundation’seffort to offer a learning platform for international exchange on environmental preservation and peacebuilding. Renowned peace builder Dena Merriam, Founder & ConvenerThe Global Peace Initiative of Women and her team attend the program and interacted at length with students and youth leaders nominated by KCEF.