Sandra Lavie Gojkovic had everything many people dream of.
Raised in Switzerland, she had built a career in the pharmaceutical sector and later in Dubai’s corporate world. A good salary, financial security, travel around the world. But in 2011, she traveled across India, saw the hardships faced by rural communities and something changed. According to Business Today, she boarded a one-way flight with little more than two shirts and two pairs of pants. Years later, she would describe that decision this way: “For the first time in my life, I felt completely free. I had very little, but I had never felt richer”.
She ended up on Sagar Island, in West Bengal. She didn’t arrive with a plan in place: she spent months listening to families and asking what they needed most. The answer was nearly unanimous: education. In 2012, with her own savings, she founded The India School Project.
Her biggest challenge wasn’t building the school, but earning the community’s trust. She went door to door, convincing parents to send their children to class instead of making them work. Today, the project provides free primary education to around 150 children, while another 120 receive tutoring and nutritious meals. And she maintains paid employment to help fund the project.