Debbie Edirisinghe, Founding Director, Child Action Lanka, Sri Lanka

Today’s episode is with a founding director of a non-profit from Sri Lanka, Debbie Edirisinghe. Debbie is with Child Action Lanka. Child Action Lanka began in the city of Kandy, Sri Lanka in 2006. She started it with her husband, Dilshan, when she was asked to take over from a woman teaching 8 street children. (Listen to her story in the episode.) Some 16 years later, her organization has grown to reach over 1,500 children in 8 districts in Sri Lanka.  Her organization offers housing and food, schooling and education resources, as well as counselling to ensure lower school dropout rates.  In our conversation today, Debbie spoke about the need to give children a second chance and to transform their lives. In our heartwarming interview, she spoke about the lessons she had learnt over the years in running a non-profit and her leadership style. Despite what has happened in Sri Lanka this year, she is even more determined to help the children whose lives are the most affected. She talks about making a difference through her work with women and children through various initiatives but what strikes me most is that she reminds her own daughters that she is raising them to be strong women.  Get the show notes at WomenpreneurAsia.com Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast for more inspiring stories and strategies from Asian women entrepreneurs in Asia.