The 1983 riots left my parents and other minority Tamils with feelings of fear after thousands of Tamil lives were hurt, murdered and raped, and distrust of a government that expressed no sympathy for the hurt caused to the Tamil minorities but instead made an announcement to strip civic rights. But they waited with hope for 7 years - hope that their civic rights would be restored, hope that they would be given equal rights and opportunities, and hope that they could feel safe again. That hope never came so they found refuge in Canada.

Formed in 2012, the Centre for Leadership and Innovation (CFLI) is a registered non-profit operated entirely by a team of dedicated volunteers. While founders Kumar Ratnam, Ilangko Sivan, and Umesh Vallipuram initially began the organization to develop leadership by helping strengthen public speaking skills among youth, their vision and mandate has now expanded to greater lengths with the inclusion of new programs.

Tamil is one of the longest surviving classical languages in the world. The global movement of Tamil communities has brought the language all over the world. While this is an opportunity to enrich global cultures with our beautiful language, we have also seen the use of the Tamil language on the decline. It is for this reason that Anto Gnanapragasam created Agaram Tamil Teacher, a mobile application designed to teach Tamil in a fun and interactive way.