The Young Leaders Programme in India is being featured by regional broadcaster Star TV in a series of three reports on its flagship evening news show, Star News Asia.

Streaming video of the reports is posted on the news channel’s website for a short period after airing.

The first report, which aired on 20 March, is now on the Star TV site here.

The video is introduced with this text:
A GIFT for young leaders
“In an innovative programme, young leaders are given a chance to learn by doing, through a project that aims to help humans and rare lions live together at an Indian game reserve.”

The reports were filmed, scripted and presented by Rob McBride, who covered the the story in Hong Kong, and Gir and Chitrod in India.

Mr McBride brought the news to people's TV screens from as far afield as the Falkland Islands during the conflict of the early 1980s and more recently in Asia on assignments for the United Nations, among others. He made Hong Kong his base in 1992, and joined the award-winning magazine programme, FocusAsia, with StarTV in 1999.

Mr McBride has worked for some of the most respected broadcasters, including Granada TV, Thames TV, ITN (Independent Television News) and TV-AM in the UK.

He also teaches, in 2002 conducting a series of mid-career training courses for television cameramen in India. In February 2005, he began teaching video-related courses at HKU.

The Gir Project is the second of GIFT's YLP projects underway. It took place at Chitrod Village and the Gir National Park and Sanctuary in January 2007. [Click here to read a Gir Project round-up on the website.]

The first field project was with Haitang Administrative Village in Yunnan province in far-western China, and took place in August 2006. [Click here to read a round-up of the Haitang project.]

One of the aims of the YLP is to work with villagers to empower them to help themselves from poverty and build a sustainable future. Business executives and local experts and NGOs bring their skills and knowledge to the table to design a business plan with each village. In this, the programme addresses critical leadership needs for future decision makers, influencing a fundamental shift in their understanding of business and its influences and impacts.