The submission period for the 2026 IPA Youth Essay Competition has ended. We appreciate everyone who took the time to participate and encourage all who are interested to visit us again next year.

We appreciate everyone who took the time to participate and encourage all who are interested to visit us again next year. The 2027 IPA Youth Essay Competition will be announced and open for submissions by mid-March or early April of next year.

What’s Next

Judges are now reviewing the student essays. After the initial review, finalists will be invited to discuss their essay with one of our representatives. Then the judges will meet for a final time to determine the winners, runners-up, and finalists in each category (middle school and high school). Results will be announced to the public in early to mid-September.

Here are just a few of the benefits to the top finishers:

  • Winners in the middle school and high school categories will present their award-winning ideas at a national gathering of business leaders, philanthropists, and nonprofit executives at the Indiaspora & IPA Philanthropy Summit in Dallas, Texas, on September 29. Domestic airfare and accommodation are provided for the winners.

  • The top 10 finalists in the high school category will be invited to participate in the World Food Prize Global Youth Institute in Iowa in October 2026.

  • Winners and Runners-up in the middle and high school categories will be able to award $1,000 (winners) and $500 (runners-up) to the charity of their choice.

  • Competition winners, runners-up, and finalists will have their papers published on the India Philanthropy Alliance website and featured on IPA’s Instagram, Facebook, X, and LinkedIn channels. Essays will be made available to thousands of readers and hundreds of leaders in the field of philanthropy.

  • All who participated can earn community credit for a well-researched essay.

Remember to check back next spring to learn more about the IPA 2027 Youth Essay Competition.

Past Winners', Runners-Up's, and Finalists’ essays can be viewed below.

Click here to view the essays of winners and finalists of the 2025 competition.

Click here to view the essays of winners and finalists of the 2024 competition.
Click here to view the essays of winners and finalists in the 2023 competition. Click here to view the essays of winners and finalists in the 2022 competition.
Click here to view the essays of winners and finalists in the 2021 competition.
Click here to view the essays of winners and finalists in the 2020 competition.

Our heartfelt thanks

The IPA is tremendously grateful to the competition’s sponsors: the Iowa-based Sehgal Foundation, which has been strengthening community-led development initiatives in rural India for the past 25 years; the Ujala Foundation, which supports education and health care in the U.S. and India; the Gupta Giving Fund; and Mamta Bhandari. We extend our thanks to Indiaspora for their partnership in providing the winners a terrific platform to share their ideas.