Nagi’s Rouble Nagi Art Foundation has built over 800 learning centers across India to provide structured learning for children who have never attended school, along with mural projects that brighten walls in slums.

Her work began 24 years ago with 30 children in a single workshop, and she now reaches more than one million children.

The Living Walls of Learning project turns neighborhood walls into interactive murals that teach history, science, and social responsibility while building community pride and participation.

She was honored with a prize by Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum for her impactful work.

The piece places Nagi’s achievements within the broader context of private education in Dubai and the international education market, while highlighting her future plans.

The Global Teacher Prize, awarded by the Varkey Foundation, recognized Nagi’s exemplary teaching and community impact, with commentary from Sunny Varkey of GEMS Education.

GEMS Education’s prominence underscores Dubai’s education ecosystem, which prizes private schooling and international connections.

Results from her programs include more than 50% reductions in dropout rates, along with improvements in literacy and numeracy and shifts in community attitudes toward education.

Nagi’s model addresses urban slum challenges—poverty, irregular attendance, poor infrastructure, child labor, and early marriage—through flexible schedules, vocational training, and learning using recycled materials.

Prize money will fund an institute offering free vocational training, expanding access to skills for underserved populations.

In accepting the prize, she emphasized education for marginalized communities and viewed the award as an honor for India and her mission.

Her Misaal Mumbai initiative is India’s first slum transformation project, painting over 155,000 houses and improving sanitation, waterproofing, and hygiene education.