We started out on August 15, a Friday night. We were a group of fifteen new volunteers from Clemson University attending the AID conference at Duke. A majority of us were just about a week old in Clemson and had had a small introduction about AID from their core volunteers. The five hour drive to Duke was fun and we got there a little after midnight. The next morning was a serious wake-up call in every sense of the word. Being briefed with the hard facts about our country’s problems compelled us to sit up and take notice. While most of us have an innate desire to do something for India, this drive takes the backseat in the grind of our day-to-day life. Meeting AID Jeevansaathis Ravi and Aravinda was an inspiring moment. Their demonstration of the hay box - a low cost, energy efficient tool - was truly remarkable.  Unlike a stereotypical conference with a gamut of seminars and soporific talks, this meeting was pleasantly informal. It was a great opportunity to foster collaborations between volunteers from the three AID chapters in attendance- Duke, Clemson and College Park. This visit to Duke has made many of us AIDers for life!

-Niharika Avasarala is a student and AID volunteer at Clemson