In the Algonquin community, where many educational resources are in excess, juniors Divyagni Shivashok and Kunal Jandu saw an opportunity to take the books that would otherwise go to waste and provide for less fortunate communities by co-founding the Global Pages project.
Local libraries often throw out excess or unused books; knowing this, Jandu and Shivashok’s organization is dedicated to collecting these books and partnering with outside organizations to supply them to underprivileged communities in other countries. As of October 2025, the organization has collected over 14,000 books to donate to needy communities.
“It’s honestly simpler than it sounds,” Shivashok said. “Basically, you get the books from [individual] donations, as well as libraries that were trying to get rid of the books but didn’t have a solid, impactful method. After we get the books, we sort them out and make sure we aren’t giving out rations to people. We communicate with the organizations about how much they need and how much they want, because sometimes [they] don’t take mass shipments. After that, [we] just go to the post office and ship them.”
The pair claims that the idea for the Global Pages Project had no real starting point; rather, they had both been looking for a way to make a difference for a long time.
“Since the beginning of sophomore year, we knew we wanted to [collaborate] on a project, but we didn’t really have an idea yet,” Jandu said. “Initially, I came to him with the idea, and now we’re both co-presidents.”
Since founding the organization in 2024, the pair has sent 2,000 books to a primary school in Malawi, 2,000 books to other parts of Africa, with another 1,500 on the way, and 1,000 books to an underprivileged area of Canada. Shivashok and Jandu have another 8,000 books in storage, and have set the goal to collect 8,000 more books by April.
Jandu and Shivashok feel that through doing this service for others, they have actually seen themselves and each other grow as people in the process.
“Through our non-profit I’ve really been able to see [Divy] blossom as a person and give back to his community; we both want to help our community as much as possible and we’re really driven to do so,” Jandu said.
Despite their success, the duo had their share of struggles even getting the non-profit registered. To get state approval for their organization, they had to obtain a Certificate of Good Standing after filling out intricate paperwork on plans and logistics for the Global Pages Project. On top of the registration process, other obstacles quickly appeared for the pair.
“It really just comes down to finances, that’s the hardest part,” Shivashok said.
Although many of the books are received from donors, the pair still has to find ways to finance the shipping of the books. Much of the shipment operation is fully covered by the organizations Global Pages Project collaborates with, though shipment to those organizations is up to Jandu and Shivashok. At times, much of the funding for the Global Pages Project has come out of their own wallets; however, they are humble about their philanthropy.
“I just think of it as me helping the community,” Shivashok said. “It’s not super grand or little, it’s just me trying to help.”
Looking to the future, the founders of the Global Pages Project don’t plan to stop anytime soon. Rather than acknowledging the accomplishments they’ve made, the pair stays focused on what they can continue to do. They encourage anyone who feels inclined to help to donate to their cause on the Global Pages Project website and help fund the next batch of books.
“I wouldn’t say [what we are doing] is enough,” Shivashok said. “There is no ‘enough’ when you’re helping people.”
