DUBAI – Indian educator and social activist Rouble Nagi has been named the winner of the prestigious Global Teacher Prize 2026. The announcement was made during the World Government Summit in Dubai, where she was awarded the USD 1 million prize in recognition of her transformative impact on education in India’s most underserved communities.
3. Transforming Slums into Classrooms
Rouble Nagi, through her Rouble Nagi Art Foundation, has spent years bridging the educational gap for children in rural areas and urban slums. Her most celebrated initiative, “Living Walls of Learning,” uses art as a tool for literacy. By painting vibrant educational murals on abandoned walls and shanties, she transformed entire neighborhoods into open-air classrooms.
To date, Nagi has established over 800 learning centers across 100 communities. Her innovative approach has not only brought children into the fold of formal education for the first time but has also successfully reduced school dropout rates by over 50 per cent.
