Nepal, June 21 -- Only a teacher knows the thrill of meeting students after a long time when they have made progress beyond one's imagination in their respective fields. It's exhilarating to see them succeeding and establishing their names professionally, both at home and, sometimes, abroad. However, when it comes to female students the story is usually dishearteningly different.

While attending a workshop a few weeks ago, I had the chance to catch up with one of these students. It was about 10 years ago that one of my grad students joined a reputed organisation as a junior expert, after completing her Masters' in Environmental Science. While working there, she had the opportunity to go abroad to earn another degree--an exciting venture ...