Who is Rouble Nagi? Indian educator who won $1 million Global Teacher Prize for transforming learning spaces

Indian educator and social activist Rouble Nagi has won the $1 million GEMS Education Global Teacher Prize 2026, one of the world’s most prestigious honours in education.

The award, instituted by the Varkey Foundation in collaboration with UNESCO, was presented at the World Governments Summit in Dubai, an annual gathering of global leaders and policymakers.

Over the past two decades, Nagi has built a grassroots education movement that reaches far beyond conventional classrooms. Through her Rouble Nagi Art Foundation (RNAF), she has established more than 800 learning centres across over 100 underserved communities in India.

These centres cater to children who have never been enrolled in school, while also supporting students already within the formal system through remedial learning and creative enrichment. The focus, Nagi has said, is on meeting children where they are, academically, socially and economically.

Turning walls into classrooms

At the heart of her work is the concept of “Living Walls of Learning,” large, interactive murals painted on abandoned or neglected walls in neighbourhoods. These murals teach basic literacy and numeracy, as well as science, hygiene, history, environmental awareness, and social responsibility.

Rather than serving as decoration, the murals convert entire neighbourhoods into open-air classrooms, drawing in children, parents and community members and making learning a shared, visible activity.

Education built for real-world constraints

Nagi’s education model is designed around the realities faced by marginalised communities, including poverty, child labour, early marriage, irregular attendance and the absence of basic infrastructure.

Her programmes rely on flexible schedules, hands-on learning using recycled materials, and practical skill-building to keep education relevant and accessible. According to the foundation, these interventions have helped reduce dropout rates by more than 50 per cent and significantly improved long-term school retention.

She has also trained over 600 volunteer and paid educators, creating a scalable model that adapts to local needs while maintaining a consistent learning framework.

Nagi has said she plans to use the prize money to set up a training institute that will offer free vocational and digital literacy programmes, extending her work beyond foundational education to employability and life skills.

Artist, educator, urban renewal pioneer

Alongside her education work, Nagi is also an internationally recognised artist and urban renewal advocate. She has created over 850 murals and sculptures, participated in more than 200 exhibitions worldwide, and was the first artist invited to exhibit at the Rashtrapati Bhavan Museum, with her work now part of the President of India’s permanent collection.

Her previous honours include the Jijamata Award, GR8 Award, MAP Noble Artist Award, and the HELLO! Urja Award.

With this win, Rouble Nagi becomes the tenth recipient of the Global Teacher Prize since its launch in 2015, joining a global list of educators recognised for reshaping education far beyond the classroom.