City based social activist Harish Sadani has been selected as grand winner at a global online competition organised by Ashoka Changemakers and Campus of Excellence.

Sadani's entry titled "Yuva Maitri" (young friend) was selected, among 155 entries received globally, by the Changemakers' international online community and a team of three judges at a competition on the theme of Preventing Violence Against Women.

A communication sent to Harish by Ashoka Changemakers, US quotes,"Our entire team is excited to highlight you as a leader in the field of preventing violence against women."

As a winner, Harish would be receiving a prize of USD 5000 and an invitation to participate in Campus of Excellence event to be held in October 2010 at Spain.

The award winning entry, judged as most innovative solution to raise awareness about gender-based violence and take action to prevent it, is an initiative implemented through Men Against Violence and Abuse (MAVA), Mumbai engaging and mentoring young men on a wider range of gender matters and redefining Masculinity, Sadani told PTI.

As a part of the Yuva Maitri initiative, Sadani has been passionately working since August 2006 with a sizable number of male youths (in age-group 18 to 20 years) in Pune and Mumbai. .