volunteer diary
Naomi Coleman

will be publish soon.

 


U.K.
Naomi Coleman (2009)

My Environment Volunteering in Nepal

Dear reader,
It has been one week since I came back from a 5 months stay as an environmental volunteer/educator  in Nepal. In this text, I try to collect some of my impressions.
Why did I undertake this ‘adventure’? Two reasons: to help and to be helped. First: to help, to develop. Whoever wants to help out Nepal’s people is presented with a few choices. He/She can either help out in a school, an orphanage, a hospital, etc… or try to set up/support a community project. The main advantage of the first choice is that there is a structure present on the ground which is essentially run by locals: this adds sustainability. Furthermore, as a ‘sar’ (teacher) it is easier to understand, reach and be respected by the community, which can be very handy if one also wants to implement a community project. The second option is more risky. Most community development organizations seem to be set up by a handful of idealists who are not constantly present in the project areas. This makes it hard for them to identify community’s needs, provide resources, follow up activities, etc… Other, more structured organizations tend to ask a lot of money for their services. International volunteers from their side are often shy, are confronted by language and cultural barriers, merely stay for a short time, etc… It is therefore very important to start informed (communicate!) and to foster realistic expectations. A project has to increase people’s life standard in a culturally acceptable way. From a teacher’s perspective, community projects provide great lesson material. In general, there is a very positive interaction between educating and addressing the community.
Another issue is where to go. Although differences in life standard can be high and cruel in urban areas, Nepal’s most generalized poverty is found in rural settings. To make the biggest contribution possible and to undergo the richest personal experience, these areas therefore seem to be a first choice. However, one has to take in account the tensions, impracticalities and insecurity in these regions created by what many Nepali’s refer to as ‘the Maoist problem’. In this context,
   
 it should be noted that Maoists don’t target foreigners but politicians, security forces and transportation/communication. They are not a part of ‘global terrorism’. Also, the Kathmandu valley can be considered ‘non-Maoist infected’. Ironically, a bigger developmental effort inside this valley is also fueling the conflict. A similar discussion could be made about higher and lower casts. I myself felt very much at home in a suburb, Chetri community.
What did I teach? Well, I tried to draw as much as possible from my own background. Some subjects were: ecology, nature, deforestation, pollution and population. However, the general goal was to motivate the students to be critical, outspoken and responsible… in other words: to empower them to make the decisions that will shape their lives. I would advise against only using the ‘Environment and Population’ textbooks, because of their repetitive and superficial nature, unless final examinations are coming up (there are a lot of exams in Nepal). I also tried to persuade the students of the advantages of vermicomposting (using earthworms to make compost). This is an alternative for chemical fertilizers, is faster and creates more readily available compost than regular composting and is good for soil fertility. They were given worms and allowed to experiment with little compost baskets. Finally, I was also the school’s football coach. Because my principles forbid me to give any physical punishments and because I started of rather naïve, it was sometimes hard for me to maintain discipline amongst the students. Activities are a good way of keeping them interested, though they can take a long time to prepare. A neat version of my notebook was left in Dolphin E. S. School, Godavari.
From a personal perspective, I was hoping that trying to address the needs of people with a different culture would make me more self confident and patient, would add to my professional experience and give direction to my life. But although these characteristics did better somewhat, I learned to see that accepting yourself for who you are and applying a positive attitude are the most important prerequisites for a rich and constructive life. Also, more than being confronted by Nepal’s culture (eg the courageous way in which woman approach household and marriage), I was welcomed by it’s people and real friendships were allowed to grow. Not surprisingly, it are these personal relationships -starting from the host family- that allow one to make a real contribution.
Thank u and keep busy!


Tom Roelandt
Belgium
08/05/2005
 


Belgium
Tom Roelandt

Nepal stay

To anyone looking for a place to volunteer abroad Nepal should be your pick and VEEP your organization of choice. This was my first experience volunteering and also my first travel outside of the US and it could not have been better, well less clouds but. The people of Nepal can only be described in one way, overly kind.

My host family were so welcoming at one point I had to tell my Nepali language teacher to have them stop feeding me. It wasn't just my family either. I would be walking my host dog through the village and people that had kids at the school or even not would invite me in to their house to speak with them and have tea. Those first few weeks were rough, 15+ cups of tea a day. Oh man and the food. Some people don't like it. But I will set the record straight. Daal Bhat, staple meal, is the best food ever! If you can get over eating rice everyday the amount of different tastes and styles are endless.

At the school I taught at, and all school placed in, the children begin to learn English and Nepali from preschool. So by Class 1 they have some god conversational skills. Most of my time in the village was spent at the school in one form or another. Anything from playing some football or cricket to after school computer classes. The
principle let me teach an open curriculum on any subjects as long as it was English and included the students.

I could talk on and on about Nepal for weeks I am sure and I only spent 2 ½ months there. Nepal is a must visit for people looking to make a difference and relax while doing it.




USA (2009)
William

Nepal Volunteering Experiences

I recall the image of a young male leaping from a crowd to vocalize his resentment at the Kings autocracy. The time was Jana Andolan ii, and the photo came courtesy of the Sydney Herald. I cannot deny that the image lingered in my mind, and that my sense of time was provident, arriving in Kathmandu the day after the war was declared over. Kathmandu was ablaze with horns, like the conscious and excited beat of a city in a fever. To each side i had to dodge a vehicle, and weave through tremendous crowds, religious bells tolled and in all, i was sure the city would split. 'Welcome to Nepal,' they called. 'Welcome to the most optimistic of times'. Kathmandu was certainly public.

I did not linger long in this increasingly modern city. Soon, after meeting with the charming and mild mannered VEEP representative, Surendra, I moved to Godowari to take my place as a volunteer. What contrast! What truth in life! The passing horns were replaced by the gently pat of fleet footed children on a dusty roadway, followed by a puttering bus, both divided by the tin-like ring of a singular bicycle meandering past. Although startled by the change in setting, some days i am reminded of the cities proximity. Whilst not wholly the cities fault, mist and smog creep into the valley and stand by mountain side as though delinquent youths by an alley wall. The disappointment, however, of this sight is always affirmed by the fertile paddy fields that stretch out beyond my placement school, attesting that while the smog will be blown away, the luscious crops will come.

Once I was initiated with the school staff and children it soon became apparent that the children would not shy away from asking about my origins. Like any volunteer, as a stranger, i arouse curiosity. They asked many questions, in delightful English, that soon enough i felt less like a foreigner and more like a friend. Of course this is not necessarily advantageous as a teacher, and a volunteer: kids the world over are prone to fits of attention deficiency. But ultimately, the children here are bright and instructed by a carefully thought out routine which ensures that they observe a general standard of behaviour. Not a single child cherishes the prospect of time with the principal. So very normal!

The questions asked of the volunteer are difficult. How, in a short time, is one to embrace the childrens abilities and further their english ability. I have been based at the school but a short time, but so far the most distinct point impressed upon me is to allow their imaginations to work; to fire, when necessary, those imaginations that remain dormant. It all sounds incredibly idealistic, but in the short term i have not been able to truly know how the students work. Repetition; brainstorming; mental pictures; and dialogue are all necessary, aswell as a flexible manner. They ask frequently to play, the challenge is to allow them to do so creatively. That appears the key.

Nepal has been instructive, and boisterous from the start. A pleasure in a country of gentle, peace loving people.

Jason


Australia
Jason Amit Raj

Village life in Nepal

Typical life in Village
Despite my joy at a few city luxuries, I’m having a fantastic time in the village. It’s a pity the time is so short. On one hand, I’m dying to see my family and friends again but on the other, I’m only just settling in. I have a nice sleepy routine going on. I wake every morning around six thirty (yes, really!) and potter around doing a whole load of nothing, reading my book and sipping chiya (nepaali chai), until breakfast (always daal bhaat) at about 9ish. Then, school at 10ish (all of 2 classes, oh the weight of this workload!) and then kaajaa (lunch – literally translated it kinda means ‘eat n go’). I’ve slowly convinced my lovely family that I am not, in fact, a calf to be fatted and if they don’t stop feeding me I will literally be rolling home! So now I have just some delicious fruit for lunch (bananas and mangos) which I buy myself in the nearby market. Fruit is expensive enough but at all of 90c for a kilo of mangos and a dozen bananas it’s pittance for us Europeans.

After lunch every day, I have taken to going for walkies around the valley. The valley is very beautiful, the climate is ideal and every walk is a new and varied experience. The other day I met a few kids picking mushrooms who were very nice and chatty and absolutely mesmerized by my hair and skin. I was forcibly pulled to the ground so they could touch my hair and root through my bag – not in any dodgy way as the kids in the village are very innocent, but just out of sheer fascination. I finally escaped with nothing lost but a lovely French plait gained! Yesterday, I headed the same direction again and was met by the same kids and their friends who ran at me at full speed, knocking me to the ground in their sheer excitement. I had my camera this time which they had a ball with. I have some very funny pics courtesy of my new little friends so I can’t wait to see if they turned out.

All the kids in the village are like that – super friendly and all excited just to say hello. Every day I pass by a rooftop where three little kids sit playing and every day they jump up and down with excitement screaming ‘Namaste, Namaste!’ If I happen to pass the hundreds of kids emptying out of the school, it’s a deafening stream of greetings and they’re somewhat chuffed to say that they know me from school. You’d think they’d be bored of me by now! And there are actually very many volunteers here from all over the world so we foreigners are not that exotic. Still, it’s a sleepy, quiet kinda life so I guess little things are quite exciting there.

After keeping myself occupied for the afternoon, I join the neighborhood kids on our front porch for homework club. The kids were too shy to ask for my help at first but now they are all very happy to work with me. I bring out my drawing paper and colours after the homework is done and we all have great fun drawing pictures until the sun goes down (quite early at about 7ish). Then a little more pottering around until dinner (also daal-bhaat) and finally I go to bed at an amazingly early 8:30ish. Despite the fact that both breakfast and dinner are always daal-bhaat-tarkari (lentils-rice-veggies) I’m still not bored of it. The types of lentils and veggies are so varied and there are so many spices and cooking methods that it’s always a little interesting. I get great cookery lessons (along with veggie farming lessons), the best being two nights ago when aamaa cooked a Nepali-style risotto thingy the traditional way – on an open fire in the corner of the room. I tried to get a few pieces so I hope they turn out ok.

There is so much more to tell but it won’t be long now till I’m home. I’m really going to miss my home here and my lovely Nepali family. for more information you can contact with her.

Jane Courtney
Ireland
E- mail: jane.courtney@dit.ie , janec@o2.ie


Ireland
Jane Courtney

Pages: ( 3 ) « Previous   1   [2]   3   Next »