Gap year opportunity in the Himalayas

From Trisha Rogers

Trisha has taught in the UK, Nigeria, Pakistan and South Korea. She was Vice Chair of the British Humanist Association (now Humanists UK) for several years and she is currently Chair of the United Nations Association, London and South East Region (UNA LASER). Among previous roles, she has been Chief Executive of the Council for Education in World Citizenship, the Pestalozzi International Village Trust, and the Jubilee Debt Campaign, and a trustee of Chatham House (Royal Institute of International Affairs).

Introduction

Tricia recently visited Nepal to stay with Uttama and Apsara Niraula and their daughter Aanya. Uttama and Apsara are founder members of the Society for Humanism in Nepal and Apsara is Director of Shanti Sewa Griha, a wonderful German-Nepali charity working with a variety of disabled and disadvantaged people, mainly in Kathmandu. It is not explicitly humanist (and most people there, as in most of Nepal, are Hindu), but it has a strong humanist ethos. They invited Tricia because they’re hoping to recruit some native-English-speaking gap year volunteers and asked her to help. So far, the British volunteers who've gone to Shanti have absolutely loved it, so Tricia would love to recruit more.

Shanti Sewa Griha charity

Nepal is sandwiched between India and China on “the roof of the world”. It has a rich cultural heritage, friendly people and breathtaking scenery, including the world’s highest mountains, their foothills and tiger jungles. However, it is one of the world’s poorest countries, where life is very difficult if you have been disabled (such as by leprosy or polio) or if you are born into the lowest of the Hindu castes (known as “Dalits”).

The goal of Shanti Sewa Griha (Peace, Service, Home) is to help people help themselves. Its centre at Tilganga in Kathmandu provides a clinic, pharmacy, emergency room, dentist, physiotherapist and hospice care for anyone who needs it. It is the home of about 50 people with a range of disabilities. Where they can, they provide help to Shanti – such as by transforming its walls with colourful Maitili murals, creating beautiful jewelry (from old bottles and glasses), growing vegetables, and making clothes and furniture for the community. It has many environmental projects, including recycling paper and cardboard to make fuel briquettes, and making durable bags from the inner tubes of old tyres.    

As well as feeding all its own residents, Shanti feeds several hundred people in the nearby slums each day. It runs health camps in poor communities around Nepal. It also runs a school at its centre for about 75 orphans (who live at Shanti) and about 200 local, poor children.

Everyone at Shanti wants to practise their English, so they would love to have some native English-speaking gap year volunteers, helping in the school and other Shanti activities, each staying between three and ten months. (They would pay their own travel costs – including insurance and visa – as well as £280 each month for accommodation and food at Shanti.) Shanti already has young volunteers from other parts of Europe, who live in a volunteers’ house in Tilgang and also take the opportunity to sightsee around Nepal.

Next step

If you might be interested in joining them and are a native English speaker, please email trisha_rogers@yahoo.com specifying your date of birth, particular interests, and reasons for considering volunteering at Shanti. You will then be sent an application form and further details.