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“I believe that our main purpose in life is to leave the world a better place than we found it”

Wendy Shew, from California, US, is the driving force behind Building Education, a non-profit striving to transform lives through education. Inspired by her volunteer work in India and moved by the devastation of the earthquakes of 2015, Shew founded Building Education in 2017 with a vision of providing safe schools and equal opportunities for children worldwide. Beyond her philanthropic endeavors, she is an ultramarathon runner, trekker, and a fashion enthusiast, embodying resilience and compassion in all her pursuits. Nesum Limbu from ApEx talked to Shew about her organization and her projects in Nepal. Excerpts: 

What is the inspiration behind Building Education?

At the age of eight, seeing my mother’s battle with lung cancer instilled in me a profound understanding of mortality and the significance of living a purposeful life. This awareness later drove me to embark on a six-year journey across Asia, Europe, and Africa, where I volunteered extensively. Seeing some of the world’s most impoverished communities, I recognized the transformative power of education. Volunteering at an orphanage in India, I witnessed firsthand how access to education offered marginalized girls a pathway to a better future. Education, I realized, not only empowers individuals but also breaks the cycle of generational poverty, impacting lives for generations to come. This realization propelled me to advocate for education as a fundamental tool for societal transformation, echoing the profound impact it had on my own life.

What are the core values and mission of Building Education?

Building Education’s Mission serves to build safe schools in developing countries to end the cycle of extreme poverty. In collaboration with the local government, schools, and partner organizations, we aim to transform rural villages into prosperous, dignified communities. We believe in a world where every child has an equal opportunity to education.

The first initiative of Building Education took place in a Nepali slum where poverty and death rates were extremely high. Establishing a school was our first move in offering young people a safe haven. Understanding the importance of education, we promoted electricity as a means of increasing access to information and technology. Three years of immersive engagement taught us profound lessons in combating generational poverty, from funding missteps to witnessing transformative change.

Over four years, the metamorphosis of this community was palpable, as children once marginalized in slums became articulate, aspirational individuals. This illuminated the reciprocal nature of education, where growth transcends academics, nurturing dreams, and empowering communities. Upon completing our inaugural village project, the realization dawned that our model could be replicated, prompting us to envision broader impact across Nepal.

How were you drawn to Nepal as a focus area for your work in education?

In October 2014, I was in India and I heard Nepal being described as ‘heaven’ by the locals, prompting a spontaneous decision to make my journey there as a solo traveler. Knowing nothing about Nepal and with no prior research, I was taken aback upon arrival by the striking resemblance of the people to myself, feeling a familial connection with a taxi driver. One memorable instance was when, in a rush to visit Pashupatinath, I found myself without the address of my hostel, leading to a two-hour taxi ride with a non-English-speaking driver until I stumbled upon my destination, profoundly grateful for the assistance of the Nepali people in my time of need.

Despite warnings from others, I felt compelled to reciprocate the kindness I had received when disaster struck Nepal in April 2015, prompting me to seek out volunteering opportunities online. Discovering All Hands & Hearts, an organization directly involved in disaster relief, I promptly signed up and booked a flight to Nepal. Upon arrival, I immersed myself in various volunteer tasks, including clearing rubble, constructing temporary schools and homes, and aiding in displacement camps. All this would later go on to become groundwork for starting Building Education.

Can you tell us about the challenges faced by children in accessing education in rural communities? How does Building Education aim to address them?

Building Education’s projects are focused on uplifting the most disadvantaged and marginalized communities in Nepal, including the Chepang community, an indigenous group with a history of nomadic living in the Himalayan region. In these communities, only one percent of females are literate, with boys starting farming at the age of seven and girls being married off at 14, often facing early motherhood and severe food scarcity.

Last year, our journey to Karnali Province took us to Jumla and Mugu District, where we faced arduous travel, including a 60+ hour drive followed by a five-hour hike to reach Karnali Secondary School. Along the way, encounters with locals struggling with basic math underscored the consequences of educational deprivation. When we arrived at the school, we saw dilapidated structures with a lack of basic amenities like drinking water.

Building Education’s ‘School of Life’ model tackles multidimensional poverty by rebuilding safe facilities, installing water systems, providing energy, and introducing hydroponics for food. By collaborating with local municipalities, we want to ensure access to quality education and infrastructure development, empowering communities in Nepal’s Far West to overcome the challenges they face.

What has Building Education done to improve the quality of education in rural schools and communities?

When building our fourth school, Boomerang Primary School in Dhading, we expanded a five-classroom school into eight classrooms. That way, the school could facilitate one more grade. We provided brand new desks as the students were sitting on the floor to study. We built a playground. We installed a water harvesting tank so that children could have access to drinking water. We partnered with the local municipality to provide additional, better-quality teachers to support the school. They built the road so we could transport materials, and they installed grid electricity in the area.

Remarkably, our support enabled the first university graduate in her family—a girl in pharmaceutical studies—ushering in transformative change for future generations.

What are your future plans and aspirations for Building Education? What are your hopes for the future of the education system in Nepal?

We are currently searching for two different kinds of partner organizations: one that can support teacher training and school management, and the other that can offer curriculum or school learning sessions that let students learn actively and experientially, particularly in order to become engineers and acquire the necessary technical and technological skills.

We hope to make a greater impact in Nepal and reach our goals of 1,000 schools and 1,000,000 lives no matter how long it takes. We are headed to Jajarkot since there was an earthquake there recently. We want to find out what kind of support is needed and what sort of additional infrastructural support is needed in schools that are already there.

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Monday secured a vote of confidence at the House of Representatives yet again—his fourth trust vote since assuming office on 26 Dec 2022—even as the main opposition party, the Nepali Congress, continued with its strident protest demanding a parliamentary investigation into Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane’s alleged involvement in a cooperative fraud. 

The development comes days after a vertical split in the Janata Samajbadi Party-Nepal (JSPN), the resignation of JSPN Chair Upendra Yadav as Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister Upendra Yadav and Minister of State for Health Deepak Karki, and emergence of the breakaway faction, JSP, as a partner in the Dahal-led coalition government.          

At the day’s second meeting of the lower chamber of the Federal Parliament, Prime Minister Dahal sought a trust vote after getting a go-ahead from Speaker Devraj Ghimire, amidst a loud protest from Congress lawmakers, who shouted slogans against the procedures to present PM Dahal’s proposal to obtain the trust vote and picketed the well. Expressing solidarity with the Congress, lawmakers from other opposition parties stood from their seats during the proceedings.

Despite the opposition bench’s show of strength, the Dahal-led coalition government passed yet another crucial floor test as Speaker Ghimire announced that 157 out of 158 lawmakers in the 275-member HoR, who took part in the vote of confidence procedures, voted for the government while one chose to remain neutral.

The major opposition has been obstructing parliamentary proceedings, demanding the establishment of a parliamentary committee to impartially investigate the alleged involvement of Deputy Prime Minister Lamichhane in the misappropriation of cooperative funds.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Dahal, responding to questions related to the trust vote later in the day, accused the main opposition party of demonstrating unparliamentary behavior by not creating a conducive environment for a Prime Minister to seek a vote of confidence in line with the Constitution. 

“You supported me as the prime minister in the past, but today you tried to obstruct the House and prevent me from seeking a vote of confidence. This incident will go down as a blot in parliamentary history,” PM Dahal said, referring to the Congress. 

He thanked the CPN-UML and other parties and parliamentarians, who voted for his government. 

UML Vice-chair Bishnu Prasad Poudel, who  seconded PM Dahal’s proposal seeking a trust vote for his government in accordance with Article 100 (2) of the Constitution of Nepal, requested the Congress to uphold democratic norms and values by ending the deadlock in the parliament. 

“I request all the parties to support the government to speed up national development by contributing to political stability. I call upon the Nepali Congress in particular to reconsider its role and follow democratic practices in the parliament,” Poudel said. 

Dahal’s tryst with trust vote

1. 10 Jan 2023: PM Dahal won 268 votes in the floor test, while 2 votes went against him

2. 20 March 2023: After the CPN-UML withdrew support to his government, Dahal underwent yet another floor test, securing 172 in favor of and 89 votes against his government

3. 4 March 2024: After the Congress withdrew support, PM Dahal again joined hands with the CPN-UML and other parties on March 4, securing 157 votes in favor of his government

4. 20 May 2024: After a vertical split in Janata Samajbadi Party-Nepal and the formation of JSP under Ashok Rai, PM Dahal underwent the floor test yet again, securing 157 votes in favor of his government

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal secured a vote of confidence for the fourth tiime in the House of Representatives on Monday.

Dahal received 157 votes while none of the lawmakers voted against him. One lawmaker remained neutral.

The prime minister required at least 138 votes to win the trust motion.

Prime Minister Dahal sought a vote of confidence after Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal led by Upendra Yadav withdrew support to the government.

Earlier, Speaker Devraj Ghimire postponed the meeting for 15 minutes following obstructions from the main opposition Nepali Congress.

In the following meeting, Prime Minister Dahal tabled a proposal to seek a vote of confidence.

The opposition parties including the Nepali Congress obstructed the Parliament proceedings demanding formation of a parliamentary committee to investigate Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane’s alleged involvement in embezzling the funds of cooperatives.

Prime Minister Dahal sought a vote of confidence for the first time on January 10, 2023, second time on March 20, 2023 and third time on March 13, 2024.

The next meeting of the House of Representatives has been scheduled for 11 am on Tuesday.

Samriddhi School is an institution dedicated to nurturing creativity and fostering a passion for knowledge and discovery in its students. Here, learners are valued for their curiosity and encouraged to explore, rather than being treated as rote memorization machines. The school emphasizes a comprehensive academic orientation, focusing on Science, Technology, English/Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM). Additionally, it prioritizes other key areas essential for overall academic achievement and sustained excellence. ApEx interviewed Chandra Mani Maharjan, +2 academic director of the school, to gain insights into the school and its educational philosophy.

What are the considerations that students have to take for further studies after Secondary Education Examination (SEE)?

There are numerous fields that students can choose after SEE like Science, Management, Humanities, Law, A-Level, Medical Courses, CTEVT etc. Every field has its own benefits and importance. After SEE, students should choose the field wisely considering their interest, future plans, aims and goals rather than following their friends. 

The next step is finding the best school that will help students achieve their goal. Before choosing and getting admission in school, students should know about the school. The major features that students should consider in a school are: a) teaching faculties; b) academic achievements; c) infrastructure; d) facilities provided to students; e) co-curricular and extra-curricular activities; and f) location and school environment.

How would you describe your school as a center for quality education?

Samriddhi School (+2), it is not merely a place of learning; it is a melting pot of cultures, ideas, and aspirations. It is a place where differences are not just tolerated but celebrated, where individuals are encouraged to embrace their uniqueness and learn from one another. It’s a school for the 21st century where learning is fun and life-long. Samriddhi School is committed to inspiring and motivating students to achieve the highest standards of intellectual development as well as personal growth, through a stimulating and comprehensive educational program. In this institution, we believe in upholding high standards with an absolute commitment to strive to understand and improve the educational process, using team strategies, while wholly centering on a student’s achievement.

We envision Samriddhi School as a dynamic and inspiring educational institution that sets an example for the learning community. We are committed to providing an outstanding learning environment to our students, to enable them to excel and thrive in a complex, constantly changing world, getting more interconnected by the day.

The mission of Samriddhi School is to produce lifelong learners with a value system that turns them into good human beings. Honesty, integrity, and sincerity are values that form the strong foundation on which we build an educational process, culminating in academic and personal success of our students.

Why should students choose Samriddhi School?

Samriddhi School is established by the qualified and experienced group of academicians at Kathmandu-16, Balaju with well-furnished digital classroom, spacious cafeteria, modernized library, sophisticated computer lab, event hall and ample playground.

Besides providing the quality education best on the NEB curriculum, it focuses on holistic development of the student through various events and activities. Here at Samriddhi, students get the opportunity to learn from the qualified, trained and well experienced teaching faculties. The innovative teaching methodology adopted by the teaching faculties with audio-visual, presentation and demonstration approach, will help students to understand the subjects matters easily and this is one of the major reasons for acquiring best academic achievement every year. 

In this current dynamic and changing era, besides the standard formal education, if students are not unable to prepare and equipped themselves with the necessary skills, they won’t be able to compete in the global market. Taking this into consideration, Samriddhi School has been following best educational practices that includes a rich curriculum and other necessary skills. We provide different skills as per the capability and interest of the students. Through the various co-curricular activities, we have been providing our students, different skills like communication skills, presentation skills and leadership skills. Competitions like business startup challenge, Shark Tank will help the students develop the knowledge of entrepreneurship among the students.

Besides that, we have also been providing additional IT courses like IT essential through Samriddhi Cisco Academy and coding classes.

Throughout the year, students of the internal management team organize other different club-based activities through various clubs like Sports club, Social club, Cultural club, Art club, IT club, Entrepreneurs’ club, Photography club, Literature club, Music club, Dance club etc. These events help our students to show and sharpen their potential in various fields and eventually make them competitive in the global arena.   

How can the education sector contribute to solving the issue of brain drain?

The emigration of highly skilled and educated individuals from one country to another, has been a growing concern for our nation. The major factors for this issue are limited opportunities, a discriminated education system, no accessible and affordable education, a desire for quality education, specialized fields of study, research opportunities, social and economic factors, education priorities and enhanced career prospects.

We can begin to reverse the brain drain by taking effective measures. We can, for example, create an environment in the education sector that nurtures talent, shows pathways or provides rewarding career prospects to retain skilled professionals from going abroad. This will also help in driving sustainable growth of our country.