While millions around the globe had adapted to continue their education virtually, dZi’s rural partner communities were dealing with a much more complicated reality. A lack of access to computers, the internet, and even a reliable cell phone signal made virtual classes unrealistic for students.
But as local science teacher Binod Dahal witnessed, students were beginning to lose their academic progress and the educational disparities between urban and rural Nepal were growing even larger. Binod knew he needed to do something to support his students, and quickly.
That’s when dZi introduced the Ideas Fund.
Created by dZi’s Quality Education program, the Ideas Fund invites teachers in our partner communities to submit grant proposals for creative ways to engage students who have limited access to technology.
Binod submitted his proposal, and soon after, heard that dZi had selected his proposal for funding! He had a vision of small groups of students safely gathering in their neighborhoods to study, share knowledge, and create the sense of community that felt so absent during the lockdown. Binod trained eight older secondary school students to conduct classes for younger primary school students.
In a time when traditional teaching methods couldn’t serve students’ needs, dZi knew that local teachers were best suited to find a solution. With dZi’s support and Binod Dahal’s creativity, we created a student-led teaching program that provided educational assistance and a sense of community to 120 students during Nepal’s Covid-19 lockdown.
Making a long-term commitment to Khartamchha’s prosperity
“We are one of the most remote villages in the region,” says 41-year-old Gururaj Rai of Khartamchha.
Khartamchha is a new community that dZi will partner with this year. Nestled in the foothills of Eastern Nepal, Khartamchha grapples with a variety of challenges, from unsafe drinking water to the need for earthquake-safe schools.
Central to the dZi Foundation is our holistic approach—we are invited into every community we work in. From our first day, we team up with residents to ensure we provide what they need to grow their skills, capacity, and resilience.
Gururaj looks forward to the support of dZi’s agriculture program. “Our farmers have been using traditional methods of farming,” he says. “We do not have much innovation in the kind of crops we grow.”
He says he welcomes a partnership with dZi so his community can build a brighter future by learning how to grow cash crops such as ginger, garlic, turmeric, and kiwis. And he envisions dZi’s impact throughout the community—from bolstering food security, to building new taps for safe drinking water, to constructing new earthquake-safe schools to improve education.
In the recent election, Gururaj was elected the Vice President of the Kepilasgadhi Rural Municipality, the municipality where Khartamchha lies. As an elected official in the local government, Gururaj looks forward to building a strong partnership with dZi for Khartamchha’s prosperity.
Sometimes a bridge is more than a bridge.
Deep in the mountains in the district of Bhojpur is the village of Chyaksila. For years, the only way for children to get to school was to cross a fast, rushing Ghattekhola river. One of the grandfathers in the village would build a wooden bridge so the kids could cross safely, but it was washed away every year during the monsoon rains.
The grandfather would rebuild the bridge, again and again, only to have it torn apart by the river’s dangerous currents. The thing this grandfather wanted most was to send his grandchildren and their friends to school—was an ongoing source of fear.
That’s where dZi came in. We listened to the community’s needs and worked together to build a permanent, safe bridge across the river, connecting an isolated neighborhood to the village’s school. All the people in Chyaksila are so grateful for this new bridge. That grandfather, and all the village’s 60 or so families, can now endure the monsoon a little easier, knowing their children are safer and have access to education.
