Written by: Aghna Agifta Taslim and Rania Keona Aji (@nia___noo)
Edited by: Snigdha Bashyal
Image: Students studying at the new library, called Learner's Room: A Path to Wisdom, in Shree Shiva Saraswati Secondary School located in Rishing, Tanahun, Nepal.
What started as a conversation between two APU students turned into an inspiring initiative aiming to foster a reading culture and improve the education system in Nepal. Simona Shrestha (4th year APS) and Rashi Maharjan (2021 APS graduate) launched “Pustakalaya APU” in an effort to help under-resourced schools in Nepal that are especially struggling due to the pandemic. We interviewed Simona to learn more about what they have been doing.
How did Pustakalaya APU start? How did the library come to be?
Simona, one of the founders, explained that they were inspired to start Pustakalaya APU to play a part in improving Nepal’s poor education infrastructure. Many Nepali public schools, especially those located in rural areas, do not have suitable resources to support quality education. So even though they were thousands of miles away, they were motivated to make an impact and started networking to find people in Nepal who shared their vision.
Image: Pustakalaya APU’s Rashi Maharjan (bottom right) and Leo Club of Kathmandu Kohinoor members.
Through the Leo Club of Kathmandu Kohinoor, the team got connected to a school in need of a library and had a means for local logistics and operations. Simona and Rashi made time to interview the faculty of Shree Shiva Saraswati Secondary School, located in rural Nepal, in order to work out their specific needs. The team also had a big role in securing funds. They were able to reach their goal of raising 500,000 Yen in less than two months through online fundraising. The money was used to build furniture and deliver the books, which led to the inauguration of the library, Learner's Room: A Path to Wisdom, on the 7th of February 2021.
They continued onto the second phase which included interacting directly with students and faculty. The team introduced a way to incorporate library classes as Simona emphasized that reading culture needs to be gradually cultivated and integrated into the curriculum. “Even though the impact is not something you’ll see right away; over the years we can build a reading culture and a better education system,” she said. As a follow up on their project, the school sends them monthly reports of books borrowed to ensure transparency and good maintenance.
After this first library, what are your future goals?
As for the initiative’s main goal, Simona specifies how they eventually want to help build better school facilities in all of Nepal’s districts, not limited to libraries. Through the accomplishment of their first library project, the team learned that each school may lack different facilities such as toilets, libraries or computers. For that reason, Pustakalaya APU hopes to provide the various resources for each school.
What challenges did you face?
As this is the first time they’re doing this type of initiative, Simona believes they keep learning and improving as they go. She mentions a mistake they made was assuming the students to have a higher proficiency in English, which resulted in them taking back English books to avoid them going to waste. One of the biggest challenges they faced was the limitations of virtual meetings in regards to developing personal connections. Additionally, maintaining contact with the school proved difficult, too. Despite the restrictions, the team solved these by investing time and effort in creating good communication systems.
What is the key to your preparation?
Simona and Rashi have done a remarkable effort in planning the project before the execution. Within only one and a half months, they were able to turn their plans into real life actions. In order to achieve this, Simona shares that using a pilot study to determine the existing problems of Nepal's education system had helped them foster the project.
“We are working on eradicating the image of ‘white saviour complex’ while planning on the project,” she shares, “We want them to know that we care about their education needs and are willing to lend some help.”
What is the final goal of this project?
Simona mentions that establishing Pustakalaya as a Non-Governmental Organization is one of their long term plans in order to give a greater impact on Nepal’s education system.
“We want to turn school as a bridge for students, by giving enough resources for their education. Every student should receive equal access to education resources, not only in private schools but in public schools as well.”
How can we help this project?
To help them pursue the goal, you can stay updated and contribute in raising the visibility of this existing project by sharing their Facebook and Instagram page @pustakalaya.apu
Picture credits: Pustakalaya APU Team.