Giving for meaning

by ABHA ELI PHOBOO

FROM ISSUE # 154 (October 2008) | IN THIS ISSUE
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It was the winter of 2006 when Abishkar Shrestha and Suyog Shrestha boarded the bus to Boston. They had graduated from Grinnell College that May and were visiting Sanchit Chokhani, who had graduated a year earlier. The visit marked the beginning of their idea for giving, which they later named Youth for Nepal (YFN).

The reunion of the three friends was underlined by a marked realisation of the emptiness the post-college life can bring. In spite of their well-paying jobs, they felt that the meaning of life had somehow eluded them.

"Each of us parted with the thought that we had to find something that would add a semblance of meaning and direction to our lives," says Abishkar, 25, Associate Analyst at Moody's Investors Services, New York.

A few weeks after the visit, Suyog sent Sanchit an email talking about the dire condition of schools in his village, Sindhuli, and wanting to do something about it. "I replied stating my own desire to do something similar, but more sustainable," says Sanchit, 26, analyst at Digitas, Massachusetts.

Sanchit had also been a part of SET (Social Service, Environment, and appropriate Technology), a student club in St. Xavier's, and used it as an example. Over the months, the three friends talked online about starting a non-profit organisation to facilitate social causes in Nepal and create a platform that would encourage young people to act as agents of change. They floated the idea among Nepali friends and pinpointed what their focus should be: health, education, and environment.

In April 2007, Youth for Nepal was registered in the US. They created two core teams: one in Nepal, and one in the US.

The team in Nepal is in charge of recruiting ground level volunteers, advertising YFN's vision, and encouraging young adults to come up with related projects in order to get things done. "We hope to provide opportunities for young Nepalis to grow up feeling like they are capable of making a difference in society, that they can take initiative, lead, and accomplish," says Suyog, 25, graduate student at Iowa State University.

The team in US exists to support the activities in Nepal. They guide, raise awareness, set up networks and help make the projects in Nepal possible. According to Sanchit, their target group is young adults and they plan to continue guiding the group as it grows to become more efficient and effective.

YFN has hosted several fundraising events in the US: Iowa, New York, and Oklahoma, raising approximately $1,200. With part of the money, a health awareness camp for children was held in Sifal. YFN promotes financial transparency and the information is readily available on their website www.youthfornepal.org.

Currently, the organisation plans an information session to recruit volunteers and people who might be interested in particular projects. They are working on establishing local chapters in various states and cities across the US and are trying to reach beyond Kathmandu.

"We aren't just trying to do our bit for grassroots development in Nepal, we are trying to do something for ourselves too," says Abishkar, and Suyog adds, "YFN is our need to be needed, to be of use to society, to give back what we have learned and earned, to give our own lives a meaning."

If you have an idea that you want to work with or volunteer send an email to contact@youthfornepal.org. YFN invites volunteers who are willing to commit their time, are honest, able to work with other volunteers and desire change.

Abha Eli Phoboo was editor of WAVE from 2005-2006. She is currently studying Creative Studies at the University of Central Oklahoma in the United States.