This morning we listened to a presentation from Praful Rao, president of the SaveTheHills NGO. He titled his slideshow: Dismal Facts from a Non-Expert. Rao gave a pretty thorough picture of the devastation of landslides in the area, as well as causes (ie. tourism, road construction, cloud burst). While it was a great presentation, he had used ICIMOD (where I worked last summer) for many of his statistics and even some maps. It was great to see that the research done at ICIMOD is used for more local awareness, yet I was left with mixed feelings about this particular NGO. I had asked him afterwards if he knew of ICIMOD (yes) and why he didn't work with them, considering that they focus on disaster management in this region, are facilitating regional cooperation (which he stressed was necessary), and monitor rainfall (he had also been setting up rain gauges). He told me he had met with the Director General, David Molden, but quickly attempted to change topics by asking what I was studying in school. I returned to the topic, asking again why he chose not to collaborate with an organization that had so much manpower, exposure, respect, and resources, but he claimed they weren't really on his radar. While he seemed passionated about helping others--especially indigenous peoples--in the region, something was off to me. Nevertheless, an organization focusing on landslides has a lot of potential for good in the region. He was very well informed and I hope that that knowledge can spread through awareness programs like the one we participated in today.
After his presentation, we had some samosas and gulab jammun before hiking into Poshyor. On the way, Aalana, Critika, and Sumitra found me and barely left my side for the next four hours! They are 15-19 years old, but the youngest held my hand through the entire walk (and the second hike we took later in the day!). When we arrived at the school, Rao gave another short presentation and another man spoke briefly on the environmental issues facing the village (the Q&A afterwards focused on healthcare, as there isn't any in the village and it can be exceedingly difficult to get to a hospital in Kalimpong when the bridge to get there is washed out). We then went on an hour long hike around the village--it was pretty hot out and there were many breaks involved!
After lunch, I volunteered to weave baskets. After completing the base of one, a guy took it apart and had me start over: the second base was much better. :) While I still haven't gotten the hang of the corners, I can do the basic weaving pattern! I'll have to finish it tomorrow, though, as there weren't enough teachers to help the four of us who were weaving.
We left during that and spent about an hour in Kalimpong. I had gone to One Cup, a quaint coffee spot with amazing brownies, ice cream and cafe mochas. It was back to the farm after that! We were all exhausted from the day, but I think most everyone is looking forward to beginning the homestays tomorrow! I've exchanged about two sentences with the people I'm staying with, so we should have plenty to talk about these next three days! I'm also excited to see my three bahinis again, as their English is just good enough to be able to joke around. :)
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