By Naomi Happychuk, 2nd year MDP student
Namaste!
I
have spent the past six weeks in Nepal, working with LI-BIRD (Local Initiatives
for Biodiversity, Research and Development), a local NGO which aims to empower
rural poor and marginalized smallholder famers through agriculture,
biodiversity, and natural resource projects.
My
first three weeks were spent in two of the major cities here, (Pokhara and
Kathmandu), where I became acquainted with the organization and their many
initiatives. I also attended a project inception meeting for “Integrating Crop
Genetic Diversity for Mountain Food Security”, with members of Biodiversity and
the UNEP.
 |
| Project inception meeting |
 |
| Jumla, Nepal |
In
mid-May I flew to a remote, mountainous district called Jumla where I will
spend the remainder of my practicum. The small plane was definitely a shaky
ride, and porters greeted us at the airport to help carry our stuff. (There are
no taxis in Jumla!)
Here
I have assisted LI-BIRD staff in their field trials of amaranth, rice, and
potatoes, and attended a number of community meetings. It has definitely taken
some time to adjust here! There is poor sanitation, water and power shortages
(which means no internet and infrequent bucket showers), and very few people
speak English. However the scenery is incredible and everyone is very friendly!
Spare
time is spent practicing Nepali with the young children that live in our
building, going for jogs on the dusty roads (dodging cattle and throwing my
hands in prayer to reply “Namaste!” to the many on-lookers), and reading
multiple novels at a time (at last!). I have now begun a project with LI-BIRD
to assess the changes in food habits in Jumla, which are affected by unique
social, environmental, and economic factors, and to explore the primary drivers
behind these changes in an effort to better understand how to increase biodiversity
and food security. Looking forward to putting my hard years of study with the
MDP program to good use!
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