By Catholic Partnership Schools (St. Joes) Healthy Courier reporters | Time, weather, and resources upended plans by St. Joseph-Pro Cathedral reporters to connect with students in Nepal.
“The time difference between our locations made connecting with the other school hard,” said Migual Pina of St. Joseph. “It would be morning time here, and in Nepal it would be nighttime since Nepal is 11 hours and 45 minutes ahead of us. We wanted to do a Zoom meeting with the students in Nepal while we were in school but weren’t able to.”
Snow days here also were a problem. “We weren’t able to come to school to record the videos,” Migual said of the way St. Joseph students planned to communicate with the kids in Nepal. And then there was the matter of resources. “If the students in Nepal were to try food from the USA, they wouldn’t have the access to the same ingredients we have to make the food,” he said.
Anjali Karki, a teacher at Kopila Valley School, wrote earlier this year about the difficulties on Nepal’s end. “For the last three weeks, it was chaos here. First, terrible air pollution, and then constant rain and terrible wind. We haven’t been able to shoot [the video].”
She explained that air pollution in Nepal comes from a combination of vehicle emissions, industrial activities, dust from unpaved roads, and seasonal agricultural burning. Surkhet, the province where the school is located, is a valley and can trap dirty air. The air pollution comes from different parts of India, teacher Karki said.
“Unfortunately, this is quite common, particularly during certain times of the year. When air quality reaches unsafe levels, it directly impacts student learning,” she said. “Some students experience respiratory discomfort, reduced concentration, and increased fatigue. On particularly severe days, outdoor activities must be limited, and in extreme situations, students may be advised to stay home for their safety.”
One student, Dimple, said Nepal experienced flooding, “but thankfully our town was safe.”
The environment provides a learning experience for the students. The teacher said the students “have already developed a foundational understanding of environmental issues. They have explored topics such as air pollution, climate change, and sustainable living through interactive lessons, projects, and discussions.”
