First Steps Himalaya was born out of the Nelson home of Scottish/Nepali couple Fionna Heiton and Durga Aran. Having moved to New Zealand from Nepal with their preschool aged twins, the difference between the education received by their twins and the education available for rural Nepali children really stood out to them.
The appalling conditions of schools in rural Nepal, drove Fionna and Durga to launch a charity that would support improved early years education in rural Nepal. They had no idea just how big the impact of their work would be. Since 2008 this is what First Steps Himalaya has achieved:
Provided teacher training to 300 teachers in 76 schools
Constructed 5 earthbag schools, a training centre and office
Fitted out classrooms in 40 schools
Published a culturally appropriate story book
Provided and delivered relief after the Nepal earthquake
Provided school uniform to new entrants at Jana Jyoti School, Sangachok
Founding Director, Durga Aran visits earthquake damaged schools in 2015.
Durga Aran, hands out books to students in post earthquake temporary learning centres.
So much has changed over the past 15 years, and it’s amazing to remember the very grassroots stages of First Steps Himalaya all those years ago. From working in the corner of the family lounge in Nelson to navigating the overcrowded local buses before they had a project vehicle, First Steps Himalaya has grown and changed immensely.
Director, Fionna Heiton wondering if she would make it to the office back in the early days. This month, more car problems meant getting out and hailing a taxi. We drive over such rough conditions and low grade fuel and dust in the fuel tank don’t help!
Founding Directors, Fionna and Durga travelled with their children every year to Nepal when they were young.
Now as adults, Rhona and Jamie Aran are still involved with the charity’s work.
From finding our feet in these very early days, First Steps Himalaya has always been evolving and constantly adapting. The unpredictability of Nepal remains a constant - the ability to quickly adapt is an absolute necessity! Events far beyond our control have forced us to change the way we work rapidly, such as the 2015 Nepal Earthquake or COVID more recently. Back in 2008, it would have been impossible to imagine that we would be undertaking online training sessions via zoom, or that seven schools and training centres would be constructed using the earthbag building technique.
Our first earthbag build project in Sangachok in 2015 supported by Court Construction Ltd
The Court Construction group of volunteers put the roof on our seventh earthbag building project.
Some things have never changed, and it is these things that drive us to do what we do Nepal. These include the smiles on children’s faces when they have a clean, bright classroom filled with exciting books and toys and seeing the enthusiasm of teachers who undertake our training and gain new skills, resources and inspiration.
What’s in store for the next 15 years? Our newly upgraded residential teacher training centre in Sangachok Nursery, Sindhupalchok will allow us to provide hands on teacher training courses and workshops to rural teachers from all over Nepal where they will learn contemporary child friendly teaching methods to take back to their schools. We will continue to support our project schools in three districts with improved teaching and monitoring. As we grow the capacity of our local partner, First Steps Nepal, there are endless possibilities for the future. Watch this space!