Rural Youth Volunteers in India: Difference between revisions

This is the landing page for Rural Youth Volunteers in India

Program Description:

Rural Youth Volunteers program is built on an ongoing collaboration. In 2014, Environmental and Social Research Organization (ESRO) and the Child Development department at Humboldt State University (HSU) began collaborating on Youth Adult Partnerships (Y-AP) project which engage youth in making their communities more aware of various social and environmental issues. The Rural Youth Volunteers program collaboration involves departments from Humboldt State University including Child Development, Environmental Resources and Engineering, Environmental Science and Management and California Center for Rural Policy along with India collaborators including Lady Erwin College, Environmental and Social Research Organization, and Center for Environment Communication.

Rural Youth Volunteers in India will be implemented in summer 2018–pairing 8 students from HSU in Arcata, California (U.S.), with 8 students from Lady Irwin College, New Delhi (India) to work in two northern India rural communities in the Baghpat district of Uttar Pradesh (Villages: Tavelagarhi and Dola). Each student pair will be placed with different host families in the communities. Rural Youth Volunteers will work on assessing the needs, resources, and priorities of these communities to plan activities that will address social and environmental issues while creating economic opportunities for its residents. Depending on the needs and priorities of the communities, projects could include:

- Developing a water filtration and purification system or a garbage disposal system or assisting in revitalization of ponds or a solar school. - Helping community members attain technological competence - Assisting teachers in creating age appropriate Environment Education curriculum - Helping school youth and community members build capacity to translate this work to other communities - Facilitating skill development of school youth so that they are more employable. - Helping school youth/emerging adults in the community start their own businesses/cooperative, such as selling seedlings/plants, purified water, and handicrafts. - Helping women connect with different markets, where they can sell products from their home run enterprises, such as pickle, papadam, tailored garments, and embroidery products that will lead to income generation in the communities.