Subhash Ghimire, a political science major from the batch of 2010, won a grant of US $10,000 from the Davis Projects for Peace to return to his remote village, Arupokhari in Gorkha district, in western Nepal where he was born. The village has no electricity, roads or communication facilities.
Ghimire recently received the grant from Davis Project for Peace, an initiative that funds student plans for grassroots projects promoting peace. The program accepts applications from students at partner schools in the Davis United World College Scholars Program, said St. Olaf news.
The day camp that Ghimire plans to establish will provide a wide array of activities for 45 children.
He hopes the camp will support community peace building by helping children from the lowest caste groups and those affected by Nepal´s Maoist conflict "reclaim their playfulness, passion and joy", the college portal said.
According to the website, Ghimire also has recruited a child psychologist from Kathmandu and other child education experts to observe campers and help develop specialized activities and counseling sessions.
"With compassion and care, I believe that children can heal and become healers within their communities," Ghimire says, adding that he believes the best way to build and perpetuate peace is by educating young people.
Ghimire plans to give each participant a $50 scholarship that will be enough to pay for a year of schooling. The student will deliver a presentation to St. Olaf community members when he returns.
Ghimire says the grant has given him the opportunity to make a difference in his homeland. "I felt like I could contribute, in a small way, to the ongoing peace process in the country," he says. "We all want Nepal to come together and move forward."
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