Experiencing a new outlook towards camping

Rishikesh: An unforgettable experience.

Camping as an Adventurous Journey is not only about completing the required timescale that you need to complete your award but becomes much more fun when it is about learning about the nature and experiencing thrills that will help shape you into a better person. Here is an experience shared by Aishwarya Kakkar, a student of Delhi Public School, Gurgaon who for their Adventurous Journey went to the beautiful valley of Rishikesh.  

Pre-rafting talks delivered by professional trainers. 

The four day Adventurous Journey kick started on the night of 24^th October, where 92 students of the IAYP India Award Programme and 10 teachers left for Rishikesh. Little did we know the fun surprises that were waiting for us at Rishikesh.  Four hours into the journey, at around 2 am the buses stopped at ‘Subway’ for an early morning feast where we all ate to our tummy’s delight. The following days spent camping in Rishikesh was equally fun.  Activities such as rock climbing, rappelling, river rafting, trekking, beach volleyball and body surfing were planned for us.  Rafting being a new activity for majority of us was extremely thrilling.  We were lucky enough to experience rapids such as ‘three blind mice’ & ‘sweet sixteen’. Moreover, from time to time under the guidance of our leaders we were allowed to swim freely in the Ganges which altogether took our elation to a whole new level.  The warmth provided by the Sun in the afternoons was very comforting. The ideal weather also allowed us to enjoy the rest of the activities planned for us to their full extent. The adrenaline rush felt by each and every student during all these activities cannot be described in words. Though there were difficulties and fears faced by some of us whilst performing the activities but they were all erased by the welcoming and experienced instructors. We also played games and learned how to cook during a camping expedition. A 3 kilometers trek was arranged for us where we all learned a lot about our environment, its resources and its conservation in the most fun manner possible.  The students loved waking up to a beautiful sunrise, running on the white sand and quietly watching the sunset whilst sipping their hot tea. Singing, dancing and eating the yummy self-cooked food around the bonfire is a memory I will never let go of. During the night time we all used to gather around the bonfire which when complimented by the beautiful starry night sky helped us attain a state of bliss. Our trip to Rishikesh truly revamped our outlook towards camping.

CHANGING FACE OF OLCOTT MEMORIAL SCHOOL

Status report for IAYP India Special Project.

After undergoing a thorough process and various inspections undertaken by State Education Board, one of IAYP India’ special project Olcott Memorial High School is now Olcott Memorial Higher Secondary School. 

Other than the wonderful academic achievement of the school, they have also been doing extremely well in sports activities. Recently, school’ junior rugby team won the state level tournament and are now vying for the inter-state tournament to be held in Kolkata. They are also doing incredibly well in other sports both for boys and girls, including kho-kho, kabaddi, hand ball and football, all with school training organized by teachers and alumni.

The school had also participated in ‘Paryavaran Mitra’ State Level Competition and was selected as one of the best schools (5th place in the state). Some of them also received individual awards, such as Student Award to Vijayalakshmi (1st place) and Guide Teachers award to Shyamala & Saraswathi (3rd place).

The school is also planning free computer education and English speaking classes for interested students, school’ alumni and local youths. We at IAYP India, wish the school all the best for their future endeavors.         

THE DAY WHEN I CHOSE NOT TO BE AN IGNORANT PASSERBY

As we always say, the International Award for Young People programme is not only effective during the course of the programme but it also leaves a lasting impact on each one of our participants – an impact that will continue to prove fruitful as they continue on the journey called life. Here is the story of selfless attributes and courage shown by Urmi Sanghavi (Silver Award holder) from The Bhawanipur Gujarati Education Society School. 

During a road trip to my friend's house, I witnessed an accident, where an old lady looking to cross the road was hit by a speeding motor bike. This resulted in the poor lady been thrown off the road and into a quagmire. Our first thought was to actually pass by the accident spot and leave the old lady in our rear view mirror, but the thought of us being equally responsible for anything happening to the victim made us stop our car. The only reason we didn't wish to stop was the harassment of police and court cases that we would inevitably have to face in the aftermath of the accident. It was our moral and inner-conscience that made us realise that the happiness of saving the old lady's life is bigger than any other harassment that we would have to face. So we jumped out of the car and rushed to assist the lady who was moaning in pain, the only positive sign being that she wasn't bleeding much. Then while trying to help her out of the marsh I realized that during the course of the accident, she had broken her arm, which was her major source of pain. Thanks to the First Aid training that I had during my Silver Award IAYP Programme, I was able to administer first aid, and I managed to put a splint under her injured limb to provide proper support to the broken bone. After that we carefully lifted her out of the mud and while providing a proper cushion to her broken arm, we were able to put her in the back of our car. After reaching the closest hospital, she was able to get proper medical support and was kept under observation. 

To our surprise, rather than being harassed by the local authorities, we were applauded for our courage and our service in providing comfort to the old lady when everyone else was turning their back, which in itself was an achievement which needed no award. After two weeks I got a call from an unknown number where I was greeted by the very same old lady who couldn't stop thanking me for what we had done. I felt elated and felt grateful to the IAYP India Award programme that I did two years ago in the school. The programme taught me how to give service to the society, as we are part of society and undertake the responsibility to take care of it.

Let us end with the beautiful quote by English writer John Bunyan, “You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.”

ILLUMINATING ONE VILLAGE AT A TIME

26th - 30th January 2014: A Residential Project undertaken by the Gold Award Participants of Singapore International School, Mumbai

The International Award for Young People (IAYP) not only serves to be a life-changing experience for the participants but also for everyone who comes in contact with this Programme. One such instance was underscored through the initiative undertaken by the students of Singapore

International School (SIS), Mumbai. During the course of their Residential Project some students from the school helped install community and residential solar lighting systems at Irshalwadi, a small village in Maharashtra. Irshalwadi is a picturesque village, 3700 feet above sea level and 67 kilometres from the bustling financial capital of India, Mumbai.

As it is clear from its location, basic amenities like transportation, electricity and water are of major concern in the village comprising 40 houses. For four nights and five days, the Awardees were determined to bring about a sustainable change in the village and make life simpler by providing one of the basic resources -- electricity. At the end of the project, the Awardees were successful in installing many solar panels, thus lighting the local village school, ensuring a platform for students to receive education and connect to the outside world.

Along with installation of solar panels, the Awardees were also involved in the cleaning of the water body in the village, and the construction of embankments. This is also not the first time that SIS Awardees have helped transform a village -- last year they helped set up the water supply pipeline in Khonda village, reducing everyday hardship that the villagers used to face for a long time until then.

While installation of solar panels and improving water supply were the tangible changes in the village, during the course of activities like cooking, cleaning, and most importantly interacting with the local people engaging in cultural exchange, the project evidently had a valuable and lasting impact on the Awardees themselves. These activities helped them in their overall development which empowers them for future.

Former Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski once said, "Technology should be an important ingredient. It may be and should be a tool for social development." SIS participants of IAYP celebrate this view and work towards creating committed citizens of the world.  Click for pictures

AWARD LEADER TRAINING (YES) WORKSHOP

14th - 15th March 2014 at Award Training Centre, New Delhi 

The International Award for Young People India organized a two-day Award Leader training workshop at the Award Training Centre, New Delhi for 14 participants from various schools including Khaitan Public School, Sahibabad; St. Mary's School, Dwarka; Lawrence School, Lovedale; Mata Jaswant Kaur Memorial School, Badal and institutions like Raphael Ryder Cheshire, Dehradun. In order to help the interns working at IAYP India gain a deep insight of the programme, some of the interns also participated in the training workshop.

Rather than calling it a learning workshop, Programme Manager Bivujit Mukhoty preferred calling it an experience sharing workshop. Over the span of two days, the participants were given in-depth knowledge regarding the four domains of the programme i.e. Skills, Service, Physical Recreation and Adventurous Journey and also the Residential Project for the Gold Award Programme. Other than that the participants were also introduced to the technical aspect of the programme, which included Risk Management and Branding. 

The Interns at IAYP India were happy to share their experiences. Pallavi Gill, Gold Award holder said, "The workshop was a mixture of fun and knowledge. Through the workshop we interacted with various people of various ages and occupations. Together we completed the workshop with smiles, new bonds of friendship and a step towards spreading the International Award for Young People across India." While for Arantxa Talukdar, Bronze Award holder it was a workshop to consolidate her knowledge of IAYP, "The two-day workshop helped me regain the lost knowledge and gain another perspective of IAYP. The workshop has been enriching, encouraging and a learning experience. I am grateful to have been a participant as it made a lot of difference in the way I used to see IAYP before and how I see it now." Another IAYP intern Tarini Puri (current Gold Award participant) understood how the programme helps students to achieve an identity: "Since childhood I've had this fear of public speaking. But when I had to do the same at the workshop, I had no choice but to gather up some courage and speak in front of other participants. I now believe, with more and more of these opportunities, I'm pretty sure I'll get over it."

The workshop was delivered by National Award Authority (NAA) India National Director Kapil Bhalla, Bivujit Mukhoty (Programme Manager) & Vivek Gaur (Sports Development Manager for Australian Sports Outreach Program at Naz Foundation India). The programme concluded with the presentation of participation certificates to the participants by Kapil Bhalla.  Click for pictures