During an online meeting with Master Cheng Yen in August, Ram Bali Yadav, principal of Khudabagar Adarsh College in Nepal, and other school principals and teachers, expressed their gratitude to Tzu Chi and the Master. They acknowledged the diligent efforts of Tzu Chi volunteers in the field of education to enhance the quality of life. Determined to bring the experiences learned in Taiwan back to Nepal, they intend to nurture the education sector with love and wisdom.
In July 17, 2023, to know Tzu Chi better, ten volunteers from the Tzu Chi Teachers’ Association in Nepal visited the Jing Si Abode in Hualien, Taiwan, during a ten-day journey. Through taking part in Tzu Chi's cultural, environmental, and educational activities, they gained deep insights and were deeply moved. On returning home, these volunteers conveyed love and ideas through training programs and put environmental practices into action on their campuses and shared the inspiration with Nepal's education sector.
Gather Love, Spread Goodness, Never Fall Behind
On their return to Nepal, the volunteers of the Teachers’ Association reconvened on August 5th at the Tzu Chi Center in Lumbini. Seizing the opportunity of teacher training, they eagerly shared the heartfelt inspiration they gained from witnessing Tzu Chi missions in Taiwan.
Sio Kee-Hong (蘇祈逢), Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Tzu Chi Klang, warmly welcomed everyone and highlighted the August issue of Tzu Chi Monthly (in Chinese) with a focus on the “Inspiring Education” at Lumbini. He emphasized that education brings hope and can transform the Buddha’s homeland in the near future. With their efforts now recognized, they hoped that more people will join and contribute to their hometowns.
"Having this affinity to visit Taiwan, I hope to implement what I've learned in my own school. The first step is to build consensus among the teachers, taking turns to arrive early and greet students at the school gate," said Manoj Kumar Yadav, Principal of Gautam Buddha School, with deep sincerity.
They visited the Tzu Chi educational system in Hualien, learning about the teaching of Jing Si Aphorisms and observing campus life and the etiquette of students. The daily greetings at Tzu Chi Affiliated High School deeply moved Manoj Kumar Yadav; it inspired him to lead teachers in emulating such warmth to create a more intimate campus atmosphere.
"Taking inspiration from Taiwan, we have begun resource classification. With the help of teachers, we've established recycling spaces, sorting plastics, paper, and pens, even though resources are limited," remarked Altaf Husen Khan, Principal of Siddhartha Primary School; this reflected his deep impression of the recycling facilities on campus. Environmental protection is the responsibility of all global citizens, and he is implementing it on campus.
Bridge Boundaries, Witness Change
"They find joy in giving and are changing the world. These life stories deeply move me," said Moti Yadav, Principal of Lumbini Gyan Prabha Basic School, who led the delegation to visit the Tzu Chi Recycling Center at Neihu in Taipei; they were deeply influenced by Taiwanese environmental volunteers. Despite being in their seventies, its volunteers have a steadfast and passionate commitment to environmental protection. Moti Yadav emphasized the significance of the 5Rs - Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repair, and Recycle; their awareness was profound. He promoted the concept of initiating cleanliness and purity at the source within his campus and lifestyle.
These profound realizations and actions that stem from the heart were portrayed on the screen as it played the loving footprints of Tzu Chi volunteers entering villages, sowing seeds, and cultivating for over a year. Looking back over that time, a gradual awakening of love became evident.
Durga Dutt, a retired teacher from Nepal, said: "Each of us can contribute 120 rupees (approximately US$0.91), though seemingly small, when gathered, it becomes a substantial amount." They do not underestimate any modest effort, and this sentiment is gradually permeating into the hearts of the people.
"At first, I thought this group (Tzu Chi) came here to lead, but today I saw what they did for the students. I realized they came to give. I am grateful for today's sharing," said Krishna Prasad Tiwari, a teacher at Lumbini Gyan Prabha Basic School. His youthful face radiates even more with the glow of love.
"Joy and love are the universal languages that transcend nationality. They are the reasons that we gather us here," sincerely and meaningfully, Malaysian volunteer Hong Xue Hong (洪雪虹) provided the most fitting commentary for the day's sharing. Their aim is to recruit more loving and compassionate educators to join this movement, transcending language and geographical barriers.
Enter the Campus for Environmental Practice
"These ten principals and teachers have gained abundant insights. It's essential to pass on what they've learned to their own teachers since the strength lies not just with the principals alone," Sio Kee-Hong spoke about the intentions of the educational team. In order to unite everyone's love and drive the power of goodness deeper and wider and beyond sharing, on August 7th, Tzu Chi volunteers visited Gautam Buddha School to promote environmental awareness on the campus to teachers and students.
Principal Moti Yadav also seized the learning opportunity and invited six teachers from his school to Gautam Buddha School for mutual learning. They embraced Tzu Chi's environmental initiatives and the spirit of respecting and loving the Earth.
Before the program began, Malaysian volunteer Huang Su Tao (黃嫊桃) explained the importance of environmental protection to the teachers. She emphasized that, in order to educate students about environmental protection, principals and teachers must lead by example and have a comprehensive understanding of Tzu Chi's spiritual concepts.
Huang Su Tao illustrated the difference by holding up a large bag of garbage, to show that, without recycling, it all becomes waste. However, with recycling, the waste is significantly reduced. She emphasized the importance of sorting and invited the teachers to experience it first hand.
Principal Manoj Kumar Yadav gathered everyone during a weekly meeting to demonstrate different recycling bins, and explain the significance of environmental protection. He stressed the importance of reuse and not carelessly disposing of resources. The educational team conducted practical demonstrations of recycling plastic, paper, and more; they provided detailed explanations.
Educational volunteers used situational skits and simple methods to teach environmental protection, to encourage the habit of recycling and even transform items like plastic bottles into blankets; this instilled environmental awareness deeply in the hearts of teachers and students.
Environmental Protection for the Common Good
"Do you know how many plastic bottles are needed to create a blanket?"
Local volunteer Kriti Gole showcased a Tzu Chi blanket made from 70 recycled plastic bottles. The audience was astonished; the blanket showed effectively the importance of environmental preservation.
Sio Kee-Hong mentioned that environmental protection not only inspires kindness and compassion but also spreads love through helping others. Tzu Chi's environmental blankets represent the transmission of love -- this resonated with the principals, teachers, and all attendees.
Moti Yadav said: "Our school teachers enjoyed participating in this activity, and they have a positive impression of Tzu Chi." Teachers willingly joined the Teachers’ Association, to become part of Tzu Chi; they are collectively dedicated to consensus, action, and improvement in education. He expressed gratitude for the profound impact of this kindness.
With the guidance of volunteers from Singapore and Malaysia, along with local Teachers’ Association volunteers in Nepal, educators learn and cultivate environmental awareness, and put it into action. Volunteers firmly believe that Lumbini is embracing a cleaner, brighter future.
Join Tzu Chi. Let us make our world a better place.
Story by Liao Yue-Hong, Yang Jing-Hui, and Wu Hsiu-lin | 2023/08/23
