Everest of Apples – Aomori AJET and NEST
Everest of Apples is a charity established by Aomori AJET to help support a small primary school of about 120 children in Nepal. At present, two thirds of Aomori’s JETs are supporting the development and running of the school by means of a small monthly donation. Furthermore, as the AJET prefectural charity, many of Aomori’s JETs take an active role in the organisation and running of Everest of Apples.
Everest of Apples works alongside the Nepal Educational Support Trust (NEST), a Nepalese NGO working to improve children’s education in Nepal. NEST is involved in many projects, such as teacher training, the development of children’s mobile libraries and the sponsorship of poorer students. It was founded in 2000 by its executive Director, Purna Shrestha, and seeks to provide children with a quality education, regardless of gender, creed, or ability to pay. Purna Shrestha is also the founder of the Prajwal English School. |
NEST's teacher training workshops |
The Prajwal School
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The Prajwal school is a primary school for around 120 students, aged from 4 – 14, situated 180km to the southwest of Kathmandu. It is unique for a number of reasons – it actively encourages the inclusion of female students, it offers scholarships to those unable to pay fees, it teaches exclusively in English, and it is run as a ‘community school’ under the guidance of local teachers, parents, councillors, etc. |
Its ‘inclusivity’ is in marked contrast to many other schools in Nepal, and seeks to challenge the many social inequalities that have given rise to the violent conflict that has recently afflicted Nepal.
Thanks to the generosity of Aomori’s JETs, Everest of Apples will be able to donate around ¥800,000 to the Prajwal school in 2003. This will go towards the following:
1. Offering more scholarships to poor students
2. Buying furniture and supplies
3. Increasing the pay of the school’s eight teachers, which has been frozen at unacceptably low levels since 2001.
4. Investing in a plot of land on which to build a new school, thereby improving teaching facilities and reducing monthly rental expenditure. |
Girls are encouraged to attend the Prajwal School |
Opportunities for All
As well as helping Nepalese students, Everest of Apples also benefits the very JETs who contribute to it. The Prajwal school, which teaches exclusively in English, offers Aomori JETs the opportunity to teach at the school on a voluntary basis. Alternatively, Aomori JETs who simply wish to travel are welcome to visit the school, and experience a home stay with a local family. As such, Everest of Apples is building a strong, mutually beneficial relationship between the JETs of Aomori and the Prajwal school, rather than being restricted to a more traditional donor/recipient model.
Furthermore, due to its status as the official charity of Aomori AJET, Everest of Apples can continue to help the Prajwal school in spite of the inevitable annual coming and goings of Aomori’s JETs. As such, Aomori’s JETs are investing money in a charitable project focused upon long-term sustainable development.
What Everest of Apples Can Do For You
"As the official charity of Aomori AJET, Everest of Apples is funded solely by JETs in Aomori. As such, we are not explicitly looking for donations from JETs from other prefectures (although they are always welcome). Rather, we very much hope that Everest of Apples will prove to be a model, or at least food for thought, for other prefectural AJETs, or any similar groups of JETs, interested in setting up their own charity. And it is on this point that we can certainly be of assistance."
"Everest of Apples has a very strong working relationship with NEST which, as well as the Prajwal school, is involved in several projects to do with children’s education in Nepal. As such, Everest of Apples is able to provide other AJETs interested in setting up their very own prefectural charity with information concerning other NEST projects which are in need of sponsorship. Furthermore, we can also offer advice on the practical side of setting up a prefectural charity. Any JETs who are interested should get in touch." |
Everything to Gain
A prefectural charity is very easy and enjoyable to set up, can offer JETs a positive focus for their many talents, and is also a valuable source of cultural information for a JET’s Japanese students and the wider Japanese community as a whole. All Everest of Apples took was two people, a little time, and the goodwill of the Aomori JET community. There really is everything to gain. For more information on the project please get in touch at the email below or visit the Everest of Apples website.
Everest Of Apples
E-mail:
Website: http://everestofapples.jetsetjapan.com
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