[We Care, We Share] Inspiring story: The Classroom is a Place – Reflections of a teacher
Leave a CommentWe Care, We Share
UN and JICA Bhutan’s joint initiative – Resilience tools for COVID-19
The Classroom is a Place: Reflections of a teacher
It has been almost a year now. The unused blackboards have gathered dust, the walls are barren and empty, and the classrooms are locked. Schools in Phuentsholing remained closed this year, and throughout the country, many schools painted a similar picture.
Tashi Penjor has been a Dzongkha teacher for the last 23 years and currently teaches at the Phuentsholing Middle Secondary School (PMSS). After only a month of opening, schools across the country closed in March as a precautionary step to stop the spread of the virus. Schools were directed to develop online lesson plans and conduct classesremotely. A sense of unease and unfamiliarity settled among the students and the teachers at the time.
“Without so much as getting to know the names of our students, schools closed. With the virus, everything was at stake, our health foremost. We needed to adapt and adapt quickly, not to lose the momentum. The idea of conducting classes online was very attractive. At first, it took a lot of getting used to for us. Some didn’t even join the classes because they didn’t have phones and were using their parents’ phones, and students hardly took the classes seriously. We had never conducted online classes before, and we tried all means to check and ensure that our students were actually listening and learning. Before we knew it, five months had passed,” said Tashi.
For Bhutan, technological developments and digital benefits are still new and still being explored and therefore online classes are a new approach for many teachers and students. Most classrooms still have black-boards and students use notebooks because not every student can own a laptop. What purpose can a classroom serve in a place where basic technological resources are a luxury? The classroom serves as second home to many growing children, students share desks and interact on a daily basis, with the teacher close by to respond to their queries. Classrooms are a sacred learning place where wholesome education and values of respect, etiquette and social responsibility are inculcated. However, when the virus entered the country, it brought everything to standstill.
“When schools resumed for Classes 10 and 12 in July, many issues surfaced. Students had not maintained their notebooks, and some of them had even dropped out. We had to re-teach our lessons. As a teacher, our core duty is to make the students understand the lessons, not to finish our own syllabus on time,” added Tashi.
Earlier in August this year, Phuentsholing was declared a Red Zone with the outbreak of the virus at the Mini-Dry Port. Tashi recalled when the school was informed it must relocate to another Dzongkhag so that lessons could continue safely. The school opted to move to Thinleygang Primary School, in Punakha which had classes till grade 6 and had remained closed this year. In September, 17 buses filled with 300 plus students, teachers and their beddings set out to their new classrooms in the north. Students were told to prepare to move away from their homes for an uncertain period of time and live as boarders, some for the very first time.
“It was difficult, as students missed their parents and teachers had their own issues such as the needing to pay the rent for their apartments in Phuentsholing,” said Tashi. In order to keep the students engaged and help them overcome their homesickness, many extracurricular activities were organized for them.
As a Self-Contained Zone, the school gradually settled down to a routine and both students and teachers grew accustomed to their new temporary settings. The classrooms though small slowly began to regain their vitality and purpose.s
“Looking back, 2020 had a lot of obstacles. But with challenges, there is also room for growth and adaptability. It has made us stronger. We’ve come a long way and as teachers, we have realized that classrooms have a value that cannot be compromised or replaced,” said Tashi.
Virtual and online learning can supplement classes and lessons and serve as a complementary measure, but can never replace nor be used as a fulltime solution.
Tashi wonders when he will be unlocking his classroom in Phuentsholing and looks forward to meeting the rest of his students face to face.
[We Care, We Share] Inspiring story: Fire prevention and preparedness training for the residents of the Amochhu community
Leave a Comment
[We Care, We Share] Inspiring story:
Fire prevention and preparedness training for the residents of the Amochhu community
JICA Alumni Association of Bhutan (JAAB) is an association comprised of Bhutanese nationals who have availed studies or trainings in Japan with a common aim to disseminate the achievements of Japan and Bhutan’s cooperation and to strengthen good networking among the members. Over the years, JAAB has carried out social service activities in Bhutan such as tree plantations, blood donations and mass cleaning campaigns among many others. However, owing to the pandemic, the members decided to alter their activities for 2020.
“From several proposals, the members unanimously agreed on the fire prevention and preparedness for the residents of Amochhu shelter in Phuntsholing. The community shelters at Amochhu were constructed in haste as temporary shelters for Bhutanese who were living across the border. The shelter houses more than 3000 people and the structures are built adjacent to one another with predominantly timber materials. In such a close-knit settlement, there are risk that a small fire could wipe out the whole community. Similarly, with the COVID-19 virus, a single individual can become responsible for widespread community infection. This activity was therefore deemed extremely suitable as both a COVID-19 risk mitigation measure and meeting the mandates of JAAB,” said Yangchen.
Yangchen Lhamu is an Urban Planner working at the Department of Human Settlements with Ministry of Works & Human Settlements. She is also the Vice-President of JAAB.
“The Fire Rescue Division (FRD) of the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) has both the necessary equipment and expertise in delivering fire safety drills, so we collaborated with them on this project.” The training was provided for six days to 1500 people. The first part included comprehensive training in the risks associated with fire at an individual and community level and the need for such trainings along with several engaging stories of fire hazards in the country.
The second part of the training was a mock drill led by an expert firefighter. It began with explanations about different types of fire extinguishers, their differences and how to use them. Participants were asked to voluntarily take part in the mock drill of extinguishing a controlled fire made by the trainers. “It was interesting to watch the participants do the drill as most of them miscalculated the time to press the release lever and handling of the hose was not as easy as demonstrated by the experts”, observed Yangchen. The mock drill also included the operation of a firefighting engine, ways to use the hose, controlling the water pressure and the use of pumps.
The mock drill finished with the trainers requesting the mock drill volunteers to register as front liners if such fire disasters were to occur. The registered firefighting front liners also took part in a drill with a real community alarm/siren to prepare them for real life situations.
“The objective of the training was to let the community have a hands-on experience using firefighting equipment. At the same time, the training was an opportunity to advocate for the community to be responsible in their individual homes and spread awareness of the risk associated with the hazards of fire in a close-knit community”, concluded Yangchen.
[We Care, We Share] Inspiring story: Shop shutters roll with optimism
Leave a CommentWe Care We Share
An initiative of UN Bhutan- resilience tools for COVID-19
Shop shutters roll with optimism
Sonam Dema rolled open her shop after 14 days in lockdown. Now past the third week, all sorts of rumours began to fill the ears and mouths of many Thimphu dwellers. Despite the talks surrounding the lift of the lockdown or an extension, it was a fact that Thimphu in particular, was anxious. Across the nation, eyes were peeled on the TV, Sonam Dema remembers waiting for the LIVE Press Release in two minds.
Sonam has been running a shop for the last 11 years. Starting March this year, things took a different turn for shops and businesses in Bhutan. Most shop owners feared not being able to cater to the needs of their customers, since transportation of goods and items became an apparent challenge. Sonam saw a huge drop in customers and a lack of variety of items in her shop.
When the lockdown was first announced, like many shopkeepers, Sonam rushed to her store in the early hours of that morning. Her shop is in the same building where she lives. She closed the shutters of her shop that day, in a vacant movement not knowing when she could open it again.
“But the first week was pleasant, I had spent the time with my family and tended to house chores, the house owner had even decreased our rents by 50%. After 7 days, it became a bit heavy. I started to worry about the food items in the shop. They had just arrived a day before the lockdown, and they were now going to get spoilt,” says Sonam. “That was just one of the worries,” adds Sonam.
By the second week, even though her shop was closed, Sonam received numerous requests from the tenants in the same building, asking for grocery and food items. She went from door to door in the building where she lived and distributed items from her stock. The uncertainty of the lockdown, and question of how long it would last occupied her mind all the time, as the only source of income came from her shop.
She decided to request and open her shop as one of the specified shops in the zone.
Beginning of the third week, her request came through and she finally pulled open the shutters of her shop with a sense of relief and caution. Being an authorised Bank of Bhutan (BOB) Connect agent, Sonam can also take the role of a bank and could offer services of depositing and withdrawing of cash for the public.
“We had many customers availing this particular service during the lockdown, some zones did not have ATMs. It was efficient, considering the restrictions of movement beyond respective zones,” says Sonam.
Sonam also began selling meat and vegetable items in her shop for the convenience of her customers. That way customers did not have to go around looking for other shops to buy such items and it helped limit movements of the public.
“We are trying to provide as efficiently as we can. Our country is doing its best and we are all grateful,” says Sonam. “After the 21 days lockdown was eased, it was comforting to see a bit of normalcy. By 2021 I hope everything will go back to normal and all of this will be behind us,” adds Sonam.
In the routine of closing her shop at 9 PM every night, Sonam hopes that she will be able be open it again the next morning.
UN75 Art for Change Roadshow
Leave a CommentThe UN turns 75 this year. Join UN Bhutan’s Art for Change-The Future We Want four-day roadshow. Learn about UN Bhutan and the various environmental issues that affects us all through different forms of art, such as theatre, painting and writing whilst visualizing the future you want. Featuring Charmi Chheda, a performing arts director and facilitator with the Royal Academy of Performing Arts and Karma Tshering Wangchuk, an artist and the creator of Bhutan Street Fashion. Stay engaged during the lockdown, register with us. Send an email to tashi.dorji.bt@one.un.org for more details.
UN75 Art for Change Roadshow
Leave a Comment
The UN turns 75 this year. Join UN Bhutan’s Art for Change-The Future We Want four-day roadshow. Learn about UN Bhutan and the various environmental issues that affects us all through different forms of art, such as theatre, painting and writing whilst visualizing the future you want. Featuring Charmi Chheda, a performing arts director and facilitator with the Royal Academy of Performing Arts and Karma Tshering Wangchuk, an artist and the creator of Bhutan Street Fashion. Stay engaged during the lockdown, register with us. Send an email to tashi.dorji.bt@one.un.org for more details.
[We Care, We Share] Inspiring story: Taxi services in the wake of COVID 19
Leave a Comment*******
We Care We Share
An initiative of UN Bhutan- resilience tools for COVID-19
Taxi services in the wake of COVID 19… the challenges of being a Thimphu taxi driver
Deki’s car does not start. She had met some of her friends for dinner in a restaurant near Olakha. After repeated key turns and cranks, she decides to take a taxi home and leave her car.
Sonam Wangchuk is a 34 year-old Taxi driver and wears a blue facemask. He asks Deki to scan the QR code pasted on the back of the front seat. Deki does not have a face mask and Sonam offers her a new face mask from his glove compartment.
Sonam has been a taxi driver for more than two years. An RTC graduate, his car has many new accessories starting this year. The large QR code for the Druk Trace app never goes unnoticed. He maintains a small logbook too, for those without a phone. Sonam keeps extra masks for his customers without masks.
“We would have been very busy at this time of the year, had it not been for the virus,” says Sonam.
Providing taxi services in this pandemic has many challenges. From rules and restrictions on less number of passengers, to 7 PM and 9 PM curfews for the shops and the public, taxi drivers saw a huge drop in customers and as a result, their income too.
“Of course, there are fewer passengers now, and it has affected our business, but I would not refer to these as rules. It is for our own safety at the end of the day. As taxi drivers, we get at least 30-40 passengers a day, and in case of local transmission, we would be the first to catch it. At this point, our health and containing the spread of the virus matters more than the income,” adds Sonam.
Sonam recollects the time when the close of business was 7 PM and only two passengers were allowed in one taxi. He recalls reaching home by 6:30 PM. His vehicle had never been emptier, but he felt safe. With all the health advisories and preventive measures in place, he feels a sense of responsibility and pride in doing his share however small.
From her window, Deki notices a group of Desuups in bright orange as the taxi crosses the bridge near Taba.
“Although it has had an impact on our rent and food expenses and does get a bit difficult at times to make ends meet, we must not think of profiting at such a time. Our country is doing everything to protect us and keep us safe, we must be content and support all the measures taken by the Government,” says Sonam. He stops the car near Dechencholing School.
Deki pays the taxi driver and gets out of the car. Sonam heads straight back home.
The following morning at 3 AM, Sonam wakes up and hears the news of a nationwide lock-down. His brother who is a Desuup, leaves the house before daybreak.
Meanwhile, Deki is awakened by the sound of her phone ringing. Her friend informs her of the country going into lock-down. Deki immediately remembers her abandoned car and wonders how she will get it back.
For more stories, please visit http://www.unct.org.bt/covid-learning-resources/
[We Care, We Share] Inspiring story: Safeguarding Public Spaces
Leave a Comment
We Care We Share
A UN Bhutan’s initiative for resilience tools for COVID-19
Safeguarding Public Spaces
Pushpa owns a shop in Olakha. After more than 6 months, he decides to go to the bank to deposit his savings. He steps out of the taxi and walks towards the bank. Suddenly he is stopped by one of the security guards. “Sir you are not allowed to enter without a face mask” says the guard.
Pushpa is not aware of this new rule. He looks at the guard, as if to ask for leeway but the guard stands firm in his decision.
Chimmi Rinzin is 28 years old. He has been a security guard for the last 4 years. From hotels, hospitals and banks, Chimmi is now the second in charge security person at the Bhutan National Bank in Thimphu. Due to mandatory safety measures put in place by the government in light of COVID-19, Chimmi and his colleagues are now fully engaged in implementing and monitoring such measures.
“Before the pandemic, our duty pattern was very different from what it is today. Now with all these cautionary measures, our duties have heightened and are no different than the frontline workers. I not only see this as my duty but as a social responsibility that we must all adhere to,” says Chimmi.
In most public spaces like banks and hospitals, one cannot enter without following the three procedures: have a face mask on, undergo a quick temperature check and register the location QR code with the Druk Trace app at the entrance. If customers do not have the app, they are asked to share their contact details. Such mandatory practices help identify, keep track of movements and maintain a safe environment within busy public facilities. Suraj Rai is a 19 year old security guard. He is newly recruited and carries an infrared thermometer which looks like a gun. He slowly points it at Pushpa’s forehead. It reads 35.9 degrees Celsius.
“We do not let anyone inside without a facemask. We have a stall where we sell facemasks to those without them. Not only customers, but even the bank staff are required to follow the procedures,” says Suraj.
Suraj asks Pushpa to scan the Druk Trace QR code and informs him to purchase a facemask, which is readily available near the entrance. There is also a small makeshift water tap, liquid handwash soap and a bucket used as a sink near the QR code scanning table. A large hand-washing guideline chart is glued on the bucket.
“Ever since these preventive practices were introduced, we feel that our roles have more responsibilities. People are aware of our duties and they have been very cooperative. It encourages us to perform better and carry out our roles with more integrity and dedication,” says Suraj. Chimmi nods in agreement.
Pushpa feels his hemchu for his wallet and takes it out. He pays the man who hands the facemask to him. Pushpa enters the bank and finds several red lines and boxes drawn on the floor, indicating and guiding customers in queues and seats.
As Pushpa leaves the bank, he meets Chimmi and Suraj again, this time he smiles at them behind his facemask.
[We Care, We Share] Inspiring story: Making shopping safe and easy
Leave a Comment
We Care We Share
A UN Bhutan’s initiative for resilience tools for COVID-19
Making shopping safe and easy
From the minute she woke up, she thought about grocery shopping. Every morning she woke up, she would read about salt going out of stock, or the price of milk powder increasing. Karma Dema’s weekly grocery shopping errands became a daily chore and she had the physical distance to worry about as well.
In the midst of all the chaos, 8 Eleven supermarket in Thimphu acted immediately to the needs of their customers in response to COVID-19.
As soon as the first COVID-19 positive was announced in the country, 8 Eleven, which on a normal day would see about 25 to 45 customers at one time saw hundreds of people hoarding essential supplies, especially face masks, hand sanitizers and hand wash. In the rush to stock up, people had forgotten to maintain physical distancing and it went on for a few days.
Realizing the situation was going to cause more harm than good, the proprietor of 8 Eleven, BB Gurung and his team decided to close the store down for two and a half days to set in place safe measures to make the supermarket a safer place to shop. It was also an opportunity for his exhausted staff to take a break and recuperate.
They reopened the supermarket starting with allowing a maximum of 20 people at a time based on coupons. Each staff at 8 Eleven is seen wearing a face mask greeted with someone spraying hand sanitizer on customers’ hands as they enter the supermarket. Customers are normally encouraged to use mobile banking for making payments on purchases. They have also installed a handwashing facility and trained staff on preventive measures against COVID-19.
The 8 Eleven supermarket is also one of the 16 supermarkets and retailers identified and certified by the government to import goods during the lockdown period. To meet the demands of the rising number of smartphones, 8 Eleven also imported 30,000 phones. BB Gurung said these are challenging times and this is an opportunity for the private sector to help the government and the people of Bhutan. However, he also added this has been possible because the government has been very supportive of the private sector.
“Bringing in phones at a very reasonable price has helped students from lower-income families to access e-learning courses,” said BB Gurung. “This is the least we can do as our Genkhu (responsibility).”
On normal days, 8 Eleven usually stock up to last 7 to 10 days, since the pandemic started, today they stock up to last two months.
Should Bhutan go under a complete lockdown, to cater to the needs of the people, 8 Eleven launched its e-commerce platform for online shopping.
The supermarket also contributed Nu. 600,000 to the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund to support the country in COVID-19 response. BB Gurung himself is a philanthropist. At the personal level, he supports animal rescue centers like the Maya Foundation, Bhutan Animal Rescue, Royal Society for Protection and Care of Animals, Jangsa Animal Trust Fund, REWA, Tarayana and Draktsho.
BB Gurung also also supports and encourages young mountain bikers to stay healthy and to stay engaged while they are currently out of school.
For more information on We Care, We Share initiative, pleaseclick here.
[We Care, We Share] Inspiring story: Finding opportunities through passion
Leave a Comment
We Care We Share
A UN Bhutan’s initiative for resilience tools for COVID-19
Finding opportunities through passion
Mud-soaked boots with persistent leeches, big and small, studiously climbing up. Trudging up the hill, her feet thump bravely to reach her destination and fall into a deep sleep only to be woken up by the constant drumming of a downpour. She wakes up to face a new day, puts on a fresh new T-shirt, on the back it reads “Denkar’s Getaway.”
Tshering Denkar has left footprints along the high Dagala mountains, crawled inside the caves of Tsirang and donned the Brokpa Chupa while crunching icicles in the remote village of Merak.
While teaching English the prisoners in Northern Thailand, her students often asked her questions about the world beyond the prison gates. What is the world like? Are certain places the way it was before they entered the prison walls? Not being able to answer the questions made her ask certain questions to herself. There was little she knew about her own country let alone the places her students asked her about.
That was when she realized that she had limited her freedom to explore the world. And instead of packing her bags and heading off to see the world, she decided to come back home and explore her own country. There was so much yet to be explored, that’s when she decided to become a full-time vlogger and Bhutan saw the birth of its first travel vlogger.
Denkar like many others got hit by the impacts of COVID-19 pandemic, she started to receive lesser number of vlogging proposals from tourism related agencies. However, that did not stop her from vlogging, instead she found new opportunities to encourage Bhutanese to travel domestically.
She started to promote the idea of Staycations with aim to encourage Bhutanese families to take the weekend off to make short family trips to villages and heritage sites. travel to other dzongkhags for short family holidays to villages and heritage sites.
“We seem to think that hiking, trekking, trying local delicacies or staying in hotels and visiting places within our country, is only for tourists, but it’s not. We can actually help boost our own local tourism and promote domestic economic activities,” said Tshering Denkar.
She also took some time to visit her village in Tsirang which has limited access to television and mobile connectivity. While she was there, she spoke to the people in her village creating awareness on COVID-19 and helped them understand the importance of practicing good hygiene and safe practices. Denkar, through a video message in Tsangla, helped in creating awareness among the people in eastern Bhutan.
Having completed the De-suung training recently, Denkar is currently engaging herself in patrolling the streets of Thimphu and advocating for safe practices to the people.
“It’s all about positivity and passion. There will always be opportunities. We just need to work hard. And then nothing can stop you, not even a rolling stone,” she said.
For more information on We Care, We Share initiative, please click here.