India | 2018

Partners: Partners: Humboldt State University | Arcata CA | Lady Irwin College | Environment and Social Research Organisation (ESRO) | Gramin and Paryavaran Vikas Sanstha (GPVS)

CEC, in partnership with a university in the US, was engaged in a project to create partnerships among higher education institutions. Two institutions, being one in India and the other in the US, supported their students by creating an experiential course to facilitate growth and development activities in two rural communities. The Rural Youth Volunteers programme in India paired eight students from Humboldt State University (HSU) in Arcata, California, USA, with eight students from Lady Irwin College, New Delhi, to work in Tavelagarhi and Daula rural communities in the Baghpat district of Uttar Pradesh in Northern India. The youth volunteers worked on water and waste management issues in the community for three months. The volunteer’s interned experience benefited the U.S. and Indian volunteer pairs by providing them with opportunities for sharing ideas, collaborating, and exchanging culture and language. The project was supported by the American Centre, India, partnered with the Environment and Research Organization (ESRO) for on-ground activation and the Centre for Environment Communication (CEC) as a Monitoring and Evaluation Partner.