Tag Archives: volunteer

Chapter 11 – Future

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Many of the people I spoke to about Mahabir Pun recognized his charismatic personality but were drawn to him more by his ideals and the methods by which he accomplished his projects. Considering the obstacles of working in a developing country under the veil of a civil war, alongside an unstable government, with uncertain financing and lack of basic resources such as electricity…his meteoric rise to fame was the attraction. But over time many of his early supporters lost their own momentum and could not keep up with Mahabir. He demands no less of everyone around him then he does of himself. But few share his single minded focus…they must return to their own countries, personal interests interceded or his stardom lost it’s shine for them.

The eyes of Nepal watch and wait for Mahabir Pun’s next endeavor.

His critics note Mahabir’s demanding nature coupled with his lack of appreciation is not the only wedge that undermines his working relationships. He is not a team player and his inability to listen to alternate ideas and opinions eventually drives many people away. He will start a project with a team but make changes without consulting anyone. Often those changes are based on an idea and not researched or tested before implementing. The old “throw mud on the wall to see what sticks” approach is still in his arsenal. But many people find this approach wasteful.

For example; several years ago a group of volunteers had planned a solar project for the school in Nangi. They had researched and designed the project months before arrival. I know this team well and they’re skilled at engineering and well versed in working under the extreme Nepali conditions. When they arrived in Nepal and went to pick up their preordered supplies they found Mahabir had changed the order. He had redesigned the project according to what “he thought” it should be. Technically it wasn’t feasible and it undermined the original goal for the project which was to decrease the school’s reliance on the undependable and expensive Nepal electrical power grid. The team was initially bewildered by Mahabir’s behavior, they were hurt by the lack of respect but mostly frustrated by the additional work and cost of straightening out the mess. They had other projects in planning stages but never came back citing their inability to work with Mahabir.

There is no doubt mahabir Pun’s methods are successful. But what works for one person will quickly make others insane. When I asked Mahabir about this criticism of him and his work he simply smiled and said, “Someone else will come along”. He was right. Since the mid 1990s Mahabir Pun has been aided by hundreds of people and dozens of agencies. When someone moves on another fills their place. He is never without support, ideas or dozens of worthwhile and successful projects in the works. He neither says thank you nor does he look back when parting ways. Despite any storm, either political or environmental, he puts his head down and under his own power forges on because he knows at the end of his life he has only himself to commend for success and chastise for failure…because along the way he expects no one but himself to shoulder the weight of his dreams for a better Nepal.

I am ending my story here but will continue to refine the narrative. I will be organizing this blog into book chapters over the next few months so please stop by and have a read. I will be adding more stories and new material. In the meantime you can keep up with Mahabir Pun’s quest for a better Nepal by visiting his Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/mahabir.pun?fref=ts

Thank you for your support over the last two years. I could not have continued without the support of my family, friends and colleagues. Your comments and encouragement have kept me motivated and touched my heart. Your opinions matter and are an important part of the complexity of this work. I am especially indebted to Mahabir Pun for his unselfish willingness to answer tough questions and patiently explain my often ignorant inquiries. Safe travels and may each of you find a little bit of Mahabir Pun in yourselves.

Chapter 11 – Future

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My story is coming to an end, although I could write about Mahabir Pun and his life for decades. He never stops. He is always moving, thinking and throwing his mud on the walls of this world. He waits to see what sticks then moves forward never looking back. His critics are few but when I interviewed people who grew up with him or worked with him or only met him recently I asked them the same two final questions.

This young students future is wide open due to Mahabir Pun’s visions.

If you could give Mahabir Pun one piece of advice what would it be? The one thing that came up time and time again was this…he is not very good at saying thanks. People expect a few words of appreciation. But here’s the catch…when Europeans first started exploring the area in the 1800s and even into the 1900s there was no word in any of the Nepali dialects for thank you. Mahabir explained this to me during one of our early conversations. Nepali people do not perform an act of kindness such as sharing food and shelter or helping someone in need for reasons of appreciation. They do it because it is expected, it is the right thing to do and no thanks should be needed. Over the years due to western influence a word for thank you developed which looks like this in Devanagari script: धन्यवाद and is pronounced like this: dhan-ya-bad.

He told me many Nepalese people smile when westerners say thank you or dhanyabad. We think they are happy, but they are mostly amused at our constant need for appreciation. Join me next week for Mahabir Pun’s critics final words of advice for the man who expects nothing less then 110% commitment from his volunteers.

 

Chapter 10 – Plethora of Projects

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In October 2012 Mahabir Pun and I sat on the balcony at his home in Pokhara as his daughter Jharana and her cousins sat in the stairway watching us. It was day two of the book interview and we were both weary, but Mahabir reflected thoughtfully before he answered my question, “what is an Innovation Center?”

Women in two Myagdi villages make paper beads and fashion into jewelry which they sell to the tourists. This is one example of a small village enterprise which promotes independence and confidence.

I had read the proposal he wrote and gave to the government and shared with his supporters, including myself, a few months before. But I wanted to hear it again after the idea had circulated and he had not only spoken with the Nepal government but had spoken around the world at various venues. Like everything on Mahabir’s list of projects it started with an idea and developed along the way. In a nutshell, Mahabir Pun is trying to scale up what he accomplished in Nangi into a national platform with the National Innovation Center concept.

In Nangi he revolutionized the concept of education for students and parents from merely learning academics to understanding their capacity to change their lives because with knowledge came choices. With choices comes the ability to make significant changes in not only their lives but that of others in their community. He also stepped away from the hand out and donation concept of community development and helped villages build profitable businesses which they run and market either individually or as a community.

The National Innovation Center will be a physical space where Nepalese can bring their ideas for development. It will be a think tank. It will support talented Nepalese from all social strata and educational backgrounds to bring forward their ideas for progressive development in all areas of need such as education and infrastructure. It will generate jobs as ideas are developed and implemented.

Villages along the Community Trek Trail built and maintain the lodges. They provide jobs and income to the community.

But Mahabir is not looking for donors or NGO funding. He is seeking a soft loan of $6 million USD to build a 10 MW hydropower plant in Nepal. The much needed electricity will be sold on the grid and the profits used to run the center, pay back the loan and support the entrepeneurs. He originally went to his government but they did not have the resources so he sought their support as he approached other agencies such as the World Bank or wealthy private individuals such as the Warren Buffets of the world.

Join me next week and find out how The National Innovation Center is progressing and if the Nepal government has lived up to their promises to help Mahabir Pun realize this far reaching social experiment.

Chapter 10 – Plethora of Projects

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In September 2012, the day I sat in the Nepal Connection with Kishor, I only saw a handful of people come in to eat. A few came to meet with

The chaotic streets of Kathmandu contrast sharply with the peaceful atmosphere in the Nepal Connection.

Mahabir and a group of local business men conducted a short meeting. Kishor spent his time on his cell phone or just sitting. He seemed to be in deep thought. Here is where Mahabir and Kishor differ. Kishor is content with these down times, but Mahabir expects the same capacity for work from Kishor as from himself. It was clear Kishor had no desire to work in the same head down determined manner as Mahabir. He told me, “…not all people born equal.” Kishor has since left the Nepal Connection. He has not answered emails so I don’t know the reason or what he is doing now. But from the following email from Mahabir Pun sent to one of his contributors, it’s apparent Kishor is still involved in some capacity.

“Nepal Connection is running in Thamel and I visit there whenever I am in Kathmandu. Kishor left Nepal Connection and now we have Kusum Pun from Nangi is helping to manage the restaurant.  He has completed Bachelor’s in Hotel Management, Even if Kishor left, he is on board and he comes to help in the restaurant once in a while. We have three other board members from Kathmandu, who are supervising the restaurant when I am not there

Mahabir Pun meets with a volunteer who is sponsoring a remote wireless network.

As for paying the loan and the interest, I have paid back loan of a person because he needed the money. The restaurant is not generating as much income as we had expected because we had to learn everything from the beginning. It is generation mostly enough money to pay the salaries of five staff and house rent plus the bills for the utilities.I have requested contributors to wait for sometime to get the interest and loan back. We are trying very hard to attract as many customers as possible through facebook, personal contact, and others.

Even if we have not been able to make money so far, we have been able to meet our second goal well, which is to connect people. The restaurant has been my meeting place with people. When I am in Kathmandu, people come to the restaurant to chat with me. Also young students come to the restaurant to have discussion and meeting for different programs. It has been also the contact point for the trekking program that we have started.”
Kishor and Mahbir’s original goals are materializing after less then two years of operation. The competition for tourists from restaurants in Thamel is fierce but I think it is fair to say they need more time to gain a following and put down a culinary reputation. Join me next week to read about Mahabir Pun’s premier project…the one he hopes will lay the path to a better future for Nepal and it’s people.