By Robin Singer, Rotary Club of Falmouth, Cape Cod
A chicken and egg facility supporting sustainable agriculture within a human trafficking prevention program will be breaking ground this year in a Himalayan village. The facility will be built and operated by Anjali Tamang, an activist, trafficking survivor, and founder of the Freedom and Hope Foundation, a Nepali organization that helps at-risk girls in Nuwakot, Nepal.
Solar-Powered Agriculture Tackling Trafficking and Inequality in the Himalayas
Images show the solar power currently in use at the hostel.
Funded by the Falmouth Rotary Club of Cape Cod and the Madison Rotary Club of Wisconsin, in conjunction with Her Future Coalition and UCLA Engineers Without Borders, this facility will also include solar charging stations for remote villagers. This feature aims to extend outreach to the community in these isolated areas. Solar electricity will also power lights and other essential needs within the chicken facility.
The trafficking of young girls and child marriage are cultural issues in these remote villages. The Freedom and Hope Foundation is working to break cycles of poverty, the low status of girls and women, and inadequate access to education—factors that contribute to these oppressive practices.
The project will provide much-needed protein for students in a school and hostel that are part of the anti-trafficking prevention program. It will also generate income to sustain the program and support further outreach, helping to change attitudes and cultural norms related to gender-based discrimination and exploitation.
Solar Energy Uplifts Trafficking Survivors Across the Globe
Solar energy has already been provided to the hostel where girls from remote villages live to access education at either the local village school or the new Freedom School, founded by Freedom and Hope and Her Future Coalition, with support from Rotary clubs, philanthropists, and faith groups worldwide. The solar panels, batteries, and electronics were provided by Rotary clubs in District 7950 through a partnership with Ohm Energy Nepal, a reliable solar provider from Kathmandu. The solar and battery system supplies clean and reliable energy needed for the Rotary Club of Falmouth, Cape Cod’s virtual teaching programs, which enhance the education of girls who were denied schooling in their early years. Solar hot water also supports hygiene at the hostel.
Images show the solar power currently in use at the hostel.
Her Future Coalition has been working with many Rotary clubs to create and sustain programs in Nepal, India, and Kenya, assisting trafficking survivors and preventing further trafficking of at-risk individuals and their families. They have served over 7,000 girls and their families, providing shelters, skills training, education, and counselling.
