Beding gompa [before facelift!]: village meeting to discuss projects

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Bridges to Rolwaling

Academic/Volunteer Project Options

All participants in the Bridges academic/volunteer (A/V) team will work on one or more projects. A few general points:

• Some of the projects are narrow enough to be handled by one person, but we encourage collaboration.
• Participants should plan on preparing extensively for their project before leaving home. There will not be enough time to start doing research from scratch once we arrive in Kathmandu.
• Many of our proposed projects will not be completed within the time constraints of a single Bridges program; this is not a problem: we will be back to complete them. Note that team members may return for subsequent expeditions without paying the program fees.
• All project results belong to the entire group. Individual contributions will be acknowledged to the extent possible in Bridges publications, but it is understood that work and results will be shared. Bridges will not seek to copyright any of the results: on the contrary, we would like to see our ideas disseminated as widely as possible.
• All members of the Bridges A/V team will be expected to prepare a brief on their project(s); these briefs will be presented and discussed at the Namche Conference.

The following projects are proposed for Spring 2003:

1. Rolwaling Hydropower Project
   One of our projects this past fall was to initiate a small hydroelectric plant in Rolwaling. We are working with FEED (P) Ltd, a Nepali consultancy specializing in hydropower development. Plans call for the installation of a 3kW Peltric set at a waterfall on Jomo'i Gol Chhu, a tributary to the Rolwaling River with its headwaters arising on the south face of Gauri Shankar. For this project we need volunteers to

   • raise money (about $11,000) (Useful background: fundraising.)
   • assist in the installation of the plant and power distribution apparatus (Useful background: civil and/or electrical engineering.)
   • collaborate with the residents in planning for the equitable and sustainable use of the power (Useful background: social work, cultural anthropology.)

   For more information see the Rolwaling Hydro Project feasibility report .

   Dried Foods

   There is an excellent opportunity for the preparation of dried potato products for trekkers. Some items, such as finger chips, could be dehydrated by solar devices; one item that we feel would be particularly marketable, shakpa or sherpa stew, would require an assist from an electric food dryer. (This device would have the added function of contributing a little heat to the household.) An electric vacuum sealer would be useful, though probably not essential. (Useful background: food preparation, business management.)

   Trekking equipment manufacture

   Bridges will initiate a small trekking equipment manufacturing enterprise. Light-weight materials will be imported to Rolwaling, where they will be sewn and marketed locally as well as supplied to Rolwaling-based outfitters and trekking agencies. We will start this enterprise with three mechanical (treadle) sewing machines, to be replaced later by faster and more efficient electric machines. In March 2003, we will bring a master tailor from Kathmandu to train the equipment makers. In addition, to support the trekking equipment manufacture, we will need to install a computer so that orders and design modifications can be e-mailed from Kathmandu; this equipment can be used to begin computer training in Beding. Internet connection will be available, as a telephone is to be installed at the Hydrology and Meteorology Department office; we will provide two or three laptop computers to initiate instruction. (Useful background: trekking equipment design, business management.)

   Education

   Lights and space-heaters will permit the operation of Beding’s schoolhouse during all or part of the fall and winter; the light will also permit home study during the long evenings. The importance of general education in raising economic opportunities cannot be overstated. Furthermore, if this enhancement of the school leads to further improvements, it could result in less reliance on boarding schools outside of Rolwaling Valley. (Useful background: education, electrical engineering, carpentry.)

   

   Waste Disposal

   In 2002 we helped locate and publicize the first official garbage dump at Beding. It is by no means adequate. Also, there are NO decent outhouses in Rolwaling. We need to develop a larger facility, and organize a clean-up. (Useful background: waste management, carpentry.)

   Water distribution

   The current hoses are not adequate. Beding needs real taps, and facilities for showering and washing clothes. (Useful background: civil engineering, plumbing.)

   Shower Facility

   Design and install a solar-powered shower facility for the Beding community. (Useful background: solar energy, carpentry.)

   Lodge and Restaurant Development

   Last year we assisted in the opening of the first four lodges at Beding. These are relatively primitive enterprises, and could benefit from assistance in

   • interior design (Useful background: familiarity with a broad range of trekking accommodations; carpentry.)
   • menu diversification. There is little to eat in Rolwaling other than potatoes, and the villagers know very few ways of preparing them. (By far the most common meal is boiled potatoes with salt and chili pepper.) We should write up a cookbook based on available foodstuffs so that both locals and tourists can get some more variety.our first step should be to introduce new vegetarian recipes featuring potatoes and wheat flour. (Useful background: cooking skills, nutrition.)
   • English and tourism services instruction. As they convert their homes into lodges, Beding entrepreneurs need skills to deal with their guests. We would like to design a crash course English-for-lodge-owners syllabus. (Useful background: ESL, tourism development, hotel management)

   Study of Rolwaling dialect

   The Sherpas speak a dialect of Tibetan. This dialect varies from region to region, and we urgently need someone to study the language spoken in Rolwaling before it disappears. (Useful background: linguistics, Sherpa, Tibetan.)

   Study and recording of Rolwaling songs and dances

   All successful Sherpa parties and festivals end up with dancing and singing late into the night. Visitors are always welcomed enthusiastically and vigorously encouraged to participate. Both song and dance are, however, deceptively complex: the choreographic and compositional structures are simple, but the elaboration is quite complex and quite beautiful. We would like to study these from two points of view: academic and entrepreneurial. It is important to record and study these traditions before they are completely overwhelmed by mainstream Nepali culture. Also, we would like to be able to offer instruction to tourists, so that they can participate in local festivities without feeling like bufoons, and also to reinforce local pride in the indigenous culture. (Useful background: ethnomusicology, music, dance.)

   Museum and Visitors' Center Proposal

   Ecologically and culturally, Rolwaling is quite interesting. As an east-west valley in the Himalayas of Nepal, Rolwaling has an ecosystem quite distinct from that of other valleys, almost all of which run north-south. According to Tibetan Buddhism, Rolwaling a beyul, or sacred valley, established by Guru Rinpoche for the preservation of dharma during times of oppression. In fact, Rolwaling is probably the most conservative Sherpa community today. Rolwaling is also the "Cradle of Heroes," home to 28 Everest summiters. Per capita, Rolwaling has far more world class mountaineers than any other place in the world. A visitors' center would serve several purposes:

   • inform tourists about the natural and cultural assets of Rolwaling
   • advise tourists as to how to safeguard those assets
   • foment research
   • promote pride among residents, and encourage local collaboration in conservation efforts.

   At this point, we need one or more volunteers to draw up a proposal for the visitors' center, and begin collections of photos, botanical specimens, cultural artifacts, literature, and recordings. (Useful background: museum curator, anthropology, ecology.)

   Medical aid

   Last year we established a small medical dispensary and ran a couple of workshops on first aid, hygiene, and core pharmaceuticals. In 2003 we would like to run a temporary clinic and continue the workshops, as well as undertake some baseline studies. (Useful background: medical or first aid training.)

   Herbal medicine

   We need to continue earlier work in identifying traditional medicines; we also want to see if we can start cultivating and harvesting some of these for local use and for sale to tourists. (Useful background: ethnobotany, greenhouse agriculture, hydroponics.)

   Yak (okay, nak!) butter

   We have identified a viable market for yak butter, but not enough is currently produced. We need to work out the carrying capacity for naks and find a way to increase production. (Useful background: agronomy, animal husbandry.)

   Gompa restoration

   Beding gompa has beautiful thanka murals by Kappa Kalden (the one great Sherpa painter); these are in dire need of rescue by a specialist! (Useful background: thanka art, restoration.)

   Ecological Survey

   Rolwaling is home to various charismatic mammals, including the snow leopard. There are numerous and persistent reports of yetis. Transient visitors include langur and jackal. There are numerous rare herbs and a good likelihood of unidentified species. To date, no systematic study of the Rolwaling flora and fauna has been undertaken. This is an urgent priority, especially since we need baseline data in order to monitor the impact of development, and in order to design specific conservation efforts. It is also important as a basis for tourism promotion. (Useful background: ecology, heritage interpretation.)

   Replicate Photography

   The analysis of photographs of specific sites taken over a period of time is one of the best ways to study change in the ecosystem and in the built environment. We need to analyze all available photographs of Rolwaling Valley, and to prioritize sites for repeat photography. (Useful background: ecology, photography.)

   Bazaar

   At present there is only one "store" at Beding. There is no bazaar in the valley at all, and none that we have seen in the Tamba valley below Rolwaling. We would like to start an autochthonous tradition at Simigaon or perhaps Drongkang, perhaps every other week in October and November. (By the way, the bazaar at Namche is also an artifact of recent tourism.) (Useful background: microeconomics, business management.)

   Dutch Rock

   Last fall Bridges established a glorious cairn at a promontory on the western lip of Tsho Rolpa which we are calling "Dutch Rock" in recognition of the early and persistent efforts of Summit Trekking agency, the Netherlands-Nepal Friendship Association, and Wavin (the company that manufactured the siphon pipes). We want to enlarge the cairn considerably in 2003. We intend to try to position Dutch Rock as a sort of terminus (a la Kala Pattar) for the Rolwaling trek. This will involve production of posters, t-shirts, and postcards, as well as targetedpromotion through guidebooks, news releases, and trekking agencies. Somewhere down the line, we would like to convert the cairn to a stupa to celebrate harmony in the Sacred Valley. (Stupas are the typical Tibetan Buddhist monument.) (Useful background: construction, masonry, advertising, public relations.)

   Publications and promotion

   Bridges is collaborating with anthropologist Janice Sacherer Turner, author of the seminal study The Sherpas of Rolwaling (unpublished Ph.D. thesis, Paris, 1977) to produce an updated monograph on Rolwaling, as well as a CD-ROM, and a pictorial volume. We need collaborators for these projects now, as well as people to work on subsequent editions. We need postcards, t-shirts, brochures, press releases. (Useful background: photography, heritage interpretation, anthropology, ecology.)

   Tsho Rolpa: research and publication

   For fifteen years Rolwaling has lived with the possiblility of extinction in a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) from Tsho (Lake) Rolpa at the head of the valley. This largest of Nepal's glacier lakes had been near breaching its moraine dam until an ambitious engineering project succeeded in lowering the lake level; the work is not yet finished.

   We need a volunteer to study the impact and evolution of the Tsho Rolpa hazard mitigation project. It has been extremely important to Rolwaling, as to downstream areas: the outburst threat has been a Damoclean sword dangling over infrastructure development (particularly the hydro-electric plant at Khimti), as well as potential tourism. A few years ago, a prediction that disaster was imminent led to panic. This kind of scare can have disastrous consequences when an economy is dependent on tourism. On the other hand, the notoriety of the potential killer lake is itself a significant attraction.

   The attempts to resolve the problem have had important consequences, ranging from direct injection of money in the form of wages, to trail and bridge enhancement, and significant alteration of the appearance of the lake itself. Any attempt to analyze tourism development in Rolwaling will have to take into all this into account; it is important to gather the details while the key players are still accessible.

   The Tsho Rolpa hazard mitigation project is important also because GLOF situations are going to become more and more common. There are hundreds of glacial lakes around the world. As global warming proceeds and the lakes grow, the number of serious threats will increase. Remote communities must understand the problem and the possible remedies; by gathering and publishing data about the technology and also about the human impact, we can assist in confronting a problem that affects tourism development and the very survival of remote destinations. (Useful background: engineering, hydrology.)

   The yeti: research, planning, and publication

   Rolwaling is Ground Zero for the most persistent reports of encounters with yeti, or "abominable snowman." This represents an unusual opportunity. On the one hand, the yeti is a natural focus for commercial exploitation. On the other, if the yeti does exist, it is certainly an endangered species requiring effective protection; tourism activity would have to be considered a serious hazard to its survival. The issues need to be studied, and the viewpoints of Rolwaling residents need to be taken seriously into account. (Useful background: zoology, cryptozoology.)

The yeti in local art.

Famous photo of putative yeti footprint taken by Eric Shipton on Menlung glacier in Rolwaling.

We welcome additional project suggestions. Proposals should include:

• A statement of purpose: what do you want to accomplish?
• A rationale: what use is this project to the host community, to tourists, and to yourself?
• A protocol: what do you intend to do, when, and where? I.e., what do you have to read? (It is not necessary to list actual titles.) Who do you need to contact and/or interview? What data do you need, and in what form will you acquire it? (interview, written survey, or whatever) What do you need to do? (Be specific.)
• What are your qualifications (professional, academic, personal) to undertake this particular project?

The Namche Conference. Bridges will be co-sponsoring an international conference in May 2003. A major theme at this conference will be the viability of conventional park structures. This is particularly important to us, because Rolwaling must soon decide whether to seek park status; if a park is organized, it will be essential to review all the known advantages and disadvantages of the organizational variables. We want to make an important contribution to the dialogue at the Namche Conference, and in Rolwaling.

At the same time, this conference offer a substantial opportunity to prospective professionals. We will encourage all past Bridges team members, not just those in the 2003 group, to return to Nepal for this event. Beyond the usual networking, the conference will offer our team members an opportunity to present important results to a gathering of their future colleagues and employers.