Haushala Thapa

Haushala Thapa @haushala.thapa, is a dedicated educator and social entrepreneur, known for her work in providing quality education to marginalized communities in Nepal through her organization Children and Youth First Nepal (CYF). Her creative memory education approach and use of nature as a tool for learning have enabled accessibility and nurtured growth for over 80 children. Haushala’s work also extends to promoting sustainable fashion through her clothing repair and swap brand, Haushala Creatives, and her role as country coordinator for Fashion Revolution Nepal and Nepal ambassador for Global Fashion Exchange.

IRK: Tell us your “Why”?

Haushala Thapa: Nature is my first and foremost inspiration and then the children I work for. Every day on our farm from the caterpillars, ants, earthworms, and the weather pattern changes teaches and inspires me that this is a cycle of learning. Besides that, what keeps me going as well is education and a safe childhood space to create healthy memories should be the right for every child. I started this because where we belong and where we are born shouldn’t be the factor of if we receive education and care or not. Every child in the world deserves a dignified childhood.

The spirit that drives me is when every time a child finds honor and respect in their own culture, language, and food and when their enthusiasm to learn more is expressed, that spirit helps me do more. Remembering that we all have a child in all of us and just because some or the system doesn’t acknowledge that we should never crush that spirit. A child’s spirit is that similar to the weather patterns, of that of the farm you work on, and similar to that of understanding where lives do need attendance at the right time needed so that the results are healthy.

IRK: What are you most passionate about with respect to taking care of people and the planet? 

Haushala Thapa: I myself come from an indigenous group called Magar and Gurungs. I am extremely passionate about nature-based learning for children and adults. Nature has its unique tools to help us, understand and move forward in the healing process. If we allow and give ourselves permission to listen to nature, there is a lot of compassion, balance, and understanding. I advocate passionately for the saving of natural forests and habitat conservation which aligns directly with our existence of being. Children thrive the most when they are in natural environments and are with the tools of nature to learn from.

IRK: What are some conscious actions you implement in your daily life?

Haushala Thapa: I have made a conscious action to repair my clothes as much as possible and also use toiletry items that are not harmful to the earth. Meaning I buy items that are refillable and when the end life is reached the material is consciously good for the soil.

IRK: What’s your hope for the future of the planet? 

Haushala Thapa: Being an educator and working with children, I am a hopeful person. But I believe that the future of the planet now more than ever lies in the hands of big corporations and governments to steer towards a certain direction which makes this place we all call home a livable place. I have read somewhere that humans are one of the only species that destroy our own home whereas the rest of the species work towards saving it.

A hopeful future means a place where there is clean drinking water for everyone, clean air to breathe, and safe soil to grow our food. We do have limited time not just because of climate change but if we head in the same mentality that there is enough land to dump things, there will come a time in the near future when there might not be enough land to grow food or formulate towards a livable planet. Thus the generation now and the one that is growing to be part of the global economy should not be discarded in that conversation about the future of the planet. If every individual adds to the global economy, every individual does have a right to demand safe drinking water, clean air, and safe soil to grow food for the present and the future.

What Sustainable Development Goal do you align with the most? (https://sdgs.un.org/goals)

Haushala Thapa: Living in Nepal, I align myself with all the goals but specifically with the work I do, I align myself to SDG 1: No poverty. But also redefining what poverty means. Access to quality education for every child, zero hunger, bringing access to nutritional food and access to land to grow your own food, gender equality, clean drinking water, and sanitation. Affordable clean energies for everyone, decent and dignified work for the betterment of the economy, climate action centering indigenous people, and global partnerships with strong peace and justice institutions that are free from political/business alliances.