Become a Bridge Builder 4 Nepal
Craig Frischling's Fundraiser for Education in Nepal
Become a Bridge Builder
Your support can build a bridge between the education system in Nepal today, and the modern education system the Nepalese people desire and demand.
Students exploring the newest Computer Learning Environment Center installed in November 2022 in Ghorka Distric, Nepal.
A Personal Note
Dear Friends,
As an early stage investor, I am lucky to work with many energetic and educated entrepreneurs who, through their ingenuity and hard work, create opportunities for themselves and so many others. As impressive as they are, their talents would have largely gone unnoticed and unused if opportunities were not also created for them by the communities in which they lived and learned.
In 2011, I visited Nepal and trekked through many remote communities, places one could reach only by foot, goat, or yak. Some of these towns are the last refuge of cultures and languages that cannot be found anywhere else. And the people there were just as energetic and hard-working as the people here.
Unfortunately, these communities do not have many of the educational or economic opportunities that we take for granted. Through Digital Bridges, I’m working to change that.
Digital Bridges is installing a network of digitally-enabled classrooms across Nepal, with a focus on rural and historically marginalized communities. For just $20,000, a school receives a fully outfitted classroom, teacher training, student orientation, and 2 full years of support from our staff in Nepal.
But that’s not all. By partnering with Nepalese diaspora communities in the US, Canada, Europe, and Australia, we are able to reduce the cost to our donors by 50% or more. So for every $10,000 raised, we are able to provide a rural school with computers, desks, chairs, online tools and training, and most importantly access to skills and knowledge that puts students from poor and rural schools in the driver seat so they can to pursue their own dreams and ambitions.
More immediately, by donating, you are helping young people gain skills and avoid the dangers, exploitation, and inhumanity experienced by the hundreds of thousands of Nepalese migrant workers who spent the last 10 years in a labor camp building stadiums, hotels, and whole cities for a World Cup (Link to New York Times).
We are all part of a connected world…even if the last mile of that connection is on the back of a yak. And no young person should be confronted with the stark choice between poverty and migration. Every young person deserves an education system that prepares them to succeed on their own terms, in their own country.
I invite you to join me in empowering communities through education. Every dollar gets a closer to a brand new classroom and a room full of curious and excited young people empowered to build the life they desire.
With gratitude,
Craig
Digital Bridges for Nepal in Action
Girls helping load in the equipment during the installation of the newest CLEC at Shree Siddhakali Higher Secondary School.
The Vision
Our goal is to construct a network of 100 digitally-enabled classrooms serving every district in Nepal.
By building a network of classroom, Digital Bridges is acting as a catalyst accelerating the much needed changes to the Nepalese education system that Nepalese young people themselves want and demand.
We link Nepalese in the diaspora and people of goodwill around the world with communities in Nepal who are desperate to modernize the education system so the next generation prepared to lead Nepal into a more just, climate change resilient, and equitable future.
With our partners, supporters and the communities we serve, we are building a bridge between the education system as it exists today in Nepal, and the truly modern education system all children deserve.
The Challenge
- "Nepal has struggled for decades to provide meaningful opportunities for large parts of its population, particularly for those who live in the countryside." - NY Times, November 2022.
- Nepalese “students are adept in tasks related to memorization and recall, but are not effective in skills requiring application or ability at a higher cognitive level." - UNESCO
- “Inequity, or disparity across social, income, and geographic dimensions... increases the vulnerability to shocks that can erode years of human capital investment.” - World Bank
- 85.52% of students in Nepal attend school until grade 10, but only 13.5% complete grades 11 & 12.
- Over 20% of GDP in Nepal comes from low-skill migrant workers who send paychecks home to keep their own children fed and in school.
The Solution
Digital Bridges 4 Nepal acts as a catalyst accelerating much needed change in Nepalese education by providing rural youth with access to information technology and high quality education
- Digital Bridges 4 Nepal leverages low-cost solutions to provide computers, network access, and training in order to enhance students' and teachers' skills, knowledge, practical experience and confidence in the use of information technology.
- Digital Bridges focuses on students in grades 11 & 12 so they are able to stay in school and continue their pursuit of useful knowledge and modern skills and pursue their own chosen pathway through life.
The Time to Act is Now
"For the first time in its history, Nepal is experiencing a demographic dividend... which is a phenomenon where young people account for the largest segment of the population of a country. This provides a unique opportunity for Nepal - an opportunity for young people to educate themselves, earn a sustainable living and contribute to the country." - UNDP
The current generation of young people in Nepal are too often forced to leave home to engage in migrant work in construction and other low-wage industries. It's time to invest in young people, so they can choose the future they desire!
Become a part of the Solution
Join with Digital Bridges, the Nepalese diaspora, and people of good will around the world to accelerate improvements in Nepal’s educational system.
Together we can empower Nepalese youth with the skills and knowledge they need to contribute to the growth and prosperity of their own communities and of all of Nepal.
