What is Hope Partnership Nepal?
Hope Partnership Nepal is a faith-based* non-profit organization that facilitatesThe Friendship Trek, the largest two-week community service event in Nepal.
*HPN does not proselytize and requires no statement of faith to participate in all aspects of program delivery. We welcome everyone to participate.
What are our priorities?
Priority is given to co-investment projects with preference to women, children and young people, including, but not limited to:
n Children and young people at risk of being forced into or who have been rescued from the sex trade
15,000 young Nepalese girls are abducted, tricked or sold into sex slavery each year and transported to India. (1 girl every 30 minutes) All are survivors of rape, many are HIV positive, few can return home.
n Children whose parents have been killed in the civil war
16,000 innocent people have died, thousands more tortured, "disappeared" or displaced.
n Women and young people in dire need of employment opportunities
Nepal is the 10th poorest country in the world.
n Children and young people from castes and ethnic groups too impoverished to get adequate education
Even government schools require tuition; two third of girls and women are illiterate.
n Families living on the capital's streets or in sub-standard living conditions
Kathmandu is the fourth fastest growing urban center in the world as villagers flee politically-motivated violence, unbridled crime and poverty rampant in rural Nepal.
What do we do?
HPN works collaborately to co-create projects to empower, equip and encourage our partners who are on the front lines of service. The key event of the year is a two-week community service experience called the Friendship Trek. Volunteers work side-by-side with Nepalese on co-investment projects, and participate in special events, trainings and awareness campaigns. Mentors are encouraged to participate in the Friendship Trek to further develop relationships with their Nepalese counter-parts through face-to-face interaction.
Why Nepal?
Nepal is a country in severe crisis due to centuries of discrimination, the lack of ethical, compassionate political leadership and the aftermath of a bloody civil war that continually threatens to erupt into new violence. Political, religious, caste-based, ethnic, criminal and other interests are violently wrestling for power, resulting in an increasing the number of impoverished and traumatized Nepalese.
Why Kathmandu?
The Kathmandu Valley, the hub of Nepalese culture, politics, religion, and business, is the 4th fastest-growing urban center in the world. What happens in Kathmandu impacts the entire nation. The Kathmandu Valley provides a strategic location for conducting and evaluating co-investment projects that address the systemic problems facing Nepal as a whole. Many of the individuals and organizations dedicated to improving conditions in Nepal are headquartered in the greater Kathmandu area. Social and business entrepreneurs, with a vision for developing effective strategies for Nepalese rural villages, are included in our network.
Why create partnerships?
We believe that committed, dynamic leadership is a core vehicle of social change. The future of women, children and young people in Nepal will be determined by the quality and longevity of leaders who are dedicated to service and social change. But leadership does not develop without teachers and mentors, resources and encouragement. To that end, HPN combines international volunteers with Nepal-based leadership in order to confront the complex issues the Nepalese are facing in their own country. By promoting excellence in leadership on the local level, HPN impacts Nepal as a nation, and demonstrates to the international community a model for leadership development and collaboration that can be replicated in other developing countries.
Why help the helpers?
HPN Partners, whether artists, activists or advocates, share a vision for equality and empowerment for all Nepalese. They devote their creativity and compassion to meeting the rapidly expanding needs of Kathmandu’s impoverished residents, while drawing from diminishing resources in a changing and confusing political environment. No matter how compelling the vision or how devoted a visionary may be, the stresses of living and serving in Kathmandu are great and discouragement is an ever-present specter.
Our Partners are rich in social capital, program experience and cultural know-how, having effectively launched successful efforts. While HPN works with both men and women leaders, a majority of Kathmandu’s entrepreneurs are women who are bringing about social change within a society that has disempowered women for centuries. Nepal can ill afford the loss of leadership due to burnout, especially among women who are putting themselves at risk by living out their dreams of equal opportunities.
Is HPN duplicating services?
We never ask volunteers to do what the Nepalese can do for themselves. We do not replace or duplicate services—but enhance and expand efforts that are producing successful change. We do not draw resources away from Nepal; rather our co-investment projects create local employment, and expand opportunities for the Nepalese with whom we work.
How can I become a volunteer?
We select our volunteers based on a demonstrated ability and willingness to 1) work with people of different social, economic, religious and cultural backgrounds, 2) provide expertise unique to the area of identified need and 3) move outside one’s personal and professional comfort zone in order to make a positive contribution to Nepal. Please conact us by clicking here.
Hope Partnership Nepal / 1003 Lakeview Terrace, Azusa, California 91702 / 626-616-9129
