GVI, Ethical Impact: Volunteer in Nepal

Every single day on the GVI Nepal Women's Empowerment program was exciting, fulfilling and memorable. Pokhara is an incredible place which I might never otherwise have thought to visit - but it's an ideal backpacking destination to which I can't wait to return! The GVI homestay was modest but comfortable, and soon felt like home. The staff were so lovely and helpful, especially those with whom I worked on the Women's Empowerment project, and quickly felt more like friends than colleagues. Moreover, I was incredibly lucky to volunteer at the same time as some genuinely wonderful people, who soon felt like friends I'd known for years. That doesn't always happen when travelling with people you don't know, and I felt so blessed to experience it.

The program itself was well-established in the local community, and it was a huge privilege to meet and get to know the women coming to classes. I massively enjoyed creating and delivering the lessons, and only wish that I could have stayed longer to have made resources for more of the curriculum. In the future, I would love to see GVI expand their teaching locations to reach women in more rural locations, who may have little means of transportation but for whom learning English is a potentially life-changing skill. I believe this would massively increase GVI's positive impact in the Pokhara valley, and I would love to return to GVI Nepal to help with this expansion. For the time being, however, it is clear that the Women's Empowerment program is making a genuine difference in the community, and it was a true blessing to be a part of it, even for a short time.

There are a million things I could rave about - the food, the people, the landscape and lake, the weekend treks and smoothies and milk tea, the beauty of the mountains, the food (again). But all of it boils down to this simple message - GO! You will not regret it. Pokhara is an incredible place, and the work GVI is doing in the local community is vital and life-changing. You will experience things which you might never otherwise experience, and you will learn things about yourself and others which will alter your perspective on the world for the better. Do yourself a favour, and get out there!

Women’s Empowerment in Pokhara, Nepal. Simply put, the best experience and most worth while 2 weeks of my life.

It is wonderful to contribute to the amazing achievements that “base camp GVI team Pokhara, Nepal” ceaselessly deliver all year round. Their efforts and yours, when you join that team, enable the wonderful women, that I was privileged enough to meet, to brighten their future by learning English alongside a life skill that will enable them to sustain themselves in their future.

The women all share one thing in common, they have experienced a “challenging background”. Some related to human trafficking, some were child brides (the most extreme was a 3-year-old married to a 30-year-old man) and some extreme domestic situations. Their response is not bitterness, but it is a burning desire to improve their lives and their ability to support themselves and their families by learning new skills and that includes learning English. I never realised how hard English is until you must teach it to someone else and try and explain its logic! It has left me feeling extremely lucky, humble and inspired by those ladies. I am in awe of the women.

It is impossible to convey how phenomenally brilliant my time at Pokhara volunteering was – so that this does not read like a Emily Bronte novel – I will bullet point it.

Tara – the main man for “basecamp GVI team Pokhara, Nepal”
• What an amazing guy – no wonder there were over 1200 at his wedding
• Met me with a smile and huge welcome at the airport (despite my phone not working and flight being delayed by 2 hours)
• Immediately gave me a credit card sized contact details info – ideal as I am good at getting lost and my phone wouldn’t work – oh I have said that already!!
• Sorted a hotel out for me for the first night (I overlooked booking it and finding a hotel was not so easy as it was Nepal New Year – they are up to 2081 already!!)
• Set up a WhatsApp group so that I could link with the other new arrivals for a meal on the first night - advise stick to vegetarian options when you ordering by photo – mine didn’t resemble the photo and tasted as bad as it looked (don’t ask) – still having nightmares about it!!!!
• Creates a huge “family feel” for the volunteers, the other staff members, the homestay hosts – the ripple effect of camaraderie extends to all the others involved in the volunteering projects.
• He is “ever present.” He is there and relaxed at every meal time, Wednesday social evening at a local café when you play card games, at the end of each day and for every meeting.
• He is only ever one WhatsApp message away if you were to have a problem

The homestay
• As the name implies, you feel welcome and looked after as if you are staying at home
• The host couple are seldom seen – but are lovely when you meet them
• Chitra is the wonderful lady that does all the home cooking
• All the meals are fabulous – all breakfasts and evening meals except one when everyone goes out for a social evening (my meal cost £3.50) are provided
• As there are set mealtimes – everyone eats together and they are sociable
• Lunches – are at local cafes with the others on your project, organised and paid for by GVI – excellent food, I recommend the spicy chutney that is served with the roti curry
• The twin rooms are lockable, clean, beds are comfortable, with bed linen and duvet and ensuite shower room – be patient – the hot water takes a while to come through. There is a ceiling fan and plug sockets seem “universal” all 2/3 pin combinations including UK work
• I brought my own flip flops (although there were some clogs) for the shower and a camping blow up pillow – there were good pillows, but I like really soft ones.
• You must bring your own towels (luckily, I did read that bit)
• Filtered water available to fill your water bottles (bring a 1 litre one)
• Everyone washes their own plates after a meal, you clean your own room and you get allocated household tasks- mine was wiping the table down after breakfast – exhausting!!! Not.
• Chitra washes all the pots and pans - she is so friendly
• Right in the middle of the city – so a great location for exploring – quiet at night apart from the first night – New Year’s Eve fireworks
• There is a covered outside seating area and a covered communal balcony.

Pokhara
• Amazing city, fabulous people, unforgettable memories of harmonious chaos
• Driving – there is only one rule – there are no rules
• But there is no road rage – it’s astonishing (really funny – because I have been teaching English I think –“is it astounding or astonishing”!!)
• At T junctions – there are no signs, no traffic lights, people just slow down a bit and weave between each other to get to where they want to go
• No one speeds
• The only time you hear a horn is an alert that someone is overtaking when you least expect it
• Overtaking on blind bends – no problem – everyone slows down, tucks in or stops to avoid any incident if someone appears coming head on
• I didn’t drive – but you get taken to the projects in a small travel coach
• There is a gym and a swimming pool nearby (I was reliably informed)
• There is a local “laundry service” – drop it off, pick it up, costs less than a pound

Life with the other volunteers
• You meet everyone at mealtimes so friendly and easy atmosphere
• There are meetings so we all know what is going on
• There’s always a current WhatsApp group for photo sharing and reminding people what is going to happen
• Most volunteers are on a gap year/ just graduated. Not only does it “look good on a CV” but it is fabulous fun and will give lifelong happy memories
• Brilliant mix of nationalities – although this did create friendly discussion about pronunciation, spelling and other grammar minutiae (In England, we correctly say “at the weekend” whereas in US and Australia they say “on the weekend” – this had us all laughing whilst debating the merits of our logic and google didn’t help either side strengthen their argument)

Time – day to day
• Set meal times – breakfast 8.15am week days, 9am weekends. Friday is pancake day. You can choose eggs or porridge or both daily, cereals are available – all served with toast and bananas
• Set off to volunteering project at 9.30am
• Lunch at the local café
• Afternoon volunteering project
• Conversation club (for children 5 years upwards) is on every evening for an hour – different activities and different volunteers every day
• There is a white board in the dining room so that you know where you need to be every day
• Unhurried lifestyle – plenty of time to organise yourself
• Mix of free time, volunteering time, social time, meal time – ideal balance has been achieved
• Weekends – people can explore locally, lunches are at the local café, there are different activities that you can do that are really cheap and Tara will help you to organise
. Many volunteers combine their trip with an organised hiking trip - again - Tara is a great source of information

Other members of staff that I worked closely with on Women’s Empowerment

Sita – what a truly beautiful person, inside and out
• She works full time teaching on the women’s projects
• As she lives at the homestay, she attends all the social events
• When you teach, she points out the exact page in the book, advises you how it is normally taught but then happily allows you to teach it in a style that you choose
• Great company at the lunch time meals at the local cafes

Tsiring and I walked at the same speed so commonly walked together to the projects
• She is originally from Tibet
• I learnt all about the significance of that and its impact on her life within Nepal
• Tip from Tsiring, bring an umbrella – dual purpose – keeps you cool in the sun and dry in the rain

Mhendo works with the project as well and has excellent taste in music – same as mine!

Roshni runs the kids’ conversation club “CC”. Be prepared. One girl, aged 6, asked me if I had heard of John Jones. I asked if she meant Tom Jones, but she said no. She then proceeded to tell me about John Jones who was exploring the Nutty Putty cave in Utah, that his girlfriend reported him missing, that he had got stuck, how long they tried to rescue him, that he died and his body is still in there so the cave has now been blocked off. I was speechless.

As I did Women’s Empowerment – the local projects that I went to

Sesana – this is the one for girls that have been rescued from human trafficking
• Welcome weekend we were taught to make momos
• Little signs of the trauma and loss of a normal childhood– the girl that covered her ears because of the noise created by the group answering questions together and the girl that asked could she keep the paper chain doll that I made as she had always wanted one
• Alongside learning English, the girls learn how to cook
• By the end of their supported learning, some go on to become paralegals whilst others learn the skills to cook or can work in the hospitality sector
• This means that they require no long-term support, but they are gaining the skills to live an independent life

The sewing room project
• This is run from someone’s house – as in the room that they live in
• There is a bed in the corner
• There are 6 sewing machines for the project along one wall
• After the 3 months course when they learn to make clothes, they are given their sewing machine and supplied with the material so they can make and sell clothes locally – so that they and their community benefit
• You teach whilst sitting on the floor

The others are taught from primary school rooms. As I have said – you never realize how hard English is until you try and teach it. The women amazed me, I was in awe, of their determination to learn in spite of the difficulties. One of the wonderful distractions is the pre-school children that come with their Mums.

Resources. Apart from the white boards, the English is taught from one well-thumbed 2007 paperback English book. For props to teach in/out/ along/ through etc – I made toilet roll bridges, a car (imagination required), paper doll chains, paper airplanes etc. Everyone really enjoyed this lesson – as did I.

Funding. The initial cost that you pay to GVI allows GVI to pay for the homestay, the food, transport, the staff salaries and ensures that the projects are run all year round whether there are volunteers or not. Funding for the projects and their expansion is reliant on additional contributions that go directly to “base camp GVI Pokhara, Nepal.”

The mantra that everyone is an equal - respect all those that are being helped and enable them to gain the education and training that most of us have taken for granted. GVI support and promote independence not create a state of dependency.

Truly, the most rewarding and life changing experience of my life. Volunteer now!

I miss everyone.

Women’s Health Empowerment in Pokhara, Nepal. Simply put, the best experience and most worthwhile 2 weeks of my life.

It is wonderful to contribute to the amazing achievements that “base camp GVI team Pokhara, Nepal” ceaselessly deliver all year round. Their efforts and yours, when you join that team, enable the wonderful women, that I was privileged enough to meet, to brighten their future by learning English alongside a life skill that will enable them to sustain themselves in their future.

The women all share one thing in common, they have experienced a “challenging background”. Sex trafficked/ child brides/ other domestic situations.
When you arrive to volunteer - you are fabulously well looked after.
Tara – the main man for “basecamp GVI team Pokhara, Nepal" - amazing guy – no wonder there were over 1200 at his wedding. Creates a huge “family feel” for the volunteers, the other staff members, the homestay hosts – the ripple effect of camaraderie extends to all the others involved in the volunteering projects.
Homestay - fabulous - lockable twin rooms, comfy beds, ensuite shower room, ceiling fan, universal plug sockets. Chitra cooks amazing food and lunches are all included at a local cafe.
Pokhara, amazing city, brilliant, harmonious friendly people, many combine volunteering with a trekking week (Tara would help you to organise that!)
Mix of free time, volunteering time, social time, meal time – ideal balance - mainly gap year/ student volunteers - great atmosphere. On Women's Empowerment, worked with Sita - beautiful inside and out - directed your teaching whilst respecting your independent ideas. Tsiring, fabulous lady from Tibet, full of wonderful insight into the life in Nepal. From the education given, some have become paralegals.
The life skills taught include cooking (I got a chance to make momos on the introductory weekend - harder than it looks!), Some are taught sewing/ haberdashery. On completion of the 3 month course, they are given a sewing machine to take home and materials - so they can make clothes, sell them to enable them to benefit themselves, their families and the local communities. The whole aim is to enable the women to be independent not create dependency.
Most worthwhile, life changing, inspirational fortnight of my life. Thank you to everyone. I miss them all. If you are in doubt whether to go - don't be. Book now.

In October 2023 I worked on the GVI Nepal Community Development internship for 4 weeks. During my time I worked one to one with the women’s empowerment project to teach computer literacy skills as well as English language skills in a group and one on one setting. The work was very rewarding as I got to build rapport with the wonderful women I was working with. Whilst completing the internship I gained valuable communication skills as learnt a great deal about Nepalese culture from the women we worked with. At weekends and evenings we visited the local surroundings including hiking to take in the beautiful scenery, watching films at an open air cinema and enjoying food in the lakeside restaurants. It was so lovely to meet likeminded people and it felt like a big family by the end of my time.

I’m actually on my last day here. It’s 2:30am. I’d first like to comment if you sleep lightly, like I do, be aware dogs will bark at all times of day and night. Nonstop. Earplugs if you can, I personally don’t like wearing them so I usually end up in a bad mood. Nothing really to be done about this but I feel it needs to be said. There’s also a hotel two doors down that is notoriously loud as well. Overall it’s not that quiet of an environment. I’ve been here for two months and while I understand extravagant meals shouldn’t be expected, I find the bland breakfast hard to have EVERY SINGLE DAY, I’d recommend a higher budget to have variety. Or if you’re not fussed, great. The recruiter low balls the amount spent outside of the gvi price a ridiculous amount, Riana claims the average spent a month is $200 so budget for that. Unless you sit in your room all everyday this is completely false. Again, bring more money. You also, according to my past two month experience have to pay for Wednesday “social nights” (if you go out together) and Friday night meals despite it being a “GVI night out” which is asinine to me. I’ve already complained about this and I know previous volunteers did as well. If it’s GVI based it should be GVI funded, end of story. Hopefully for any future volunteers they change that bs.
You have one quick lesson in language, sure you can ask the staff anytime to help teach you more; but I expected to be in legitimate classes and to retain how to speak to locals. I was disappointed.
Construction is limited and lacking. The construction manager is a fun guy and I appreciate his personality and honesty, but the program doesn’t necessarily meet the expectations. You may have no projects. You may only paint. Or maybe you’ll be lucky and have more things to actually construct. The tools and supplies are lacking and minimal to no safety equipment is provided. This is a management and GVI issue as well. Fix it.
Teaching is not for the faint of heart nor inexperienced, there is minimal structure to follow, the kids are energetic and somewhat hard to calm down and have focus on a lesson plan that is almost entirely the volunteers responsibility, or so I’ve been told by multiple volunteers.
Also I’m not sure what they mean by working with children in this program description. After school you spend an hour in CC with super rambunctious children in a random courtyard with books they kind of read or some brief “lesson” or arts and crafts. I’d encourage games so they can burn off energy. It wasn’t my favorite experience especially having to cross the crazy busy roads with the kids but they can be fun and cute, as kids are. I just again, expected more.
Women’s Empowerment: this was my experience. You teach. Every day. You spend one day with the local ngo as they advertise and have a nice little cooking class and they give a presentation on actual impactful programs. The rest of the time you visit SASANE you might teach, if the students show up. Teaching involves unstructured lessons, again, almost entirely left to the responsibility of the volunteers even if you have absolutely no intention nor experience of teaching. I personally wouldn’t mind doing some but I’ve expressed to GVI and staff I did not pay to teach every single day of this program. The women themselves are so sweet and lovely and frankly DESERVE more. The women staff within GVI overwork and are under appreciated by this company, my guess underpaid as well. There needs to be more variety within the program for the women’s sake and for the volunteers. The current management needs maybe some
management courses under his belt. He’s not really involved in any of the project, he seems to only be concerned with taking the commission of the extracurricular adventures that he uses his other company for. I also had a personal experience of him opening my bedroom door while I was undressed and uninvited. Obviously horribly inappropriate and violating of my privacy, I have yet to see GVIs response or actions taken to make my experience better (reimburse me GVI). No doubt swept under the rug as these types of companies do (please prove me wrong GVI).

Overall I put the responsibility on GVI itself. They misrepresent what this program entails when you, especially if you’re American like me, spend THOUSANDS of dollars not including the flights, souvenirs, excursions, MEALS, and any extra things outside of the actual expense of this program. If I had known per description that I’d be teaching basic grammar everyday I certainly wouldn’t have come for two months. I had heard from other GVI volunteers in another country that they did not pay for any meals or drinks (one volunteer, for example ordered 10+ shots of hard alcohol and GVI still covered) but yet we were told certain meals and activities were our responsibility to pay for.
Again the women staff currently (Sita Roshani Mhendo Tsering) are amazing people and I wish them better than GVI, frankly. Bibek in construction gives life to the construction. The women in Nepal are sweet and deserve more than provided for by GVI.
Management here needs rearranging.
I doubt you’ll hate this experience but please do understand it’s overpriced and misrepresented in the initial description that is meant to draw in volunteers. Personally I think that’s fraudulent.

Nepal is beautiful. There are beautiful local programs that are less expensive and potentially more impactful, if interested in working with victims of human trafficking I suggest contacting SASANE and joining their program in Kathmandu or maybe something per their suggestion. Because you certainly do bare minimum if anything at all through GVI, which was my initial desire to join this company in the first place.

I want the staff here to continue getting paid and hopefully the program gets the attention, resources, funding, and transparency it needs for that to happen. But I don’t think I’ll be choosing GVI ever again.

My first experience of volunteering was with GVI in Nepal, I was very excited but also apprehensive as i didn't know what to expect. I had the most amazing time and met incredible people who I will never forget. The ladies were so open to learning and to see their progress over the six weeks was uplifting and humbling.
I also worked with the children, doing simple things like arts and crafts had them wide eyed with amazement, it was such a pleasure to see their faces and when we did sports they joined in and had so much fun.
GVI staff were so supportive, especially as i had a bereavement during my stay. there was so much to at weekends, which allowed me to find out more about the country and culture

I spent five weeks in Nepal four of those were spent in Pokhara on the "Womens Empowerment Program" what a truly amazing experience, Nepal is a beautiful country, people and the scenery is breathtaking. The program was a very rewarding experience, Im 52 and would never have thought I would have had the confidence to stand up in front of a class and teach English to a room full of strangers. Thanks to Hannah and Sita the lovely GVI staff they helped me overcome my nerves and help me find my confidence. I thought I was there to teach and empower these lovely girls and ladies, in actual fact they were there to teach me. I learnt so much about myself, and loved spending time with the students, children and fellow housemates in my homestay. I have made lifelong friends and any travel I do in future I will do as a volunteer its so very different than travelling as a tourist, you are embraced into the community and really feel you are making a difference to peoples lives. What a fabulous experience , do yourself a favour and step outside your comfort zone, It really is life changing.

In February 2020, I spent 4 weeks in Pokhara, Nepal on the GVI Healthcare programme, and I can honestly say it was the most amazing 4 weeks of my life. I spent time visiting two different schools, conducting healthcare workshops on a variety of topics from hand washing and dental health to friendship. The children seemed very engaged and receptive to our workshops, and being allowed to independently lead the classes gave me the opportunity to improve my leadership skills, whilst always being supported by the GVI staff so I never felt alone. The GVI staff were all incredible, always taking onboard volunteers suggestions and creating a happy and supportive environment. One of the main reasons I loved the GVI Pokhara base was because of its strong sense of community with all staff and volunteers being united by their unwavering commitment and determination to complete all project tasks to the best standard possible. The work done by GVI in Pokhara and its surrounding areas is so clearly appreciated by the people there and the fact that if you ever mentioned you were working with GVI you would only ever receive a positive response highlights the fabulous work done by the GVI team. I would not fail to recommend GVI to anybody, and particularly the Pokhara base, which provided me with 4 unforgettable weeks and is somewhere I am hoping to return to in the near future.

I spent a month in Pokhara, Nepal working with the women's empowerment team. I had a brilliant time, every day working with the various groups of women was exciting, interesting, and no day was the same! We worked in Pokhara and in communities in villages outside the city, meeting lots of different women, and getting to experience different sides of Nepal.
We were made to feel welcome by everyone we met in Nepal, from the house 'mother' and 'father' we lived with in the homestay, to the GVI team and the women we worked with. The homestay is comfortable and clean, and only sharing a room and bathroom with one other person is fab compared to a hostel type situation! We're given breakfast and dinner, and lunch is sorted for us out on project in local cafes and restaurants.
Pokhara is a lively place to be, with lots of cafes and bars, yoga studios, outdoor cinemas, lakeside restaurants, and there are so many things to do, from paragliding to day trips to mountain villages on your days off. I would highly recommend exploring the countryside around Pokhara, including going up to Annapurna Base Camp, walking up to the Peace Pagoda, and visiting Dhampus. It's a really beautiful country.
I would highly recommend this project, and would love to go back!