School Expansion Underway in Kachra Kundi!

By: Ammara Bokhari | Director of Global Projects | Thaakat Foundation

We have some exciting updates to share on our “Dreams for Kachra Kundi” project! Our school that opened this past June with over 300 students is adding five more classrooms in a recently launched expansion project. Student enrollment has been increasing at a non-stop rate and thanks to the generous support of our amazing donors, we will soon be able to accommodate more children. Construction of the five additional classrooms began last week and will be completed within one month. We can expect to start the new year with new classrooms, accommodating new faces, hiring more teachers, and hopefully still maintaining your unwavering support, without which this would not have been possible!

The opening of Al-Khair Campus III, (the name of our school in partnership with Idara Al-Khair) has been very well received by the community of Kachra Kundi. Families excitedly began sending their children to school as news spread across town that there was now an opportunity to receive a primary education- a much needed change for these kids who come from a lifestyle of picking through garbage as a means for living. Ambitious little minds quickly filled the nine classrooms we began with in June, so much so that overcrowding has now become an issue. There are still several more children that anticipate enrolling in the new year. Thaakat aims to accommodate these children and the school’s needs throughout the year.

Along with our donors, we owe it to our great partnership with Idara Al-Khair, who has ever so diligently managed our school site. They have been working away this past week on construction to ensure it is completed in January 2013. These pictures show the foundation being laid out for the five new classrooms being built adjacent to our school site:

Kachra Kundi is a large garbage dump site in Pakistan, located 50 miles away from the city of Karachi, and home to thousands who earn their livelihood from collecting waste and selling it to recycling centers. Residents of this community have been deprived of basic necessities such as electricity and clean water, and previously there had been zero access to education. Eight years ago, our partner Idara Al Khair began building schools in Kachra Kundi, which now boasts three campuses, of which Thaakat is part of Campus III. Our school on Campus III is located in a remote area that previously had no access to an educational facility, and serves primary school children.

Classes Officially Start at Kachra Kundi School!

By: Ammara Bokhari | Director of Global Projects | Thaakat Foundation

It’s official, our dreams for Kachra Kundi are finally coming true! Thaakat is proud to announce that our school’s classrooms opened its doors to 68 eager students and today boasts 325 students in attendance with more waiting. Some of them traveling from as far as five kilometers away at the opportunity to attend. Fourteen teachers have been appointed, with six to seven more planning to come on board. The subjects being taught are: English, Math, Science, Social Science, Art, Urdu, and Sindhi (the commonly spoken Urdu dialect of the region). 250 desks are ready to use, a water tank has been installed on a nearby hill, and bathrooms are currently being completed. This would not have been possible without all of Thaakat’s amazing supporters! Thank you for believing in the dream and letting us get this far! #lethedreambe’ Stay tuned for new pictures!

Construction of the school called Al-Khair Campus III, began early this year. Our partner Idara Al-Khair managed construction throughout its entire process and we’re so pleased with the results!

You may remember the launch of our “Dreams for Kachra Kundi” campaign last summer. How exactly did we come to where we are today with this project, from a simple dream of bettering a community to launching an officially up and running school? Below is a quick guide to help you understand:

Project Overview: Building a school in Pakistan, located in a clean and safe environment to educate the underprivileged children of Kachra Kundi, who have dreams to rise up and make something of themselves.  The school currently has 9 completed classrooms which will serve primary and secondary level teachings.

What is Kachra Kundi? An enormous garbage dump area in the village of Jam Chakro, a 45 minute drive from Karachi, Pakistan. Garbage from the city of Karachi is dumped around the clock here. Kachra Kundi translates in Urdu to mean “Garbage District”.

Who lives in Kachra Kundi and what do they do? More than 300 families live among the garbage and every family member earns a living by collecting recyclables (iron, copper, bones, plastic, etc.) from massive hills of burning waste as there are no composting or recycling processes available.

Do we have a partner organization that is doing the work in Pakistan? Yes! Thaakat initially learned of the project through em[POWER] who was working in the area to research sorting processes in the waste to bring a more economical way of living to the community. em[POWER] Energy Group, Inc. is a New Jersey-registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization that seeks to revitalize landfill communities throughout the world using a modular and scalable cooperative development model based on renewable resources.

Thaakat then contacted on site partner Idara Al-Khair, a welfare organization in Pakistan. It was founded by a man named Mohammad Mazahir Sheikh, who had a dream to help educate the poor children of Pakistan more than 25 years ago. Dawn News, GEO, and other Pakistani media outlets have interviewed Mazahir and did inspiring pieces on his organization’s work in Kachra Kundi. Their first school was in Mustafa Colony, which started out with just a few students two decades ago, and now boasts 2,200 children who learn daily in the 200 classrooms of the school. Thaakat has had a great partnership with Idara and is so appreciative of the individual attention they give to each child. Check out the video featuring footage from a Dawn News segment: Kachra Kundi on Dawn News

Why are we helping them? Garbage is burned daily, which has caused excessive pollution and disease. Not only are the residents of Kachra Kundi deprived of civic facilities like clean water, shelter, and electricity, but there had previously been zero access to education in this village- making these children oblivious to the outside world. Previous to Idara Al-Khair entering the village, the site’s volunteer doctor described the children as having maggots in their ears and flies nesting in sores on their bodies. They did not wash their faces and had become so regular to ingesting the burning fumes.

Eight years ago, our partner Idara Al-Khair brought in 16 teachers to educate the children of Kachra Kundi. They run a primary school in the midst of the garbage and we are now building a large combined secondary and primary school in a clean and safe area, which will be away from the central hazard area. We hope to see these children go onto college one day! Our school is called Al-Khair Campus III.

What is #lethedreambe’? I’ve seen this on Facebook! A fundraising campaign we launched in March 2012 to inspire people to donate to our project. The campaign is led by a team that strategizes ways to grow this campaign and our funding. They come up with catchy ideas, logos, pictures, videos, events, etc. and from it came the #lethedreambe’ hashtag so it could go viral. The campaign has its own page on Facebook, which you can follow by clicking here along with a fundraising page on Crowdrise.  In 2011 we fundraised to build the 9 classrooms for the new site.  The #lethedreambe’ team is now trying to raise funding to construct more classrooms and provide desks, teaching boards, water connections, and other facilities. The team members include: Faizan Zaidi (NJ), Ridah Manan (NJ), Aarish Mustafa (IL), Ammara Bokhari (IL), Nudrat Zoha (IL), Zoha Hussain (IL), Sarah Mobin (IL). Feel free to reach out to any of these people via Facebook for more information or comments.

Has Thaakat ever visited Kachra Kundi? Yes!  A couple Thaakateers have visited the site and met with our partner organization! Uzma Bawany-Ali visited Kachra Kundi on her trip to Pakistan in December 2011. Faizan Zaidi visited Kachra Kundi during his trip to Pakistan in summer of 2011 (his pictures have been included throughout this fact sheet!). Check out the links below of Youtube videos Uzma made on her trip to Kachra Kundi:

Video footage of Kachra Kundi  (1)

Video footage of Kachra Kundi  (2)

Who are the Al-Khair Tigers? The Al-Khair Tigers are a mighty soccor team made up students of the Kachra Kundi area. Idara Al-Khair helped set up the team in 2012, strongly believing in promoting healthy extra cirrucular activities that will keep the children active. These mighty little Tigers are so good that they’ve been selected to take part in a competition organized by Zong Pakistan (a cellular phone company) in partnership with Manchester United. The Tigers are competing for being selected to attend a 1-week soccer training school in the United Kingdom!

How can people donate to this project? Please visit
http://www.thaakat.wordpress.com/donate
to view various donation options!

Timeline of Project Updates:

• Summer 2011: Began fundraising; Faizan Zaidi visited Kachra Kundi site.

• December 2011: Purchased land to build school and began construction; Uzma Bawany-Ali visited project site.

• January 2012: Walls of the school are up and construction of nine classrooms is completed. Construction of the restrooms and digging for water connection piping begins.

• February 2012: Thaakat meets with the former Governor of Sindh, General Moinuddin Haider to talk about Kachra Kundi and learn about their needs. Mr. Haider learned of Idara Al-Khair’s work in educating children of poor villages near Karachi during his time as Governor of Sindh and was greatly inspired by it mentioning, “…when these children complete their 10-years of education, we want them to go to college, which will enable them to go to an engineering college or a medical college or some professional college.” Indeed, Thaakat has the same goal for these children!

• March 2012: Launched #lethedreambe’ campaign and formed a volunteer team that leads this campaign.

• April 2012: The Al-Khair Tigers soccer team is formed for the Kachra Kundi kids to take part in.

• May 2012: Bathrooms are constructed; parents start inquiring about registration which should open shortly. 100 desks are completed for the classrooms. With the region’s extreme summer heat in mind, the desks are made of steel legs to be strong and wooden tops, so that they won’t absorb heat.

• June 2012: The classrooms officially launched! 68 students attended the first day of classes, with some children traveling as far as 5 kilometers just to attend. Two teachers have been appointed and 250 desks are ready to be used! A water tank for the school is set on a nearby hill. Congratulations Thaakat on this exciting launch! As of July 30, 2012 we have 325 students in attendance!

Update on “Dreams for Kachra Kundi”

Brought to you by: Ammara Bokhari/Director of Global Projects/Thaakat Foundation

Miles away from the metropolitan city of Karachi, Pakistan is one of its largest landfill sites called Kachra Kundi. It is home to thousands of families and children, living unaware of a life outside of this vast garbage dump site. In partnership with Idara Al-Khair Welfare Society, Thaakat Foundation is building a new and improved educational facility in a safe and clean area near Kachra Kundi for hundreds of students to receive a proper education in a proper school environment.

Thaakat launched its fundraising campaign “Dreams for Kachra Kundi” last summer and raised more than $11,000! Our Executive Director, Uzma Bawany-Ali, was fortunate enough to visit Kachra Kundi this past December on her recent visit to Pakistan and recalls, “As we entered the shantytowns bordering the hills of waste, cow manure, and burning garbage, my heart dropped to see these children trying to fight the worst kind of poverty. As I walked into the classrooms of Idara Al Khair, the organization managing the school, a strong sense of hope emerged. Children with zero access to the outside world were sitting there writing in English. Their little hands passionately wrote as their smiles conquered any sense of agony.” Uzma was able to capture a few moments of her visit on camera. Click here for video footage of Kachra Kundi.

Construction for the new school site began late last year after purchasing the land. Currently, the structure has been built and the walls of the school are up with nine classrooms nearly completed.  Our school is called Al-Khair Campus III. Click here for video footage of the construction site.

Idara Al-Khair successfully runs primary schools in the Kachra Kundi area, educating 250 children every single day of the year and 2,200 children at their first site in Mustafa Colony. The schools run seven days a week, throughout the year, showing just how eager the children are to learn and how passionate the teachers are to educate these young, hopeful minds. We are hoping to soon complete construction of our secondary school at Kachra Kundi, and provide educational materials and supplies along with funding teacher’s salaries.

Funds Needed for Project Completion and 1-Year Sustainability: $16,000

Thaakat Continues to Help Flood Victims in Pakistan

It has been a bitter reality to face- more than a year has passed since severe floods ravaged through Pakistan- yet rain season this year brought on greater floods, increased number of deaths, countless misplaced families and homes, and millions more desperate for help. The Sindh area continues to be in a grim state of need as foreign aid diminishes along with media attention to the problem.

Thaakat’s global volunteers in Pakistan coordinated a relief mission to the Badin region of Sindh (located about 100 miles east of Karachi), earlier this month. Hundreds of families were given food packages and bottled mineral water in the flood ravaged villages of Badin. There was a large Hindu population in this area who received help and our mighty volunteers recalled it being an incredible experience to provide relief to these people who have truly lost everything. Seeing them walk away with smiles on their faces was priceless. Thank you to all who donated to Thaakat’s flood relief efforts. Here are a few people from the villages of Badin who you’ve helped bring smiles to:

Thank you!

2nd Annual “Hoops for Hunger” Basketball Tournament: Success!

Thaakat’s 2nd Annual Basketball Tournament this weekend was a great success! It could not have been possible without the support of some generous sponsors, incredible volunteers, and dedicated teams and fans!

The two day event, which took place at the Oak Brook Park District in Oak Brook, Il, brought together 16 teams competing to win all while playing for a good cause. Several spectators came to watch the event and a few lucky ones walked away with some pretty sweet raffle prizes! A bags tournament and free throw contest for the girls and boys also brought on a few more lucky winners who also walked away with very cool prizes. But perhaps the most exciting aspect of the event was when our very own Secretary of State Mr. Jesse White strolled in with his Tumblers for an eye-catching performance of the most thrilling acrobatics we’ve ever seen! The Jesse White Tumblers put on one spectacular show during half-time of final game day, leaving all of us pretty amazed.

Congratulations to “Team Ruckus” on a staggering win this weekend and to the “DFL Boyz” who came in a very close 2nd place! Brownhub was generous enough to award the grand prize to each player on the winning team with a certificate for a 3 day, 2 nights stay at a 3-4 star hotel in a US city of their choice! Thank you Brownhub for the amazing prize for our winners!

All proceeds from the event benefited Thaakat’s Plumpy’nut campaign; providing malnourished children suffering from the famine in Africa with a miracle packaged paste called Plumpy’nut, eaten straight from the wrapper and proven to effectively treat and cure acute malnutrition. This little life saving treat will be saving thousands of children!

Thank you to all who were a part of making this an unforgettable event! We can’t wait to see you again (along with some of you new faces) next year!

Save Africa!

By: Ammara Bokhari | Global Needs Ambassador | Thaakat Foundation

East Africa is facing the most critical food emergency in the world. The lives of twelve million people in the region are threatened by hunger and the world must be quick to prevent the crisis from spreading. It seems as if every few months, we are faced with a new world crisis. It’s easy to hear of it, follow it on the news for a few days, and then move along until the next problem appears. But Africa’s current food crisis isn’t just another world issue. It’s a harsh adversity that people in the region have been enduring for decades- the severity of which has now been brought to world attention as the UN officially declared a famine this week in two areas of Somalia- Bakool and Lower Shabelle.

Thousands are dying of starvation each day. An estimated 3.7 million people in Somalia- 1/3 of the population- are on the brink of starvation, the most at risk being children. In Somalia, malnutrition is exceeding 50% and Unicef reports children are dying at a rate of about one every six minutes. To add to the troubles, Somalia is facing an on-going war with a militant group that is blocking the transport of food, making it difficult for aid groups to help. Thousands of Somalis have since been taking an arduous journey to walk, sometimes for days, across dry land in search of food and water, displaced from their homes as they try to seek refuge in neighboring cities and countries. Sadly, not everyone survives this dangerous journey.

The Horn of Africa, a triangular area made up of Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Etritea, is currently suffering and millions more in surrounding Sudan and Uganda have been struck hard by the food crisis. These countries have experienced the worst food drought in the region, leading to a severely widespread loss of crops and livestock.

This week, the UN World Food Program (WFP) began airlifting food aid into Somalia’s capital of Mogadishu as well as into eastern Ethiopia and northern Kenya.

But you wonder… how is it that in the 21st century with all of our technological and societal advancements, did we allow a famine to spread in Africa once again? This is the first time since the 1980s that the UN has officially declared a famine in Africa. Why didn’t we have a better action plan to tackle the issues when we were first warned of them? The signs of a famine were being seen for several months.

Although international aid has been present in these regions, it was not nearly enough to prevent the devastation. Many world leaders are being criticized for not giving Africa’s food crisis enough attention when warnings had been given nearly two year prior. In 2009, the UN estimated that there were 3.8 million Somalis in urgent need of assistance due to perishing livestock, increasing food prices and ongoing militant conflict. However, a lack of international aid funding along with security issues slowed the humanitarian responses to the crisis.

It is surprising to realize that there is in fact enough food in the world to feed everyone. But a severe imbalance exists among countries around the globe in their production and distribution of food and crops. This inevitably paves the road to hunger and malnutrition in several parts of the world. Farmers in Africa have the same crops as farmers in other countries, but do not have the updated agricultural resources to produce the same amount of food as other countries or to sustain their crops and livestock through tough times. When you combine this with natural disasters such as drought and regional conflicts and wars, an emergency situation is to be expected. Global food prices have risen 83% in the last 2 years! Wheat has gone up 181%! Through this, the world’s poor are hit the hardest as they already spend 60-80% of their budget on food.

Africa needs immediate world-wide action to save the millions suffering from hunger and malnutrition. Food, water, medicine and shelter are all necessary and we need to strategically plan not only how to distribute these items but in a way that will minimize the distance people travel in search of it. The UN and different NGOs should work closely with Somali based NGOs and the local African governments- who will know best as to whom and how to deliver the goods. Let’s hope this triggers an end-all solution to Africa’s food crisis and we never have to face a famine again.

Natural Disasters Strike Close to Home

In the midst of world-wide disasters that have took place this year alone, it’s  important to remember those that have occurred close to home. Thaakat Foundation has launched a local initiative to help the residents affected by tornadoes and flooding across the midwest and southern states. Let’s not forget our fellow citizens down south who are in need of help!

A high number of deadly tornadoes ripped through parts America this past week across the states of Missouri, Atlanta and North Carolina. It has left thousands of residents homeless and ravaged countless cities. The picture above shows a street in Joplin, Missouri, which saw tornado winds exceeding 150 mph.

Melted snow and heavy rains caused the Mississippi River to flood early this month and some have called it the worst flooding in 80 years. Tennessee, Louisiana, Kentucky, and even Illinois are a few states that have been affected by this disaster.

Just a few days ago, boxes full of supplies, household items and packaged food were sent out to the residents of Joplin, Missouri. Thaakat Foundation is raising funds to help the school district of Joplin recover and be ready to reopen this August!

Thaakat Speaks at PepsiCo!

Thaakat had the very exciting and fun opportunity to speak today at PepsiCo in Barrington, Il during a luncheon hosted by PAN (PepsiCo Asian Network) in honor of Asian American Heritage Month! Thank you PepsiCo Asian Network for inviting us to speak on the importance of giving back and getting involved! Thaakat’s Executive Director Uzma Bawany spoke on the foundation’s past projects, its’ accomplishments and its’ goals for the future. Especially touching was sharing the story of how Thaakat began,  recounting her personal experiences from visiting poverty-ridden villages in Pakistan, to a downtown Chicago meeting soon after as she called on a few friends and associates to join the board and bring Thaakat to life in 2007! Engaging in conversation with the PepsiCo Barrington employees, we shared thoughts on poverty and ideas of community service over some delightful South Asian cuisine offerings. It was a pleasure spending the afternoon with everyone at PepsiCo.

Thaakat Lights Up A Village with Greenlight Planet!

By: Ammara Bokhari | Global Needs Ambassador | abokhari@thaakatfoundation.org

Pendakwadi, India — Thaakat celebrated the new year by embarking on its latest global project: “Project Greenlight India”, an effort to help light up a poor village that had zero access to electricity. Like several poor villages across the nation with the highest number of people living without electricity, villagers are left with darkness after sunset.  Through a partnership with Greenlight Planet, a US based enterprise that distributes solar powered LED lanterns, Thaakat Foundation was able to provide solar lanterns to 350 families!

More than 400 million people don’t have access to electricity in India. It’s an issue that continues to be widespread in South Asia, whether it be limited access or load shedding. Many poor villagers face its difficulties and in lieu of electricity, resort to the use of kerosene lamps, which is both dangerous and expensive. Nearly two million people die each year due to pulmonary diseases caused by the indoor burning of fuels (used as a source of light and for cooking). Close to half of this two million are children who die of pneumonia.

Solar lanterns are a clean and effective alternative to kerosene lamps. Portable, waterproof, and able to provide 16 hours of light after a 4 hour solar charge, they are an ideal asset for poor villagers. Greenlight Planet recently sent 1200 solar lights to flood affected victims in Pakistan and the organization’s efforts have been featured in numerous publications, including the Wall Street Journal.

University of Illinois graduate Harshil Parikh manages expansion and distribution for Greenlight Planet in India. He recently moved to India from the states in order to have a more hands-on approach with the organization. Parikh led Thaakat’s distribution of solar lanterns to 350 families in the village of Pendakwadi, located in the Thane district of India. Previous on-site visits to the village had been conducted, examining the condition of the village, writing down names of families, and amounts of lanterns to be distributed to each family. The average monthly household income for each family is around Rs.2000, which is about $44 per month. Thaakat Foundation provided a 50-60% subsidy for the lanterns and the villagers were able to pay Rs.300-350 for them. Subsidizing lanterns for an affordable cost allows villagers to invest in a product they can use, helping to realize its true value.

An escape from the day’s heat, having a light at night holds many advantages for poor villagers: helping children study and learn, adults cook, and workers to travel back and forth to and from work in safety.

On the day of distribution, all villagers were gathered in an area and taught how to use the solar lanterns. The team stayed with the villagers through the day and into the night, answering questions and ensuring proper installation of the solar panels. As night fell, the villagers had begun using the lanterns, right away benefiting from its use.

“I have to say that in all my travels to villages in India so far, this was one of the poorest I have been to,” Parikh explained about his visit. “This village has absolutely no electricity, is in a very hilly area with no other major infrastructure or access to markets close by.”

Thaakat Foundation plans to adopt a small district in India and continue providing solar lanterns to poor villagers, in hopes to brighten up their nights, one light at a time. Best of all, it’s environmentally friendly! Tax-deductible donations can be made online by visiting our PayPal link here =)

Thaakat Rounds Up Its 2010 Flood Relief Efforts!

A special shout out to everyone who was a part of our 2010 Pakistan Flood Relief Efforts; to everyone who donated and especially to our courageous global volunteer team in Pakistan, led by Syed Sana Ullah, for carrying out such well organized distribution efforts and helping so many villagers hands-on. Your support means the world to us and to each and every person you’ve helped in reaching out to! We hope to continue our efforts in 2011, reaching more villagers and distributing more goods, helping alleviate the suffering.

From all of us at Thaakat Foundation, thank you for supporting our cause!

Our global volunteer team in Pakistan recently visited Dera Allah Yar, a small city in the Jaffarabad District in Balochistan. The town had previously been drowned in several feet of flood waters and villagers were barely left behind with anything. The team distributed brand new jackets, blankets, and clothes to the villagers, leaving them with heartfelt smiles as their cold winter nights were going to be a bit warmer from now on! Check out the latest pictures: