HerStory Podcast Series
HerStory Podcast Series
Episode 27: Nidhi’s Experience as a HerStart International Fellow in Ghana
In this episode, Krista Manteiga, HerStart Communications Fellow, speaks with Nidhi Gupta about her experience as a HerStart Climate Action Fellow collaborating with our partner, Norsaac in Ghana.
With a background in environmental engineering, Nidhi shares how partnering with local communities to promote sustainability and environmental awareness has shaped her perspective on global climate issues. She also discusses her experience developing climate frameworks and supporting women’s social enterprises and her advice for future HerStart Fellows.
Welcome to Youth Challenge International's Hair Start Hair Story podcast series, youth Challenge International, O Y C I launched the Hair Start Innovate the Future program in 2020 as part of our initiative to advance women's equality globally, our goal is to provide 10,000 women in Ghana, Tanzania, and Uganda with the resources and supports they need to successfully launch and grow their social businesses. We are sharing real stories of young women who are leading change in their communities. Y C's , hair Start Innovate. The Future program is funded in , passed by the government of Canada to progress Canada's feminist International Assistance policy. Learn more@y.org or hair start.org .
Speaker 2:Hello, my name is Krista Mantega and I'm a communications fellow with Youth Challenge Internationals, her start program in Tomay , Ghana. Today I'm speaking to Nitty Gupta about her experience as a climate action fellow in Ghana. Knitty is an environmental engineer who joined her start to better understand environmental issues from a global perspective. Hello, nitty , thank you for joining us. So would you start by telling us about your role as a climate action fellow? So,
Speaker 3:My role as a climate action fellow here in Tamalay , Ghana , uh, is with our partner organization called Nor sac. They have a subsidiary called N I V and within N I V I work to support the framework that they have and their policies on climate action and sustainability as well as environmental awareness. My role specifically is to work with our partner to gain environmental awareness in the organization, assess their capabilities and their awareness of environmental initiatives and support them in developing any policies and frameworks.
Speaker 2:Can you please describe your surroundings for us?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so right now we are sitting in the Y C I Ghana office located particularly in Tamale , uh, around us. We're sitting in a room in the office, we have the AC blasting and I can hear the noises of the slight traffic around the area. Uh, they usually comprises of horns and different types of cars, motorcycles.
Speaker 2:What is a typical day like for you?
Speaker 3:A typical day for me includes waking up a few hours before work , uh, doing some morning yoga, having my morning tea or coffee, and then jumping in my yellow, yellow with my roommates. Pretty common form of transportation here in Tamalay . Uh , so we leave our house around 8:00 AM. Once I get to work, I greet my coworkers and gets to my desk and , and start doing my tasks for the day. So it usually begins with a to-do list, looking at what we're working on this week, what our main priorities are, and then starting the tasks. And , uh, they usually comprise of a variety of things, but right now they, they kind of jump around from developing assessments, developing environmental awareness surveys and looking at the capabilities and, and what's, what is being addressed and what , what the gaps are , uh, at our partner organization and then going to develop a framework and different types of policies from that. So my, my morning usually comprises of me working on those, and then when lunch rolls around, I usually head into the main building and chat with my coworkers and do a little bit socializing and unwinding. Uh , and after my lunch hour is up, I can finish up any remaining tasks for the day. Once that's done, I hop back in the l e l at 5:00 PM and go back to my house.
Speaker 2:What motivated you to partake in the Hear Star International Fellowship program?
Speaker 3:I think what motivated me most was wanting to get experience in the environmental sector globally and learn about the different environmental problems that are experienced in parts away from North America. I have a variety of work experience in North America and a little bit , uh, in Asia, but that was not necessarily environmental focus. So I think what I wanted to do with the international fellowship was to learn about what different international development issues are common in Ghana and to learn more about a cultural context and working in using a cultural context to advance my knowledge of environmental issues. And that's what motivated me.
Speaker 2:Can you please describe the community you're living in and what it's like?
Speaker 3:Yeah, the community we live in right now is quite rural but very, very peaceful. Uh , it's very different than where I live in Canada and I really like that part about it. Lots of animals, goats, livestock , uh, and lots of agriculture, which is really nice to see. Um, we have things like roosters, you know, doing their thing at 5:00 AM waking us up. Uh, and I think it's, it's very interesting and honestly kind of fun to have a , a contrast to what , what life is like and for most people in Canada. So , uh, yeah, it's very, very quiet, very quaint. We have very, very friendly neighbors , uh, and lots of children around to hang out with after work and go for walks. Uh, and one of my favorite things ever is just watching the sunset from where we live. I think living in a rural area , uh, it's a great way to end your day and close off and give you kind of a break from the bustling city life that Tum Lake can sometimes bring.
Speaker 2:What led you to become involved in climate work?
Speaker 3:I think I've always been passionate about climate work and climate action specifically , uh, throughout my whole life. I grew up outside mostly camping, being in nature a lot, and I think I've developed a quite a close connection with it. Uh , and then when I wanted to go to university when I was in high school, I thought why not do something environmentally related since I found that I have quite a bit of passion in that. So I pursued an environmental engineering degree , uh, and worked in the environmental space after I graduated for a bit. Uh , and I think what I wanted to do was focus a bit more on climate action work specifically, which is what led me to her start and focusing more on , uh, enhancing strategies towards mitigating climate change and working towards a global solution.
Speaker 2:What specific projects or initiatives have you been involved in during your fellowship?
Speaker 3:So I've been working on a variety of different projects within our partner, N I V. Uh , the first one that comes to mind would be working on their climate framework and developing a climate strategy for the organization. Uh , another project that I've worked on similar to that would be evaluating the environmental awareness of our partners, nor SAC and N I V , uh, to understand what environmental capabilities they currently have and what areas they can build on. Another project that I'm commonly involved in as many people know, is her start . Um , I attend some of the trainings , uh, whenever I I can and I help out on giving climate guidance to the beneficiaries and participants to develop and strengthen their solutions , uh, in their business ideas.
Speaker 2:What is the objective of the climate framework at N I V?
Speaker 3:The objective of the climate framework is really just to provide n I v with a solid strategy to enhance their initiatives in the climate environmental world. So giving them kind of a direct tangible document to fall background when they're opposed with an environmental issue or problem or an enhancement they want to add to their organization. So for example, if they're assisting a social enterprise and they want to understand how they can, you know, use best practices in the environment to strengthen and make that social enterprise or strategize to make it more environmentally conscious, they can always fall back on this framework to enhance that.
Speaker 2:What do you hope to achieve during the fellowship?
Speaker 3:I hope to achieve an increased understanding and awareness of climate issues and environmental issues , uh, in Ghana and West Africa. Uh , and I hope to use this, this knowledge to then strengthen my awareness and strengthen my ability to tackle different climate issues from a North American context or whatever other context I work in the future and to make sure the solutions I provide and work towards are inclusive.
Speaker 2:What are some challenges you have faced so far and how did you overcome them?
Speaker 3:Some challenges I faced while being Ghana have definitely been just adjusting to a new cultural context and then working in a new cultural context. I think the biggest thing is when you move to new country, you get settled almost as , as fast as you can and you kind of just start working. And I think that that is something that you expect in any situation, in any scenario similar to the context that I'm in. But I think the biggest challenge was just to kind of let that happen and wait for a routine to sort of eventually develop, which it did. And I think it definitely got easier and how I overcame it was just letting things happen as they're supposed to and eventually getting well , knowing my way around different things. Another thing I I really noticed was just understanding where things are in tamay and getting, learning how to get around and , and sort of do your own thing. And once that was all that came with time, just like the routine did and once that came, I was able to really adjust. It just takes time to sort of be aware of your surroundings and be open to learning and asking questions.
Speaker 2:Can you tell us about a particularly impactful moment you've experienced during your fellowship?
Speaker 3:Yeah, A particularly impactful moment during my fellowship has definitely been during the trainings, seeing the women who continue to participate in the ARD trainings and are coming with open ideas, understanding their struggles and what they've kind of gone through to get to where they are and now what they're doing to overcome that has been really inspiring to see that resilience and that, that determination that I think , uh, was just really, really nice to see and really inspiring in the sense that you really can always start fresh and you, if you're always open to learning and open to working on your skills. So I was really inspired by, by their participants in particular , uh, and their openness and excitement to, to approach every day with, with , uh, with a new idea.
Speaker 2:What has been your favorite part about the fellowship?
Speaker 3:My favorite part about the fellowship has definitely just been living in Ghana in general. I think work , working with the people I work with, working on the projects I worked with have been really, really exciting. And I think every day is kind of a journey from when I get in my yellow, yellow to being different things in the road, how people live different animals to sort of understanding and having different hurdles at work, seeing different people ways, people's ways of living had definitely all been part of my, my favorite part has really just been the cultural context that I've been working in, very different from what I'm used to , uh, and every day has been been really cool to see.
Speaker 2:In your opinion, how can Canadians be better involved in climate action?
Speaker 3:Canadians can be better involved in climate action by being aware of what's needed to be done from a climate perspective and being aware of the climate issues that surround them locally and provincially and and throughout the , uh, country. And what also Canadians can also do is to vote in a way that reflects how they want to approach climate action and to just be aware of what's going on with their governments , uh, and look at the policies that are being developed.
Speaker 2:Do you have any future aspirations, both personally and in the realm of climate action?
Speaker 3:My future aspirations are really just to advance climate solutions in any way that I can. My next step in my future will be to pursue a master's in sustainability , uh, within Canada. I think that will really help me kind of develop and shape my understanding of what that solutions , those solutions could look like. Uh , and as long as I'm working towards developing a greener, greener world and working towards climate solutions , uh, that's what I'm really striving for.
Speaker 2:To wrap things up, what advice do you have for future her Start fellows?
Speaker 3:The advice I have for future her start fellows would definitely be to approach everything with a positive mindset. Knowing what I knew before I arrived in Ghana and knowing what I know now, being in placement country, I think that I've , what I've learned is that the country team here is extremely accommodating, extremely helpful, and I think that there's a lot more resources at your fingertips and you realize, so as long as you keep an open and positive mind, I think you can get the support you need and adjust the way you need to is and , and have a great time.
Speaker 2:Thank you Nitty for joining us. Thank
Speaker 3:You for having me. This has been great.
Speaker 4:Thanks
Speaker 1:For joining us today and learning about how you challenge International has partnered with young women to advance gender equality globally and create a social entrepreneurship ecosystem with the positive impact for all. If you enjoy this hairstyle , innovate the Future podcast episode, please subscribe and share our episodes on social media. A special thanks to the fellows that volunteer their time in Ghana, Tanzania, and Uganda, who help create these episodes, Y C's , hair Start Innovate the future and fellowship programs are funded through the government of Canada's volunteer corporation program, providing skilled Canadians opportunities to volunteer with global partners and advanced Canada's feminist international assistance policy. Join us and thousands of young people around the globe creating a better future together. Learn more@y.org or .
