We would like to share the Kathgolap (…..) bloomed in our Dhaka Center gene pool collection.

On the Picnic day

East Sujankathi Govt. Primary School is located at Goil of Barisal District that is enlightened with proper education and culture historically. Our Primary School is one of the aged educational Institutes around the locality.

Voices of the rural children are awaiting to be heard at the global arena. They are doing some excellent jobs beyond there curriculum. They are being integrated themselves to be involved to the locality development, Good agricultural practice, local natural resources, seeds and seedlings, homestead gardening, nutritional knowledge in a play mode. The initiative is a part of Krisoker Sor (Farmers’ Voice) ‘s research of  “Integrating Nature as an Educator to Primary Curriculum” . As a component of the initiative, School to School Partnership plays a vital role of letting the children touch the international flavour.

The School was registered at Global Gateway in 2007 (Reg. Code: EMIS 501010108) with the aim of building partnership with schools around the world. Among huge communication and efforts, networking with Hartley Primary School, Hartley Avenue, London has been established and sustained  in teacher-teacher, student- student communication level. Initially students of class five from both the school participated in a water project. They have exchanged fotos, thoughts, questions, drawings, feelings. Email exchange among them and even the initiative is to support for the former students who wish to keep going the communication.

The Partnership has been registered by DFID Global School Partnerships on 15 January, 2010

Krisoker Saar (Farmers’ Voice) is funding and coordinating.

To see some works, Visit

Children of Class IV are participating in a weather project managed by St Albans Road Infant School in Dartford, England. The network consists of Schools from Lithuania, Russia, Norway, Turkey and England includes Bangladesh. There is an arrangement of video conferencing. Our children looking forward to join the conference with their monthly weather report in February hopefully.

Weather Reporting

Earlier to the Partnership registered by DFID GSP Team, we applied under the GSP call from The British Council at Dhaka. They selected our school as well for the programme. Two personnel attended a resourceful and knowledge enriched workshop on 20 July 2010.

During Bangladesh Week at Hartley School

At these times, Children from the School are participating link programmes (excluding above two) with three Schools:

1. Springfield Primary School on “School foto diary”

2. Kentish Town Primary School on “Introducing”

3. Highland Primary School ” English New Year Card sending to 50 students   around the World”

Tigers at Hartley Bangladesh week

Announcement: There will be a “Hartley Day” in December

Follow the link to read An article from Dr. Niaz Pasha is attached pertinent to the consciousness of development practitioners in the issue. [Sorry, The article is in Bangla]

Mainly due to various unisectoral development policies and practices – those have been pushed into the locality, most of the surface water sources are shrinking at a rapid speed and are being contaminated with agricultural inputs residues.

The major (may be the only) open water source in our local community, the historical canal  SHIMULBHANGA was borne around the year 1893 is going to be vanished because of non renovation since dicades and of a failed sluice gate construction at one end- thus of siltation and encroachment. The canal was the habitat of enormous flora and fauna including 24 indigenous fish species, flood water recession channel, irrigation water supplier, transportation, loamy silt carrier for the lands, bathing of people and livestock, Children’s play ground of recreation and physical exercise. Ultimately it was the source of happiness to the locality.

But we – the local people were so much habituated to construct the development of common property like the Shimulbhanga under project culture and so we could not even think to renovate a yard ourselves. We simply lost the connection with the useful canal. Most of the community people even did not know its name. Thus the Shimulbhanga was going to be a memory only.

Since undertaking the action research initiative pertinent to water issues in the community, KSFVbd did provide the community with a good bulk of information gathered through various scientific sources, networks and newsletters. Made aware the local people with the existing situation and integrating ourselves to find out the possible solutions and strategy of the water struggle. Bridging the gap with water issue among farmers, researchers and policymakers is a good achievement of the institute. With the goal of making possible the renovation of Shimulbhanga, the initiative was lunched in 2000 while acting as a water voice messenger [Mr. Zakir; ID# 00854] to the 3^rd World water Conference, the issue of Shimulbhanga was brought into light ranging from international to local level. Information then was collected from the community by interviewing, discussion, competition, local field study, survey and so on. A continuous knocking with both levels of research and action towards the forgotten mind of the local people mainly made it possible to think beyond project discourse with the Shimulbhanga. In the wetland day of 2005, children from the school marked the portion (about 500 feet) of Shimulbhanga in a magnificent way and festive mood.

Getting prepared to mark the portion to be renovated by ourselves

The  colourful flags raised the question marks with the canal. The total community and even the passersby did attracted with some remarks. News board, non stop discussion, traditional information sharing mechanisms were being used properly for communicating. The activities were displayed audio visually. Mass of the local people were touched by the enthusiasm of their children. They instantly promised to provide 200 people with spades on the renovation day. The issue was raised at different national seminars, workshops. At begening of 2006, the government did include Shimulbhanga in the list of ‘To be renovated”. But the total project did not started yet because of ‘lack of fund’. 

Now the initiative of our institution with Shimulbhanga is to renovate 9000 feet during a festival day of coming dry season. So that the local people (including elites) will be more enthusiastic to be involved with our own development by ourselves.

putting the flags

In the mean time, some of us are connecting our ponds with Shimulbhanga to restore the synchronized water ecosystem. We are conserving ponds for drinking water as alternative to contaminated ground water. We are re-looking the water and water sources as living being. Communities around our community will be stimulated to undertake such initiative by perceiving the new style of water bodies’ development.