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Kalasanskriti ra Sampada:  

An Artistic Approach to Preserving Cultural Heritage and Community Healing ~ Nepal and USA

Can the arts empower students to better understand and preserve both their own cultural heritage and that of their global peers?

Under the Communities Connecting Heritage (CCH) program, Creative Connections brought together 30 high school-aged participants from The Mandala Theatre in Katmandu, Nepal and the Regional Center for the Arts in Trumbull, CT to answer this question. The program ran from November 2018-April 2019.

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Virtual Exchange

The Nepali and American partners engaged in a virtual exchange, conducting oral history research within their own families and communities and shared them with their overseas partners by:
     – displaying and presenting personally meaningful cultural artifacts
     – creating and exchanging art illustrating their oral histories
     – posting video clips of their music, dance, and theatre explorations
     – engaging in live Interactive Video Conferencing (IVC)

 

Meet the Participants

From Nepal and the U.S.:

Interactive Video Conferencing (IVC)

In one of five IVC’s, participants explore how inter-generational and societal tensions can be addressed through a better understanding and appreciation of cultural differences and of common values. Watch a sampling of these discussions below. 

Exchange Trips

In February, after the virtual exchange, five US students and teachers visited their Mandala peers in Nepal to explore cultural heritage further by:
     – Sightseeing, visiting cultural heritage sites
     – Developing and presenting a joint performance exploring the importance of preserving cultural heritage while examining the societal hurdles that can thwart preservation efforts. 
     – Putting together and facilitating one-day workshop residences at four local schools, encouraging local students to carry on the work of heritage preservation in their own lives. 
In April, five Nepali students and teachers travelled to the USA for a similar working visit.
Watch the Nepal trip documentary below which captures this deep learning experience. The documentary was created by filmmaker Abbie Steckler.

Photo Gallery

In Nepal

In the USA

View the entire photo album from the exchange here.

Our Most Memorable Moments

Regional Center for the Arts and Mandala Theatre student participants share their thoughts through dialogue and performance arts.

 

Our Partner Organizations

Creative Connections joined a cohort of three other organizations as part of the CCH program:
     – Mandala Theatre, Kathmandu, Nepal
     – Regional Center for the Arts, Trumbull, CT, USA
     – World Learning, Washington, DC, USA

The Communities Connecting Heritage (CCH) Program

The CCH program empowers youth to protect the cultural heritage of underserved communities around the world. Through virtual and in-person exchanges and exhibitions, the program supports new partnerships between U.S.A  and international cultural organizations and the communities they serve.
Communities Connecting Heritage is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State with funding provided by the U.S. Government and administered by World Learning.
Learn more about the CCH program: https://www.worldlearning.org/program/communities-connecting-heritage/

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