It's very common to think see learning happens mainly in classrooms through books, lessons, and formal teaching. But standing in a rural yard in Byaspur community of Gopalganj during knowledge fair of Grow Your Reader Foundation, learning from community was different experience. 

The Knowledge Fair was…

My name is Sumita Bin, and I am a proud facilitator of Ashirbad Organization. As a facilitator, my role is not just about speaking; my true responsibility is to build relationships of trust with people, connect with their thoughts, and gradually guide them toward positive change.

When I first went to the Charbin Para community to conduct SALT…

Dhurpati Bin is an ordinary woman from the Charbin Para community. She is extremely hardworking and resilient. During SALT conversations with her, it was observed that although she knew many things and had the ability to understand them, she could not put them into practice due to a lack of confidence and courage. Through SALT conversations, the hidden…

This is a story of adolescent girls in village Kewdaha an indigenous/adivasi village in Bolpur, West Bengal, India, who have begun to shape the future of their village. After a series of intense SALT conversations, Suchana facilitators invited adolescent girls to compile their dream for the village in June 2025. The girls imagined a village free from excessive alcohol consumption and one where education was taken seriously. This dream became a source of motivation for them.…

For the past many days in Nandwal village, I have been meeting middle-aged men and engaging in SALT conversations on the subject of masculinity. These discussions are gradually becoming deeper. Today, one such discussion took place, through which I gained some new experiences and learned many new things.

After the SALT conversation began, he revisited some old memories. He spoke openly about traditional village games like Lezim and about how the current condition of the village was…

It was a late winter afternoon when we arrived at the home of a woman in a village, Joka area of West Bengal, India where  NGO Jeevika is facilitating a community-led process using the SALT approach. About twenty women and adolescent girls from two hamlets, Shahdara Para and Hathipara, were waiting for us. There was excitement in the air, as both hamlets had a surprise planned for us. They presented their dream of what their hamlet could look like thirty years from now. Many women said they…

Yesterday, the first day of 2026, began at the office in a truly unique way. From the morning, faces were filled with warm greetings, smiles, and a quiet sense of hope for the new year. There were no formal ceremonies or outward glitz, there was only our own initiative and a sincere desire to spend time together. At the start of the day, we all took…

Subject - Community Meeting/Discussion

Date - 31/12/2025

Time - 12:00 PM

Duration - 120 minutes

Selected Issues - Masculinity and CLP

Topics Covered - Sharing the ARC, understanding and responding to CLCP, understanding concerns, explaining the importance of collective efforts

Activity - On this bitterly cold…

আমি মনিষা দাস—আশির্বাদ অর্গানাইজেশনের একজন গর্বিত ফেসিলেটর। একজন ফেসিলেটর হিসেবে আমার কাজ শুধু কথা বলা নয়; মানুষের সঙ্গে বিশ্বাসের সম্পর্ক গড়ে তোলা, তাদের ভাবনাকে ছুঁয়ে যাওয়া এবং ধীরে ধীরে ইতিবাচক পরিবর্তনের পথে এগিয়ে নিয়ে যাওয়াই আমার আসল দায়িত্ব।

প্রথম যখন আমি হরিজন পল্লী এলাকায় SALT কনভারসেশন শুরু করতে যাই, তখন এলাকার মানুষজন খুব একটা সচেতন ছিলেন না—বিশেষ করে পরিষ্কার-পরিচ্ছন্নতা ও পরিবেশ রক্ষার বিষয় নিয়ে। অনেকেই মনে করতেন, “এগুলো আমাদের কাজ নয়” কিংবা “একজন…

On 30th December 2025, I visited Pulchowk Community in Simaltuda to conduct SALT conversations along with my fellow community facilitator from UniCoN. The day felt different from our usual field visits, mainly because it was Tamu Loshar. Although it is not celebrated by most people in the community, many residents had taken a break from work to spend time with their families, which changed the entire atmosphere of the place.

That day, Pulchowk truly felt like a community. People were…

Some conversations start slowly with my own feelings. This conversation with Tamim Hossain of the Pechakola community was like that. He fell silent as soon as the topic of masculinity came up. It wasn't easy to start. He wasn't very open about this topic at first. That's when I realized that this discussion takes time and trust. However, as trust…

“You will not understand this now. What worked in your time will not work anymore. We know more than you.”

Such statements are often casually made by the younger generation to the elderly. We tend to believe that the experiences of elders are outdated, irrelevant, and of little use today. However, the experiences I listened to today and the words they shared are still echoing in my mind.

Today’s dialogue focused deeply on the concept of masculinity. The elders explained the true…

পরিষ্কার–পরিচ্ছন্নতায় সচেতনতার পথে কৃষ্ণচূড়া গ্রুপ---

একটি সুস্থ ও সুন্দর কমিউনিটি গড়ে তুলতে হলে শুধু প্রয়োজন সচেতনতা ও অভ্যাস। এই ভাবনা থেকেই কমিউনিটির কৃষ্ণচূড়া গ্রুপের সদস্যদের মনে জন্ম নেয় একটি স্বপ্ন শিশু থেকে শুরু করে অভিভাবক সবাইকে নিয়ে পরিচ্ছন্নতা ও স্বাস্থ্য সচেতনতার পথে এগিয়ে যাওয়া।

আমরা প্রতিদিন নানা কাজে ব্যস্ত থাকি। ঘরের কাজ,…

আখালিয়া নদী

ফুলবাড়িয়া উপজেলা

রঘুনাথপুর, পাহাড়িয়াপাড়া

ময়মনসিংহ

১ম দিন সকাল ১০:৩০

পাহাড়িয়াপাড়ার মানুষ ঠিক করেছেন তারা নিজেরা একটা বেসলাইন সার্ভে…

একটি ভুল সিদ্ধান্ত, একটি জীবনের লড়াই: আসমানী আপার আত্মকথা

পেঁচাকোলা কমিউনিটিতে ১৬ ডেইস উপলক্ষে মানবাধিকার দিবস উদযাপনের দিনে একটি আলোচনা সভা ছিল। সেদিন অনেকের ভিড়ের মাঝেই কাঁপা কণ্ঠে নিজের জীবনের সবচেয়ে বড় ভুল সিদ্ধান্তের গল্প শোনান পেঁচাকোলা কমিউনিটি কৃষ্ণচূড়া গ্রুপের সদস্য আসমানী আপা। কথাগুলো বলতে গিয়ে বারবার তিনি কান্নায় ভেঙে…

December was a deeply meaningful month for us at Grow Your Reader Foundation (GYRF). We organized and participated in five events, and in four of them, we consciously tried to advocate for SALT-CLCP—not through theory, but through lived practice. Looking back, I realize that advocacy does not always need a podium or…

(When Listening Became the First Step)

Jungle Jogiya Bari Tola, Maharajganj

A meeting was planned in this settlement to discuss CLCP. We came here not merely to conduct a meeting, but to understand people’s lives—their struggles, concerns, and ways of thinking. In the beginning, community members were hesitant; some remained silent while others…

I haven’t written a blog in a while. Maybe because some experiences take time to settle in the heart before they can be put into words.

Today, I feel ready to reflect on our Community-Led Knowledge Fair held on 15 December 2025 in Byaspur, Gopalgonj—not as an event, but as a moment of truth about what community ownership really looks…

We had a very pleasant and thrilling experience within the community. During our ARC with the community with whom we are implementing the CLCP model, we discovered that their religious beliefs had changed. However, due to fear of social ostracism, the community keeps their new religious symbols and prayers hidden, and feels uncomfortable sharing or revealing them with other communities. It was understandable that including someone in their new rituals would be very difficult for them.…