In mid-2024, a group of 30 tea garden workers and their families in Doldoli Tea Garden, Sylhet, received 30 black pepper plants and basic training on cultivation from the local agriculture authority with collaboration of an NGO. In total 30 families received the plant .The initiative aimed to provide an alternative source of income for households and improve their economic stability.

However, just a few months after the distribution, it became clear that the plants were not thriving.…

ফ্যাসিলিটেশন করছি প্রায় ১ বছর ৭ মাস। এর মাঝে অনেক গ্রুপ সল্ট করেছি। কিন্তু এই গ্রুপ সল্টের অভিজ্ঞতা একটু ব্যতিক্রম অনুধাবন করেছি। সেই দৃষ্টিকোণ থেকে আমার নিজের রিফ্লেকশন শেয়ার করছি ব্লগ আকারে। আমার কিছু অনুরোধ আছে সকলের কাছে। আপনারা যদি এরকম চ্যালেঞ্জ ফেস করেন তখন কিভাবে তা সমাধান করার চেষ্টা করেন আমাকে কমেন্টে জানাতে পারেন। আমি খুবই কৃতজ্ঞ থাকবো।…

As a social work student, I always believed I had skills to connect with people.When I came across the opportunity to serve as a community facilitator under the ARC project, I was more than excited. I saw it as a golden opportunity to work at grassroot level and engage with people one-to-one. Being an extrovert, I thought stepping into the community, having conversations and building trust would be as natural as butter spread on the bread.But reality had different plan for me.

The…

The First Signs

When a child is born with a neurodevelopment disorder, everything may seem normal at first. For the first two years, parents often don’t notice anything unusual. Slowly, they begin to see the delays in child’s development.

Worried and confused, parents search for the answers for delay development. They visit doctors, hospitals, shamans, and even temples for cure. After many attempts, they…

When we talk about change in a community, it’s easy to focus on what’s missing like lack of funds, lack of infrastructure, lack of external support. But the essence of SALT is different. SALT is not about always identifying…

I was born and raised in a small rural village in Syangja, in a middle-class family. My father was a known man in our community for his bold presence and confident communication style. His personality was magnetic, so much so that I always wanted to be like him. He was a leader, a businessman, and someone who inspired respect simply by being…

A month ago, I stepped into something completely new with the ARC Project. We had to conduct a community survey in two places, and honestly, I was nervous but also excited. I thought it would be easy because I believed people in the community would be sweet, welcoming, and happy to talk with us since we were doing it for them.

But reality was different. Not everyone welcomed us the way I imagined. Some people were warm at first but later got irritated. Some looked arrogant in the…

    ২০২৪ সালে জয়নগর হাই স্কুলের শিক্ষক এবং শিক্ষার্থী এবং স্কুল ম্যানেজমেন্ট কমিটি একসাথে হয়ে তাদের স্কুল নিয়ে স্বপ্ন তৈরি করে ২০৩৫ সালে তারা কেমন দেখতে চায় তাদের স্কুলকে। স্বপ্নের একটা গুরুত্বপূর্ণ অংশ ছিলো বিশুদ্ধ পানির ব্যবস্থা করা। …

Working with the ARC project was far from easy—it pushed me out of my comfort zone and tested my abilities in ways I hadn’t experienced before. As a community facilitator, one of the biggest challenges was introducing and explaining the SALT approach to communities. It was a new approach not just for them, but also for me. At first, I had very little idea about how the project worked or how to apply SALT effectively, which made it hard to convince community members and gain their…

Today, the Bhatpara Nichhe Line area community came together for a heartfelt SALT meeting filled with warmth, connection, and shared aspirations. The session began with a friendly welcome and simple check-in questions like "How are you feeling today?" and "What good things happened during the day?" This encouraged everyone to share their happy moments, creating a joyful atmosphere. Some attendees found happiness in playing games, others enjoyed…

My name is Martha Hitang, and I am from Pokhara city. I am a student of social work. I grew up in a normal family, with loving parents and a sister, who have always been deeply involved in social work and activism. From a young age, I saw their dedication to helping communities, and it inspired me to want to give back as well.

I went to a…

Visiting Nandwal village every day and meeting people has now become a part of my life. Whenever I arrive at the office, I always feel a special sense of joy, because I eagerly look forward to hearing what good things I will learn from the community that day.

On that day, when I went to the village, I saw a man sitting with a mobile phone in his hand, wearing slightly untidy clothes. I approached him and introduced myself. He immediately recognized me and said, I often see you in the…

On 27th and 28th August, I visited Gopalganj. In those two days, I witnessed not just conversations, but hearts opening up—both in a village community and in a school classroom. I want to share my reflections, full of what I saw, felt, and learned. 

Women…

The rains came down hard in South 24-Parganas that morning, but the people of Dakshin Gouripur still gathered. What was meant to be just another community meeting slowly grew into something deeper—a space where people began to see their own lives reflected, and their own strength emerging.

The dissemination program, organised by Jeevika Development Society under the ARC initiative, was designed to share the baseline survey findings in Cluster 1 across Dakshin Gouripur and Deuli…

1. আমি সম্প্রতি আশীর্বাদ অর্গানাইজেশন-এ যোগ দিয়েছি। যোগদানের পর থেকে প্রায়ই আমার হরিজন কমিউনিটিতে যেতে হয়। ছোট বেলা থেকেই আমি ময়মনসিংহে বড় হয়েছি। সেই সময়, যখন রিকশায় শহর ঘুরতাম বা কোন কাজের জন্য বের হই, প্রায়ই নতুনবাজার হরিজন পল্লী পাশ দিয়ে যেতাম। বিশেষ করে উৎসবের সময় পুরো কমিউনিটি লাইট দিয়ে সুন্দরভাবে সাজানো থাকত। তখন ভাবতাম, যদি আমি ভিতরে যেতে পারতাম। কিন্তু তখন আমি সেখানে কাউকে চিনতাম না।

   
   
   

   অনেক বছর পর, সেই আশা শেষমেষ…

Hello friends 

In the heart of Bhatpara Tea Garden’s Basa Line area lives a remarkable woman, 43-year-old Rabina Khatun, whose story of kindness and integrity continues to inspire many. During a recent SALT conversation, Rabina shared a life-changing experience from about a year ago—a story that beautifully illustrates the strength of humanity, compassion, and the power of standing together in difficult times.…

While I was having a discussion with Sangram Patole, his father came there and joined us. I began a conversation with him. He started asking me questions like, “Where have you come from? Where do you stay?” I answered all his questions, and with a gentle smile on his face, he said to me, “When I was your age, I used to be very shy to talk with people.”

That opened the door for a deeper conversation, and we continued talking. When I asked him about his dream, without wasting even a…

In the quiet lanes of Bhatpara Nichhe Line, a simple act by a young man has started creating ripples of change. Bilash Kharia, 26, believed that children deserve not just care, but also a safe space to grow, dream, and thrive.

With his own savings, Bilash bought a football for the neighborhood children. While it may sound small to…

In the quiet lanes of Basa Line, within the close-knit community of Bhatpara Tea Garden, lies a story that speaks volumes about the enduring bonds of friendship, the legacy of love, and the untold strength within each of us. This story comes from Mr. Roshan Chik Baraik, a 36-year-old resident, who opened his heart during a SALT conversation, sharing an experience that moved everyone who heard it.…

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‎The first light of dawn had not yet spread. Through the fields of Chorbin Para, women were walking one by one. Some carried baskets of fresh vegetables on their heads, some held colorful flowers in their hands. They hurried to the market across the river. The men went towards the river to row boats, or took their cattle and goats to graze in…