Unit 13 Career and Entrepreneurship

Mahabir Pun (22 January 1955), born and raised

at Nangi in Myagdi District, Nepal, is a teacher,

social entrepreneur, innovator and social activist.

He is known for his extensive work in applying

wireless technologies to develop remote areas of

the Himalayas. He has designed income-generation

initiatives that deliver new economic possibilities

to villagers allowing them to be sustainable.

He is building self-sustainable, community-run schools that improve the quality

of education, bring jobs and opportunities to villages, and curb migration to urban

centers.His works have been recognized by the Ashoka Foundation, the Ramon

Magsaysay Foundation, University of Nebraska, Global Ideas Bank and Nepal

Government.

Now, read the following interview with Mr. Pun.

You got a scholarship to study in the USA. After your education, why did you

come back to Nepal and what plans had you made for Nepal then?

I could have lived in the US if I had wanted to do so. I was a good student at the

university and my professors liked me very much. It would not have been difficult for

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me to find a job there. However, I had found that life in the US was not easy either

as many people think. People in developed countries like the US also have to work

hard in order to make money for comfortable living, for raising their family and for

maintaining their lifestyle.

Therefore, I decided to come to Nepal to visit my family and friends as soon as I

graduated from the university. However, I did not have any plan and idea as what I

could do in Nepal. I also did not have money to do anything. The only thing I had

decided before I came to Nepal was not to apply for any job for living. I did not start

any business either because I did not have money and idea. Therefore, I decided to stay

in my home village Nangi of Myagdi district and to help villagers start a high school as

a volunteer teacher. That was the beginning of my lifelong journey in Nepal.

But those who go abroad for their higher education rarely return after their

education? What made you think to come back and do something for the country?

Yes, many people rarely return after they get their education in the US and in other

developed countries. It is their choice. The main reason they do not return is that

they know there are almost no job opportunities in Nepal to make money for living.

Therefore, they decide to stay abroad and find job. However, I wanted not to work for

people or for a company in the US or in Nepal to have “so called” better living. To

enjoy in my life, I wanted to work independently and do something on my own for

the benefits of human beings. Therefore, I made my decision to come to Nepal and

stay in mountain villages. I could not have done what I have been able to do in Nepal

if I had decided to find a job either in the US or in Nepal. After I started living in the

mountain village and working with the communities, I found that life in the mountain

villages was more comfortable for me because I was free to do anything I wanted to

try. Therefore, I decided to live in Nepal all my life. I am very glad that I decided to

come and stay in Nepal rather than staying in the US.

What motivated you to involve in innovation?

The necessity to gain something in life makes people innovators. It was after I started

living in the mountain villages, I found many problems in the communities, and my

mind started to think about finding solution for those problems. As a result, I started

doing lots of brainstorming by myself and with the communities to find ways to start

and run viable projects for community development. My experience tells that you

should be innovative especially when you want to find solution for a problem. For

example, I had to be innovative to start income generating projects such as paper

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making, jam making, cheese making, etc. which nobody in that area had tried before.

I also had to be innovative to start wireless networking project to bring the Internet

because I did not have ideas and money. The same thing is happening with National

Innovation Centre that was started without any idea and money. To make it short, I can

tell that it is the necessity of the communities to start different development projects

and that it is the necessity to retain the most talented and innovative young people in

Nepal for economic development that motivated me to be involved in innovation.

Where did you start doing such an entrepreneurship and what have you done up

to now?

I started it from my village Nangi of Myagdi district. It took a few years for me to learn

about the situation of other mountain communities and to get acquainted with them.

I started to work as a volunteer in my village and I really did not know how long

I could stay in the village. Step by step, I got involved in the field of education to

help improve the quality of education in rural schools by helping to build schools and

introducing computers and the Internet. I helped to set up community clinics in the

villages where there were no health posts in order to help people to get basic health

services. Later I connected the clinics to hospital in Pokhara and Kathmandu through

the Internet for telemedicine. I worked with the community leaders to start as many

income generation programmes as possible to help people to make some money and

create job opportunities. Some of the income generating programmes that I helped to

start are Yak farming, camping ground for the trekkers, cheese making, jam making,

paper making, bee keeping, vegetable farming, handicraft making, fish farming etc.

I started community based wireless networking programme to bring computers and

the Internet in the remote mountain villages. I helped to start community owned and

managed ecotourism programmes by starting five day and twelve day trekking trails

with lodges and other facilities for the trekkers. Those projects are running well. Now I

am working for the establishment of Rashtriya Awishkar Kendra (National Innovation

Centre), which has kept me very busy because many young people with innovative

and creative ideas come to the centre to present their ideas and to do research and

development work. Working with them has become my everyday routine now. Now I

am travelling all over Nepal to give information about the innovation centre we have

started and to encourage young people to be innovative.

When was National Innovation Centre established and what is its main goal?

National Innovation Centre (NIC) is a nonprofit-making organisation established on

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9 December 2012, and started fundraising campaign and some research works from

2016. The centre was built at the premise of Research Centre for Applied Science and

Technology, Tribhuvan University Kirtipur, Kathmandu and was formally inaugurated

on 18 October 2019.

The main goal of the National Innovation Centre is to retain talented, innovative and

creative young people and use their talents for the economic development of Nepal,

specifically through research and innovation. I thought about starting the centre because

after working for 25 years in the villages, I realized the most important step a country

needs to take in order to become economically prosperous is to keep the talented and

innovative human capitals in the country and help them become entrepreneurs. All the

developed countries have always taken that step, which Nepal must take if we want

to become prosperous. That is why I decided to establish innovation centre. Also the

ultimate goal of NIC is to help reduce the trade deficit of Nepal by helping innovative

people to create and develop products that are being imported from abroad. It is very

necessary because we are importing more than 92% of goods and exporting less than

8% that has created a huge trade deficit.

Whose support are you getting to enhance your campaign?

I did not seek funding from the government and donors to start project. For doing

all the works that I have done so far, the main support has been coming from people

and communities. It is because people have found that the projects that I have started

are very beneficial for the communities and for the nation. For example, most of the

money for the wireless networking project came from communities because they

found that Internet is very useful for them. For the eco-trekking and income generating

programmes, the money is coming from communities. Even for the establishment of

NIC, almost all of the support is coming from Nepalese people. Therefore, I can tell

that my campaign is funded and managed by people for the benefit of people.

How do you think that it would help in developing our country?

Nobody should forget the fact that innovation is the engine to drive the economic

development. Without giving topmost priority for research and innovation and without

investing huge amount of money for nurturing its innovative citizen, no country in the

world has become economically prosperous. The developed countries like the US, the

UK, Germany, Japan, Israel and others have become prosperous because they have

always given research and innovation the topmost priority for economic development

and they are investing huge amount of money for that. However, Nepal, so far, is

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not investing any money or too little money for research and innovation. Besides,

we do not have culture of innovation that encourages young people to be innovative

and creative. Keeping these facts in mind, innovation centre was established. The

innovation centre is providing a well-equipped platform in its capacity and full

support system to the innovators to do research and development. Our innovators are

trying to develop different types of products or services that can be commercialized

in the market. That way they would ultimately become entrepreneurs and help for the

economic development of Nepal.

What do you want to suggest to youths who are going abroad and living there

forgetting their country?

Going abroad in search of better education and job opportunities is something we can’t

stop or should not stop unless and until we create good opportunities and environment

for the talented youths to stay and work in Nepal. Besides, it is human nature to explore

for new opportunities in foreign soils. It is not entirely their fault to go abroad. It is

our responsibility to create sound environment and support system to keep the most

talented and innovative people and use them for the economic development of Nepal.

My suggestion and request to those youths, who are going abroad, is not to forget our

motherland and help Nepal by bringing back innovative ideas that can help to create

the economy of our country and help Nepal become a prosperous nation.

Lastly, do you have to say anything about your plan and vision?

I would like to encourage young students to think about becoming innovators and

entrepreneurs by coming up with innovative ideas and by being involved in research

and innovation activities while they are still attending schools. They should not wait to

become innovative and entrepreneurs until they graduate from the schools or colleges.

Also I would like to tell that work of building innovation centres and nurturing our

talented and innovative people is something we, the people of Nepal, can do by

ourselves. I would like to request the federal government, state government, and local

government of Nepal to set aside a small percentage of their development budget for

setting up innovation centres in order to capture and utilize the innovative human

capitals for the economic development of Nepal.

Thank you for your time and best of luck in the work you have begun.

As always, it is my pleasure to encourage young minds and work with them. With the

support from the innovative young people, we will certainly be able to make Nepal a

prosperous nation. There is no doubt in it.

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Ways with words

A. Find the words from the text which mean the following. The first letter

has been given.

a. making you feel physically relaxed; pleasant to wear, sit on, etc. comfortable

b. having a degree from the university graduated

c. without being connected with or influenced by something or by each other

independently

d. the introduction of new things, ideas or ways of doing something innovation

e. familiar with something, having read, seen or experienced it acquainted

f. a person who makes money by starting or running businesses, especially when

this involves taking financial risks entrepreneur 

g. an opportunity or a place for somebody to express their opinions publicly or

make progress in a particular area platform

h. to use something, especially for a practical purpose utilize

B. The plural form of bacterium is bacteria. Irregular plural nouns are

nouns that do not become plural by adding -s or -es, as most nouns in

the English language do. Now, write the plural forms of the following

nouns.

calf- calves

basis- bases

 sheaf-sheaves

 cactus- cacti\ cactuses

louse -lice

crisis- crises

person- people\persons

 formula- formulas\ formulae

ox - oxen

fungus- fungi\funguses

goose-geese

 oasis-oases

analysis- analyses

 curriculum-  curricula\ curriculums

appendix- appendixes\appendices

 

Comprehension

Answer these questions.

a. How did Mahabir Pun begin his lifelong journey in Nepal after coming back to

Nepal from the US?

Mahabir Pun began his lifelong journey in Nepal after coming back to Nepal from the US deciding to stay in his home village Nangi of Myagdi district to help villagers start a high school as a volunteer teacher.

b. Why didn't he want to work for other companies in the US or in Nepal?

He didn’t want to work for other companies in the US or in Nepal to have “so called” better living, work independently and do something on his own for the benefits of human beings.

c. Why did he involve in innovation?

He involved in innovation to find the solution for a problem in community.

d. What are the income-generating programmes that he helped to start?

The income-generating programmes that he helped to start are Yak farming, camping ground for the trekkers, cheese making, jam making, paper making, bee keeping, vegetable farming, handicraft making, fish farming etc.

e. Whose support is Pun getting to proceed with his campaign?

Pun is getting the support of communities and people to proceed with his campaign.

f. How have the developed countries become prosperous?

The developed countries have become prosperous because they have always given research and innovation the topmost priority and they are investing huge amount of money for that.

g. How can we keep the most talented and innovative people in Nepal? 

We can keep the most talented and innovative people in Nepal creating sound environment and support system.

 

'Been' and 'Gone'

Both can be used to refer to movement to another place and with the present perfect tense.

'Been' is the past participle of 'be'.

'Gone' is the past particle of 'go'.

'Been' can be used to refer to a person's experience that involves a completed visit to a place. It always indicates that the person has returned.

I’ve been to London.

She has been to Bangkok twice.

'Gone' is used to show that someone has visited a place but has not returned yet.

She is on holiday. She has gone to Switzerland.

He's gone to the market. He should be back soon.

a. I don't know where Muna is. …… (you/see) her?

I don't know where Muna is. Have you seen her?

b. Janak …… (not/be) very well last week.

Janak wasn't very well last week.

c. Last night I …… (lose) my keys. So I stayed in my friend’s home.on

Last night I lost my keys. So I stayed in my friend’s home.

d. I …… (lose) my keys. Can you help me look for them?

I have lost my keys. Can you help me look for them?

e. I …… (know) Jamuna for three years. We still meet once a month.

I have known Jamuna for three years. We still meet once a month.

f. She …… (live) in Sikkim when she was a child.

She lived in Sikkim when she was a child.

g. A: What’s wrong?

B: I …… (break) a glass.

I have broken a glass.

h. A: When …… (you/arrive)?

B: At 10 pm last night.

When did you arrive ?

i. How long …… (you/know) Sarmila for?

How long have you known Sarmila for?

j. This is the first time I …… (drive) a car.

This is the first time I have driven a car.

F. Use been or gone.

a. I’ve never …… to Japan.

I’ve never been to Japan.

b. Kalpana has …… to Korea. She may come back next year.

Kalpana has gone to Korea.

c. A: Where’s Rachana?

B: She has …… to the shops.

She has gone to the shops.

d. Harina was here earlier but I think she has …… now.

Harina was here earlier but I think she has gone now.

e. Have you ever …… to London?

Have you ever been to London?