The Need: Among all public amenities, schools and the children inside them are among the most vulnerable groups during any disaster. No task is more important as creating a safe learning environment for our children. Yet, children need not be mere recipients of emergency aid or risk reduction support. They can be leaders and agents of change for a culture of disaster safety.
Yamuna Khadar at Mayur Vihar, East Delhi, situated at the floodplains of Yamuna River with roughly 10,000 residents is home to migrants working class from Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and Bihar. For a living, the migrants work as daily wage labourers, construction labourers, rickshaw pullers, and hawkers. The area is home to over 4000 children. Van Phool community school, a balwadi for children between the ages of two to five which also serves as non-formal education centre for school going students as well as school dropouts is a resource centre for the community, holding classes for the children and vocational training in the afterhours.
How We Helped: The Van Phool open air community school – catering to children of the Yamuna Khadar slum cluster –had been operating under a flyover without any roof or walls since 2020. Our team along with Swedish non-profit, Better Shelter built a transitional structure to promote a stable learning environment for the 200 students that are enrolled with the school. The materials for this climate-friendly school were chosen with the objective of generating a long-lasting, climate-adjusting, cost-effective, and simple-to-install structure.
Leaving a Mark: The transitional school aims to provide an alternative learning environment for children and serve as a vocational training centre for the community residing in the temporary settlements of the flood prone region of Yamuna Khadar.