Day 5 and 6

Day 5 (Wednesday, June 24, 2015)

On Wednesday, we revisited Christel House for the second time so that we could create our digital mind map based on the original poster mind map. Before we began working on the digital mind map, we had a small tour of the water table recharge pits that collected rainwater to be used for the school.  We were really surprised by how seriously the students and school staff work so that water stays a readily available resource. After that, we collaborated with the Christel House kids during the project in their computer lab by using software that allowed us to create a digital mind map. During this process, we collaborated with the kids and used teamwork to efficiently make the best digital mind map we could. Our interaction with the students really helped us bond with and help us learn about the issues faced by the less privileged students. After we finished working on the digital version we shared our work with everyone. After that, our Christel House experience came to a sad and memorable end. We then came back to IBC to relax for a little before we had our panel discussion at the Jivox headquarters. Later, we listened and took notes while Meera K spoke about water issues in Bangalore and while Diaz Nesamoney spoke about AIF and its mission and objectives. Meera opened our eyes to the sad state of Bangalore’s lakes, inspiring us to take action in order to find a feasible solution while Diaz helped us understand how being a global citizen can help us find better, more efficient solutions to solve important issues around the world. Once the panel was over, we had pizza delivered to Jivox and we ate dinner there. We got home late that night and went right to bed.

Day 6 (Thursday, June 25, 2015)

On Thursday, we visited the BWSSB rainwater conservation park in downtown Bangalore. We divided into two groups and were given a tour of the two acre park made up of different rainwater harvesting methods and filters. We were shown all the methods of collection and filtration of the rainwater and a fun fountain that was clap activated. After the tour was over, we went inside to see multiple displays alerting us of the different ways water is used and wasted and how we can conserve water by using rainwater as a renewable source. Next we watched a documentary that made us change the way we think about water and its sources and taught us to be more conservative with water. We then left the park, and went to the Forum mall to eat lunch. When we finished, we went back to the hotel to relax before we went out into downtown Bangalore to catch the 6:30 showing of a Hindi dance movie called ABCD 2. It was an interesting experience because almost the entire film was in Hindi so we had to have the other kids translate for us. It was a very long movie (3 hours to be exact) so after it ended at 9 we went straight back to the hotel and went to bed since it had gotten late and we had things to do the next morning.

The AYAP has really changed our opinions regarding water and its sanitation and we look forward to learning more. Thanks to the AIF for this wonderful opportunity! J

Josh, Lucas, Brandon and Dhruv

Day 7 and 8

Two days ago we visited the community nearby Suluru, the government school we visited on Tuesday. We got a chance to see the filtration system they use for their local water source. After hearing about it we met up with the same students in the small groups from our mind mapping activity and made our own water filters. Each group was told to use a limited number of materials to try and build a filter in a water bottle to trap particles and make cloudy water appear clear. In the beginning it was difficult to communicate with the students at about what materials they wanted to incorporate, but by the end we were successfully using pictures and charades to learn from each other and use each other's ideas. By the end the only filter still working was the one created based off of the ideas of a Suluru student. It was rewarding to see how the students from AIF’s Digital Equalizer school used what they had previously learned in their science class to create a filter that removed both color and particles from the dirty water making it clear. Afterwards we listened to two panelists who spoke about the benefits of rainwater harvesting and gave us tips on how to be successful young entrepreneurs. We ended the day with a delicious group dinner at Smokehouse Deli. 

Yesterday we started the morning off with a conference at Bala Janaagraha where we met Indian students from schools around Bangalore. After meeting them and playing an ice breaker and started discussing the differences between infrastructure in the U.S. and in India. In the conference we talked about several different topic areas such as roads, water, electricity and smart cities. Students from both groups shared their thoughts on infrastructure from their respective countries, and afterwards we came home and celebrated Sophia's birthday with an amazing surprise party. 

Love, 

Flor, Simran, Druti and Seetha

Day 4

Today we visited a government school, Suluru which was located in the rural area of Bangalore. In the morning, we drove to the school where we were greeted by the students. After watching them pray during their assembly, we met with some of the student to do a mind mapping activity similar to yesterday's. One of the challenges with this activity was that the student did not speak English; however, through hand gestures and drawings were able to communicate with them. By the end of the activity we were teaching each other games and bonding. We also were able to see where they store their water and how they use it. The school had a large water tank tank provided by the government. After trying to teach the student how to do the wave, we crammed onto the bus and headed to their village. At the village we split up into our project groups and visited the homes of some of the students where we had the opportunity to interview their families. Compared to the last home visit, this village seemed to share a greater sense of community and were satisfied with their water situation. The families were extremely hospitable and graciously answered all our questions. We got to learn more perspectives of the water situation from these families. Through the families we also learned the benefits of government supplied water, which was not available to the community we visited yesterday. Finally we got back on the bus and went to the Forum mall for some shopping and dinner. We then went back to IBC to debrief and converse about the highlights, missed and wishes of the trip so far. 

We are all having a great time bonding together and can't wait for the upcoming experiences!

Love,

Ellie, Sophia, Ashli and Pragya

AIF AYAP 2015- Days 1-3

Dear Parents,

The past few days have been busy yet enjoyable, especially in meeting so many new people. We're all interacting really well and our group discussions have been a lot more in depth than we expected them to be. 

On the first day, we landed safely at 3:00 am and after a little rest we got to meet the Inventure students at breakfast. Then we went on a cultural walk where we saw a cave temple, a bull temple, and oddly enough, fruit bats. After that we went to Jivox for our orientation and had an introduction to the design thinking process. We came back to IBC, relaxed, had a pizza dinner, and went to bed early. 

On the second day, we woke up early to go to the flower market and experienced our first local perspective of Bangalore. After this, we celebrated National Yoga Day with some surya namaskar 

(sun salutations) led by Usha Aunty. Following this, we practiced more design thinking through a case study about a similar water sanitation problem in Nepal. We were asked to explicitly define the problem according to the article and design and rate our own frugal innovation. After a break, we had panelists, Rajesh Shah and Dr. Niranjan, come speak to us on their perspectives of the water problem. We were inspired to take the issues of water and sanitation into our own hands because of their intellectual insight. 

On the third day, we spent the majority of the time working with students from Christel House school and were amazed by their beautiful campus. Christel House school is a NGO and a non-profit school that provides education for students from low income families between kindergarten and twelfth grade. We also worked with a few of the high school students to create a mindmap of the water crisis and outline the causes and effects of it. After this we got to visit two of the communities that the students live in and interview the families about the water crisis. Most of us were very surprised by the dire situations the families face and realized how much we took our resources for granted. One thing that we did not expect was the lack of water supplied by the government in these communities. Even though the families are faced with so many hardships on a daily basis, they were very hospitable and openly welcomed us into their homes. Later that evening at IBC, we reflected on what we had experienced today and found that we were curious to expand our knowledge on the background of these communities. 

Overall, the last three days have been eye opening and a great beginning to our trip. We hope everyone enjoyed Father's Day and has a great rest of the week!

Lots of love,

Sophia, Ashli, Pragya, and Ellie 

Hello Everyone!
This is where we will blog daily during the trip. This blog will not only serve as a reflection for ourselves but also help our parents to see what amazing things we have accomplished on our AYAP journey! We will also be able to include photos in our posts too!

Thanks so much!
-Sophia