On Saturday, June 15th, the Nepal Federation Netherlands organised the annual Nepal Congress in Bodegraven. Always a good time for 6 Degrees to network and exchange knowledge and experience with other organisations that also work in Nepal. In addition, this year the organising committee consisted of 3 team members from 6 Degrees.

This year’s theme was “Communication and Collaboration”.  A direct result of this was that the conference was organised in collaboration with the NRNA (Non-Resident Nepali Association). Besides the Nepalese ambassador, there were more than a hundred participants from both the Netherlands and Nepal. 

Presentations
Inspiring presentations were given by Gerard Arink and Merijn Everaarts. Gerard spoke passionately about his project to draw attention to the appalling working conditions of (Nepali) migrants in Qatar during the Football World Cup. With his campaign 'Don't turn your back' he raised money by selling football shirts in collaboration with the Johan Cruijff Foundation in order to counter labour migration and create jobs in Nepal.

Merijn explained how he is trying to change the world with the Dopper bottle by striving for an end to 'bottled water' and getting everyone to use 'tap water' as much as possible.

Workshops
In addition, there were workshops on Fundraising and Between Two Cultures. Between Two Cultures was given by certified intercultural trainer Kirtika van Hunen and was experienced as very positive and enlightening by all the participants present.  

Speed dating
Knowledge was shared through speed dating on the topics of education, job creation and healthcare. Gita led the group on job creation. “It was great to see both foundations and businesses engaging each other on the topic of job creation”.

Debbie moderated the conference and led the panel discussion. 6 Degrees played a substantial role in the organisation of the congress. Both Laetitia and Pema were involved in the communication and logistics of the day.

Inspiring
“All in all, it was a meaningful and inspiring congress for us. We gained new knowledge and made new connections. It is important to gain new insights in a welcoming and open atmosphere. We are always looking for new ideas and insights and are open to learning from the experiences of others,” says Debbie.

“We have received a lot of positive feedback on the set-up of the congress. There was a lot of interaction and that is exactly what we wanted,” Gita adds.