UNC students raise money for Nepal

Two Nepali students have started fundraising to support rebuilding in Nepal after the country’s largest earthquake in 80 years. 

Ritu Malla, a chemistry and anthropology double major, and Jyotsna Panthee, a psychology major, started a GoFundMe page for earthquake relief efforts. They hope to ultimately give back in the form of supporting youth education in rural Nepali communities.

“It hit our homeland," Panthee said. "We just felt helpless, but we wanted to do something." 

The 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit Nepal on April 25 and killed more than 8,000 people, while also destroying cities and hitting rural areas especially hard. 

“We just couldn’t focus on our studies until we did something," Malla said. "It hit us also, the feeling of hopelessness."

With finals starting the following day, reaching out to students proved difficult for the two rising seniors immediately after the earthquake. However, for Malla and Panthee, who were born in Nepal and have close family in the country, a looming sense of urgency overwhelmed any other obligations. 

Malla and Panthee aim to revamp their efforts in the fall, once students and Leve return to campus, by setting up a Facebook page for their fundraising and refocusing their efforts. They plan to update the page with information on how donations are helping the people of Nepal. So far, the two said there are few outlets for Nepali students to connect. 

“We posted the page on Facebook, and we sent it out to every single one of our friends," Panthee said. "It was really late before our final, but that’s how we spent our night. We wanted to open something specifically for the UNC community.”

So far, the GoFundMe page has garnered more than $800 in donations. With a favorable exchange rate of about 100 Nepalese rupees for every $1, even $1 can provide a meal to a person in Nepal.  

Originally thinking of donating to the Save the Children Fund, Malla and Panthee recently received support from anthropologist Lauren Leve, an associate professor in the Department of Religious Studies. After Malla reached out, Leve initiated the idea of channeling the funds to work toward helping disadvantaged schools in the Nepali district of Gorkha. 

“We thought this would have more of a lasting impact,” Malla said.

Leve, who is currently doing ethnographic research in Nepal, was in the urban city of Kathmandu at the time of the earthquake and detailed her reaction in an article published on the website Anthropology News. 

“In less than a minute, the quotidian security of everyday life was torn asunder as the ground — literally and metaphorically — shifted under people’s feet,” Leve wrote, detailing the instance that shattered the lives of millions in Nepal. 

“The terror of the Great Quake and the scale of the destruction mean that recovery will take time, strength and, of course, funds,” Leve added.

The students hope to work towards building schools in Nepal, though specific plans are not set as of yet. They hope to gain support even from those who can't donate. 

“Ultimately, putting the word out there is the best way,” Panthee said. 

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