Planning an adventure seems ludicrous. Isn’t an adventure something like a chance meeting in the woods, one that is supposed to just happen? But ask Rony Gulati, the founder of Youreka, an adventure-based learning organisation and he will tell you that adventures do not happen anymore because children, especially those in urban areas, live in sheltered concrete jungles. “The value of spending time outdoors, playing, interacting with nature, falling, failing and learning from experiences outside the comfort of one’s home is crucial to a child’s upbringing. It impacts how they think and behave. Somehow this interaction with nature seems to have exited our education system,” says Gulati.
So, back in 1996, when he was toying with the idea of investing in education, he decided that he would set up an organisation that will help urban children get closer to nature. “The idea is to recognise the fact that there is learning trapped in every experience. A lot of children are unable to spend time outdoors because of the pressures at school. So, we at Youreka, organise four to five days long adventure trips for them, engage them in a variety of activities right from rock climbing to trekking and encourage them to reflect on their experiences too,” he explains.
Typically, Youreka approaches schools and proposes the programme. Once the school agrees and children sign up for the programme, the dates are fixed and the concept is evolved.
“A regular camp day will begin with what we call ‘chota hazri’, which are health check-ups, followed by activities. Then we give them a ‘reflection journal’ which encourages them to pen down what they thought were the challenges — basically to help them think through the experience. We have a good instructor to children ratio during these camps and the instructors lead the discussion,” he adds.
Mostly for children between the age group of nine and 17, Gulati has worked with over 200 schools across India and close to ten schools in Bangalore.
“Schools too recognise the value of such programmes. The only issue we face is while convincing parents about the safety of children during the trip. We have introduced a medical insurance cover too to tackle this,” explains Gulati.
Kamava Bopanna, who is the principal of DPS, Whitefield, recently sent a few of her children on one of Youreka’s adventure trips. “I chose the camp life because I think it combines enjoyment with learning. I even feel the camp life is sometimes better for children of this age, rather than visiting a historical place,” she explains.
“What a child does not learn in a classroom, he or she learns when pushed out of their comfort zone. They learn about caring for each other. When they are under the same roof, they get a chance to build a relationship with each other. Even teachers get an opportunity to develop a healthy equation with the children,” says Archana Srivastava, principal, Chrysalis High, who also sent some of the children to Youreka’s camp.
So far, Youreka’s interaction with schools has been limited to urban schools that have children whose parents can afford to pay for these trips. The cost of a trip generally ranges from Rs. 5000 to Rs. 9000 per child. Has Gulati thought of making this opportunity available for children from Government schools as well? “The Government is a difficult nut to crack. There are a number of bureaucratic hurdles that one would need to tackle. We have worked with some underprivileged children but they were mostly from NGOs. Ideally, we’d like to work with Government school children too but funds would be a problem,” he says.
