Nepal Now: On the Move

We're talking with the people migrating from, to, and within this Himalayan country located between China and India. You'll hear from a wide range of Nepali men and women who have chosen to leave the country for better work or education opportunities. Their stories will help you understand what drives people — in Nepal and worldwide — to mortgage their property or borrow huge sums of money to go abroad, often leaving their loved ones behind.

Despite many predictions, migration from Nepal has not slowed in recent years, except briefly during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. About 1 million Nepalis leave every year to work at jobs outside the country. Tens of thousands go abroad to study. Far fewer return to Nepal to settle. The money ('remittances') that workers send home to their families accounts for 25% of the country's GDP, but migration impacts Nepal in many other ways. We'll be learning from migrants, experts and others about the many cultural, social, economic and political impacts of migration.

Your host is Marty Logan, a Canadian journalist who has lived in Nepal's capital Kathmandu off and on since 2005. Marty started the show in 2020 as Nepal Now.

Guest

Dipesh Kharel

"I grew up in a rural village in Nepal that spans the base of the Himalayas. The settlers in my hometown belong to different castes and ethnic groups. My life experiences within these boundaries of caste and ethnic groups have taught me about several aspects of society.

"During my bachelor's degree in environmental science, I studied global warming, climate change, and significant challenges related to global environmental transformations. While pursuing my master’s degree in the Visual Cultural Studies Program at UiT in Norway (2004-2006), I gained in-depth knowledge of anthropological theories and methods, which allowed me to explore the complexities and nuances of human interactions and socio-cultural understanding. The training in visual anthropology equipped me with essential skills to conduct visual ethnographic fieldwork, analyze ethnographic audiovisual data, and produce films and texts as research outcomes."

Guest appearance on:

Visual anthropologist turns long lens on Nepali migration to Japan