YSC: It would be nice to have at least a coffee shop in the soum…
SocietyUlaanbaatar /MONTSAME/. We interviewed high school students of Mankhan soum of Khovd aimag D.Tamir, B.Batmend and G.Temuulen. They are members of the ‘Pioneers’ team, one of the most active team participating in the Youth Sustainability Corps (YSC) program. The project is co-funded by the Mongol Ecology Center and the European Union.
YSC: What did you do
during your summer vacation?
-Temuulen: My family planted vegetables and watermelons lat spring. I learned to grow watermelons last year. You lay the plastic paper on the ground, cover with dirt, and then you meticulously place the watermelon seeds one by one in holes. I harvested and sold about a ton of watermelons in summer and bought myself a new phone. I am planning to sell my next year’s harvest in Ulaanbaatar city next year.
Batmend: In my
opinion, children are different depending on where they live. The children in
the rural regions are taught to work from an early age compared to their peers
in the city. For instance, we prepare hay and plant vegetables in the autumn. I
have been working in the city for two years in a row during my summer vacation.
With the money I earn, I feed, clothe and take care of myself.
YSC: What do you like
to do in the city?
-I like to go to the
cinema. But when I go to the city, I was often made fun of for being a
countryside kid. At first, I used to feel offended, but now it does not bother
me. We speak the same language and live in the same world after all.
YSC: What makes Mankhan
soum special?
-Batmend: In our soum,
there is a cave called - ‘Gurvan Senkher’, which has petroglyphs from 40,000
years ago. Compared to the city, my homeland is beautiful in summer, smoke-free
in winter and less noisy and stressful.
Tamir: It is difficult
to just relax and rest in the city as there is too much noise. However, there
is no such thing here.
Temuulen: The panoramic
view from the top of the mountain ‘Bayantumbe’ is so spectacular that I see
everything beautiful of my soum.
YSC: What do you do in
your spare time?
-Just like every other
children, we play basketball, volleyball and video games. But compared to the
city, there are not many fun places we can hang out in our free time. So it can
be really boring sometimes. It would be nice to have at least a coffee shop
here. Member of the Parliament S.Byambatsogt promised to build a child
development center several years ago. Unfortunately, he did not keep his
promise.
YSC: What are some recurring
issues in the soum that affect your life?
-Our soum doesn’t
have a public bath house. In summer, people wash themselves in the river. But
it is absurd for us to wash ourselves in the river while living the 21st
century and talking about protecting the environment. Also, the school doesn’t
have a proper toilet. Primary school children find it difficult to go outside
to use open pit toilets in the winter.
In addition, there is
no lighting in the basketball court of our soum. With school and homework, we
don’t get to play during the day. But it’s too dark in the evening.
YSC: If you had the power, what would you build in your soum?
-Temuulen: I would like create a place where children and youth can spend their free time in fun and productive ways. The places like that would allow us to be more creative and achieve more.
Also, some families the
soum live quite far from the center where all the services are located. It’s
quite distressing to see old people with weak legs walking the distance.
Therefore, it would be great if there are buses and taxis in the soum to serve
them.
Batmend: I want to
improve everything. A warm, indoor places coffee shop where young people can
go. Also, our soum has street lighting only along the main road. I want all
streets to be lighted and roads to be paved. Aside from building a physical
space, we need someone to help, guide and advise young people who wish to study
abroad. We want to be global thinkers. We know that there are opportunities,
but we lack the knowledge and skills to use those opportunities.
Tamir: It would be
great to have E-sports competitions and promote it in the soum. Actually, almost
everyone in my school plays video games.
YSC: Has there been
any development for the children in your area recently?
-A large sports
palace was built. But now it is being used as an isolation facility due to the
COVID-19 pandemic. It has a fitness center, shower, bathroom and gym. We used
to go there to play basketball indoor in the cold season. A playground was
built afterwards. However, it is incomplete and the equipment is insufficient
as if the budget was not enough or something. Its trash can is always full, and
often surrounded by garbage. We cleaned the area ourselves and posted about it
on the Facebook group of the soum, urging people not to throw away the garbage.
We do small things like this to make impact in our soum. But the authorities
refuse to hear what we have to say. The adults ignore us just because we are
young and unexperienced. It would actually be really nice if people paid some
attention to what young people have to say. We, like adults, want to help
development of our community.
YSC: Do you think
being in rural region provides equal opportunity compared to being in the city?
-Yes, it does have
opportunities. Children living in rural areas are now able to get same quality
of education as children in urban areas thanks to the internet. But teachers’
participation is important. For example, teachers need to expand their
knowledge to the level of teachers in urban areas. They also have to be open
and think outside the box. When students are on their path to find their
dreams, they first seek advice and help from their teachers. Therefore, it is
vital for teachers not to impose their views, but to understand and listen to
their students. For us, we are pursuing our dreams of studying abroad. That’s
why we want our teachers to be the ones who can guide us to make our dreams
come true.
I also wish parents
would talk to their children sincerely. I want them to talk about what they
really want and their dreams, not to scold them.
YSC: Did you learn
anything new during the quarantine? What are the advantages and disadvantages
of quarantine?
-Tamir, Batmend: We
were very active when the quarantine was first started. Initially, teachers
often demanded us to always attend TV and e-lessons. But the students became
less active as time went on. So I don’t think the quarantine has any advantage.
Temuulen: It gave me enough time to think seriously about my career choices. I made up my mind to become an IT engineer.
YSC: Would you like to
share your immediate goals?
-Tamir: I wish to go
abroad and experience different culture. My brother and sister are in South
Korea, so I want to go there.
Batmend: Children want
to live and work in Mongolia, but I don’t. It's hard and stressful to live here
in Mongolia. That's why I want to study and work abroad. I want to go to Japan
or America, countries of technology. It is a dream come true if I am be able to
study in some good university abroad.
Temuulen: I don't
really want to go abroad. I want to graduate from university here, master my
profession and work for a foreign company remotely from here in Mongolia. If
you spend your time wisely and develop yourself, there are opportunities.
YSC: How do you feel
about the YSC program?
-Batmend: When the YSC
program was first introduced at our school, we were the first team to be
involved. That is why we named our team – ‘Pioneers’. This is the first time
such a project is being implemented in a remote soum like ours. We are so lucky
to have been chosen. I was thinking about moving to Ulaanbaatar city, but I
decided to stay since the YSC program started. YSC program is the reason for me
to stay in Manhan.
Temuulen: I was also
about to move from here. Now I wonder how lucky I was not to move from Manhan. I
see YSC a huge opportunity.
YSC: Which subprogram
is your favorite?
-Temuulen: The program
which sends the best participants to the European countries for a summer camp.
I also like the e-lectures that help decide our career choices. For instance,
after listening to a lecture, I learned that graphic design skills can be
acquired without having to go to university.
Batmend: The advantage
of the YSC program is that we compete with children not only in our soums and
aimags, but all over Mongolia. We won the last YSC challenge. We are proud to
be in this program, which is open for everyone accross of the country.