Equitech Scholar's Venture solves for Awareness and Access to Technology in Nepal

Labbi Karmacharya from Nepal is an Equitech Scholar from the Applied Data Institute, 2023. After completing her bachelors in information technology from the Islington College, Kathmandu, she joined CloudFactory as an Associate Data Scientist. Labbi is also a co-founder of Digital Kala - a project  which works towards bridging the digital divide in Nepal. Labbi's newest role is that of a teaching assistant and research fellow at Equitech Futures. “From Equitech scholar to teaching assistant, it feels like coming full circle.” 

“I found out about Equitech Futures through the alumni group of WomenLEAD, and I am so grateful to it because it led me to this beautiful community.” WomenLEAD is a leadership development organization for young women in Nepal, and Labbi is an alumni of their LEAD course 2018. “After I found out about the Applied Data Institute, I immediately checked the website to know more about the alumni and faculty. I found my senior, Aakriti Ghimire there and I knew this was a program I had to do!” The one thing that Labbi looked forward to the most was the mentorship opportunity she would receive after graduating from the Applied Data Institute. The program blended together data science and AI classes with the “much required” speaking lab and writing lab, which ensured that scholars graduating from the program were not just adept in technical skills, but also knew how to express and present their knowledge. “Writing and Speaking - which form the core of communication - are often overlooked in a lot of STEM programs because they are seen as ‘soft skills’, but I think they are equally important.” The intersection of STEM and social impact at Equitech Futures is another aspect which Labbi was interested in being a part of. Through their own venture, Digital Kala, Labbi and her team have been involved in spreading awareness about the boons and banes of technology in rural communities of Nepal. “As a developing country, Nepal needs to leverage its technology for good in order to move forward. In the rural parts of the country, people are aware of TikTok and Instagram, but they don’t know about learning platforms like Coursera or classes on YouTube. Our pilot program at Digital Kala focused on this very basic problem of lack of awareness about the boons of technology. It was a great success, and we planned to return with more workshops.”

Currently, Digital Kala offers three different services in the digital space : sessions on technology awareness, workshops on digital literacy, and workshops on the basics of data science. “When I joined the Applied Data Institute, I was already actively involved in work at Digital Kala. This meant that I had to juggle my full time job, my venture, and the Equitech program. I ensured to set my priorities right because all three things were important to me. Equitech allowed a few leaves and I made sure to save them for times when I really needed to travel for work at Digital Kala. My co-founders were very supportive of me too, which made balancing these things easier.”

For a brief period of five months, Labbi worked as a visiting lecturer at the Apex College in Kathmandu. She taught the course data structure and algorithms to a class of 50 students in her first stint as a teacher. “I was so nervous before my first day of teaching that I kept pacing around outside the classroom for a few times before entering! I took up this position because I wanted to get out of my comfort zone. I liked my full time job as a data scientist, but I was increasingly feeling like I needed to challenge myself and broaden my horizons. Within a few days of teaching, my nervousness took a backseat because I knew I could contribute to the students’ learning journey. I still remember, after the course ended, I felt like there was an emptiness in my life.” As a teaching assistant for the upcoming Applied Data Institute, Labbi is ready to take up the role of a mentor again and is looking forward to interacting with a global cohort of students. “My experience with my cohort last year was so enriching and fulfilling, I can’t wait to be there for the new scholars as they navigate their experiences!”

As a piece of advice, Labbi shares, “This is a fully-funded program, which is why a lot of people usually don’t take it with as much seriousness as they should. But the faculty and staff put in a lot of effort into making these programs. They hand-pick the scholars, meticulously create structures for classes, and provide feedback and mentorship to each and every student. When you don’t give your 100% to this, you lose out on all this, and get an incomplete experience. So, please, put in all your hard work, and you will benefit from a lifelong community of scholars and mentorship by brilliant faculty!”