During a trip to Northeast India in 2016, we (Juanita and Mathias) visited Maguri Beel, a complex of wetland habitats near Dibru-Saikhowa National Park, where many specialized bird species of the Brahmaputra floodplain occur. It was raining cats and dogs, which was why Binanda, our local guide, suggested that we visit his old school to wait out the rain. Our visit was not announced, but the teachers and students of the local village school gave us a warm reception with tea and biscuits and showed us their school. The classrooms were very basic, electricity was hardly available and the heavy rains had damaged their only computer. The money to provide meals for the students at noon had been cancelled by the authorities. All the more because of these hardships, we were impressed by the hospitality and generosity of the students and teachers.
The English teacher is fascinated by the local bird life and he tries to pass on this fascination to his students. Even without the help of binoculars and guidebooks, he teaches them the most important bird species in the area, with both their English and local names. From time to time, he receives help from Binanda, who is a role model in the village community. Binanda is now a busy birdwatching guide, not only in Maguri Beel, but in the whole of Northeast India, a little known but enormously exciting and diverse region. Some students would like to follow his example. In addition to creating an alternative income opportunity for the local population, ecotourism would also contribute to better protection of the endangered wetland habitats in the area.
We were moved by our visit to the village school and wanted to thank the students and teachers for their hospitality and their enthusiasm. After some thinking and discussing, we decided to donate a few binoculars and guidebooks to the school to help the students in their endeavours to discover the local bird fauna. Our Indian friend and travel companion Gaurav Kataria, who, as an organizer of nature travel, knows the north-east of India like no other, liked the idea and offered to organize the handover. He proposed taking the opportunity to organize a small bird festival with excursions for the village community.
After our return to Switzerland, we started looking for good-quality binoculars. We assumed that we had to raise considerable funds and were thinking of looking for sponsors. After discussing with colleagues, it turned out that many people had optical devices such as binoculars or spotting scopes that were no longer used at home and would gladly be willing to donate for a good cause. So why not pass on such devices instead of buying new ones? This is how we kill 3 birds with one stone: happy recipients of high-quality equipment for birdwatchers, happy donors who give their devices a meaningful second life and a win for the environment, because no resources are used for the production of new devices. And thus the idea of Binoculars4charity was born.
At the beginning of April, we sent five binoculars and a spotting scope with tripod, generously donated by BirdLife Switzerland, to India. In addition, we bought 6 ornithological guidebooks. The material is currently in Delhi and we are planning the handover and the bird festival in Maguri Beel, which will take place later this year. We will keep you up to date. Many thanks to our sponsors, partners and friends, who helped us to make this idea a reality!