#1-Introduction

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Blog #1-Introduction 

Gully Lab Project


We are a group of girls between the ages of 11 and 15. We live in a communityin Pune, India called Janata Vasahat, Parvati Paytha.

Here is a little bit about us:
Sitting behind from left are Mahin A, Akanksha G, Lata S, Priyanka G &Shahista S
Sitting front from left- Pratiksha N, Poonam S, Afiya S, Jyoti P & Vaishnavi M
  •         I’m Mahinand I study in 7th grade. I like to dance and I amvery talkative.
  •       I’m Akanksha. I study in a 7th grade. Dancing is my hobby. I like to participate in various competitions organized by my school.
  •        I’m Lata and I am in 7th grade. My hobbies are dancing and singing.
  •       I’m Priyanka and I study in 8th grade. I like writing and enjoy participating in various competitions, especially Yoga competitions.
  •         I’m Shahista. I am in7th grade. I like to do everything other than studying and I love to find ways ofmaking best out of waste. J
  •        I’m Pratikshaand I study in 6th grade. I love reading and learning new things.
  •        I’m Poonam. I am in 7th grade. I like to play a lot of different games.
  •         I’m Afiyaamd I am in 6th grade. I like to participate in speech competitions and I also likedrawing and learning computer
  •     My name is Jyoti and I study in 7th grade. I am a very calm person and I love learning new things.
  •          I’m Vaishnavi and I study in 6th grade. Well, I like to chitchat with my friends.


These are some of our colorful homes. Our community is located with the Mutha River on one side and Parvati Hill on the other. The hill rises to 2,100 feet above sea level and atop the hill is the Parvati Temple.One must climb 103 steps to get to the temple. The temple is the oldest heritage structure in Pune and was built during the rule of the Peshwa dynasty in 1749.

What is a Gully Lab and why do we want one?

A Gully Lab is a hands-on learning program designed by and for kids. We decide on topics that truly interest us, and then each month we learn all about that topic, doing field trips, activities, experiments, meeting experts, and blogging about what we are learning. There are 2 organizations that helped us get started with our Gully Lab program.

First, an organization called ASHA – Action for Self-reliance Hope and Awareness that has been working with us for a long time. Since 1993 ASHA has been working with the aim of women and girl child empowerment in Pune, India. ASHA has had a program at the Janata Vasahat Community Center that works with school going adolescent girlssince 2008. Living in this community poses lots of challenges for girls. ASHA helps us become our own best selves by encouraging us to stay in school and providing us with guidance and opportunity to positively impact our overall personality development.

Second, Limitless Child International, is a USA based nonprofit organization that provides play, sports, and learning programs for vulnerable children in communities and orphanages. Limitless Child International believes that every child has a right to a thriving childhood and their programs provide opportunities to learn, play, and connect with mentors in our community. 

We are part of a large group of girls (and some boys) that meet at our local community center every day with the ASHA social workers. ASHA and Limitless Child Internationalasked us if we would be interested in having a Gully Lab and we said yes!! We believe that this program will enhance our knowledge, skills and help us develop soft skills like problem solving, critical thinking beyond our typical schoolcurriculum.

The actual program begin in June 2019, with lots of discussion about what a Gully Lab meant to us and team building activities. Through this interaction we came out with the list of topics which we want to explore further through experiments, field visits and practical.A few of the topics were – Drawing, Organic composting, Origami, Dance and drama, scientific toys, self defense, making best out of waste. 


The Gully lab project was started in a last week of December 2019 with 10 girls.First topic of Gully lab is “Organic Composting”. Stay tuned for our next blog post with pictures and description of our journey through organic composting!

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