Lhakpa Sherpa grew up in a small village in Solukhumbu, a remote Himalayan district far from Kathmandu and the wider world of opportunity. There were no roads back then, when Lhakpa was just a teenager. Long before he knew the language of NGOs or community service, he was volunteering by lifting sick villagers onto his back, tying them into a doko (a traditional woven bamboo basket carried on the back), and walking for hours along narrow and steep mountain paths to reach the nearest hospital in Namche Bazaar. “If someone was sick, we carried them. There was no other way; no ambulance, no vehicles.”
That quiet, instinctive sense of duty was always inside him.
When Lhakpa turned eighteen, he learned about Students Partnership Worldwide (SPW), which later evolved into Restless Development. The program offered young people the chance to collaborate with international volunteers, acquire new skills, and drive meaningful projects in their home communities. Without knowing exactly what lay ahead, Lhakpa chose to join.
That decision marked a pivotal turning point in his life.
He participated in SPW’s program in 2001 focused on the environment. It started with a month-long training in Kathmandu. For the first time, Lhakpa shared daily life with volunteers from England, America, Germany, and beyond. Initial interactions felt awkward; the international volunteers spoke rapid English he could hardly understand, while he and his peers were unfamiliar with their customs. Yet, through shared meals, conversations, and routines, barriers melted away. They exchanged languages, songs, jokes, and perspectives on life.
After training, the program returned him to Solukhumbu, specifically to the Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality area. His core work centered on environmental and health improvements in rural villages. At the time, most homes relied on open indoor chulos: traditional fireplaces that choked kitchens with thick smoke. Women and children endured constant respiratory problems, from persistent coughs to severe infections. Young Lhakpa collaborated with mothers’ groups and schools to promote smokeless stoves fitted with chimneys, constructed solely from local stone, mud, and wood. He trained villagers to build and sustain these stoves themselves.
Beyond stoves, he organized community-building activities: football matches pitting local children against foreign volunteers, cultural programs, and school events. These initiatives bridged worlds, merging indigenous knowledge with fresh external ideas.
Looking back, I can see that Restless Development gave me three gifts that changed my life: the confidence to speak up, the belief that young people from remote mountain villages like mine can make a difference, and the habit of thinking not only about myself, but about my community, my country, and the world.
Lhakpa
Years later, in 2008, his son was born with deafblindness, a term and reality Lhakpa had never encountered. This personal turning point redirected his entire path. Seeking help, he connected with a modest day care center for deafblind children. Though the project was closing, he refused to leave. He began as a volunteer and steadily advanced into leadership: first as General Secretary, then as Vice President of related organizations, and now as president of the Society of Deafblind Parents Nepal. He spearheaded advocacy campaigns that included hunger strikes, extended sit-ins at places like Ratna Park, rallies, and marches. These efforts compelled government attention and sparked broader awareness of disability rights in Nepal, especially for those who are deafblind. In his early years, people with disabilities were frequently hidden away at home due to stigma or lack of resources. Lhakpa played a key role in challenging and changing that norm.
Today, Lhakpa Sherpa holds the position of Vice Chairperson of the National Disability Coordination Committee. He also serves prominently on the international stage as a leader associated with Deafblind International efforts in the Asia region. He travels, speaks at global forums, and advocates relentlessly so that no child with disabilities remains isolated or forgotten. When asked what truly transformed his trajectory, Lhakpa points to his time with Restless Development (then SPW).
Without SPW, I might never have found my voice. It gave me the courage to stand up, to lead protests for my son’s rights, to speak at global stages. That one year planted the seed of purpose that still grows in me every day.
Lhakpa
With his experience volunteering at Restless Development, Lhakpa emerged as a dedicated leader in disability rights and a powerful voice for the marginalized. He frequently shares this advice with young people: take the risk, embrace what scares you, live among those who differ from you, and commit effort to work that truly matters in your village. The confidence, friendships, and abilities you gain, he emphasizes, will guide the rest of your life.
Restless Development provided Lhakpa far more than a volunteer opportunity. It ignited a lasting sense of purpose and identity, transforming a reserved village youth into someone who now stands in international spaces declaring how the world can improve for its most overlooked children. That fire, sparked long ago in Solukhumbu, continues to burn strongly within him.
