My name is Thupten Dolma and I am Tibetan. I grew up in South India, in a Tibetan community, but I am currently living at Pestalozzi International Village, in Sedlescombe, East Sussex.
In 2009 I was awarded a two-year scholarship to study the International Baccalaureate Diploma in England and I am half way through my first year. Here, I get to do things which I could never dream of doing if I were back home. One of the activities I enjoy most is the Duke of Edinburgh Award.
I like nature and being outdoors and so I really enjoy walking and am excited about the expedition we have coming up. We have been doing practice walks and we did a practice camping trip during our Easter holidays. We have meetings once a week where we learn to read maps, compasses and other things needed for such activity.
To achieve the award, we have to complete a set of activities in the fields of service, action and creativity. I volunteer at St. Michael’s Hospice for service, go to swimming lessons for my action, and for creativity I am learning piano. All these things are new to me and I am very keen to do them every week.
The Duke of Edinburgh award not only encourages us to be more nature-loving and environmentally friendly, but also teaches us to be good and responsible human beings and work cooperatively in groups. This has opened lots of opportunities for me to try different things and I am keen to do more of these beneficial activities.
All this wouldn't be possible without the support we get from our staff at Pestalozzi and I wish to thank them and the DofE too.
Thupten, 18, from Sedlescombe
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