The “Pitt in the Himalayas” programme is underway at the Hanfil Centre , an outdoor and environmental education centre on the campus of Woodstock School . This year, thirteen students from the University of Pittsburh , alongwith students from Yale –NUS College of Singapore , are spending a semester in the Himalayas. During this period they are able to earn 15 credits through different college courses that cover a range of disciplines, including environmental study in the Himalaya, mountains and music,cultural immersion and Hindi language study
The Hanfil Centre, through its various initiatives, has been working for developing responsible citizens by exploring and celebrating the Himalayan environment through physical activity, art, literature, environmental ethics and leadership training.
Hanifl Centre´s pilot Wilderness Education Course at Woodstock School was introduced in the 2015-2016 academic year. The course includes theoretical and practical knowledge of wilderness first aid, moving water kayaking, rock climbing and wilderness backpacking. Through technical outdoor skill acquisition, students will be challenged by these outdoor environments, while the art of journeying in wilderness safely will be crosscutting, earning them lower-division university credit.
It has been a year of great change and growth at the Hanifl Centre. The year 2015 kicked off with a new partnership with Aerie Backcountry Medicine, a leading provider of wilderness-medicine courses based out of Missoula, USA. Through this partnership, selected Hanifl Centre and Woodstock School staff members attended a Wilderness First Aid Instructor Course in which they were trained and certified in Wilderness First Aid. There are only a couple of organisations in India that offer this kind of training in first aid, and most of these do not have a wilderness focus.
In its eight months as a certified partner, Hanifl Centre has run WFA and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) courses in Mussoorie, Delhi, Nainital, Mumbai and Kashmir, and trained a total of 155 participants. Most are from the rapidly growing number of outdoor enthusiasts as well as people based or working in remote locations. The participants have come from the Indo- Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), guides from the state government- owned KMVN, trekking and outdoors companies from Uttarakhand, Himalayan Outward Bound crew and the school’s own Trek leader Course participants.
The Hanifl Centre conducted a WFA CPR Course for the managers of the state-owned KMVN tourist guest houses on the Kailash -Mansarover pilgrimage route.
The Hanfil Centre continues to be a centre of reference for schools from India: institutions, including Mira Model School Delhi, D Y Patil International School Mumbai, Fazlani l’Académie Globale Mumbai stay with the centre year after year to carry out the mandatory core component of the IB Diploma Programme, the CAS (Creativity, Action, Service). Boston College comes every summer for a 3-week course titled “Writing out of Place – The Himalayas” and the latin School of Chicago comes during their spring break for an exposure to the Himalayan environment.
The Hanifl Centre´s Diploma in Outdoor and Environmental Education (Trek leader Course) programme continues to train youth from Uttarakhand and neighboring states to value their environment and take a more eco-friendly and professional approach to their livelihoods.In collaboration with The Himalayan Club, the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour came to Woodstock School, as part of the Mussoorie Writers Mountain Festival. This is the first time ever this internationally acclaimed top mountain film festival visited Mussoorie.
Hanifl Centre gives support to Woodstock School treks, micro expeditions and climbing trips during weekends and extended periods.