Uttarakhand was carved out from hill regions of Uttar Pradesh in 2000. Due to its geographic and strategic location, it has been given 'Special Category Status' by the Union of India. Uttarakhand borders China in the northeast and Nepal to the southeast, while its neighbouring states are Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The topography of Uttarakhand is characterised by hilly terrain, rapid soil erosion, frequent landslides, and widely scattered habitation. Uttarakhand has traditionally been divided into two parts, the western half known as Garhwal Mandal, and the eastern region going by the name of Kumaon Mandal. The state human development index in 2017 was 0.676 which is higher than the national average of 0.639 as per Global Data Lab and ranked 18 among the states and UTs.

We started our work in 2005 in Uttarakhand in the districts of Uttarkashi and Udham Singh Nagar. We began with various programmes to improve educational quality: the Computer Aided Learning Programme, Learning Guarantee Programme, Education Leadership Development Programme, and so on. Around 2012, we moved from a ‘programme mode’ to an ‘institutional mode’, building the professional capacities of key stakeholders through multiple modes of engagement via workshops, voluntary teacher forums, exposure visits, seminars, etc.

We currently work in all 13 districts of Uttarakhand: Almora, Udham Singh Nagar, Uttarkashi, Bageshwar, Chamoli, Champawat, Dehradun, Nainital, Pauri Garhwal, Pithoragarh, Rudraprayag, Haridwar, and Tehri Garhwal.