Our first dinner at the Coffee Shop after our surprisingly on time flight from Western Nepal was absolutely magical. We arrived at the door of what the hotel manager liked to call, “our second home, home away from home,” which definitely felt this way when we greeted the Annapurna employees with smiles from ear to ear. At dinner we are felt fresh, new and fabulous. Regardless of what the meaning might be behind such feelings, we felt grateful and good.

At the dinner we had the honor to speak with two Nepalese men who shared a lot of wisdom and words on what we had seen and studied the past week and a half. Our friends sat on opposite sides of the table and let us bombard them with questions, contradictions and excitement. Something we discussed has stayed with me. During a complicated conversation about the VDCs, accountability and corruption this was said, “We must accommodate the power in order to influence.” We know the system will always be functioning therefore how to you work within it and use it for good. This is complicated and it connects to much of our privileges as researchers and intellectuals. We often feel guilt and remorse for our complicit role in the problem yet we must use our role to contribute and make change. Therefore, privilege must not be rejected. And this question of how we adapt and accommodate and where do we draw the lines.