"If
the passenger visits better countries, he may learn to improve his own",
wrote Samuel Johnson, in 1755.
As I have spent the past two weeks in India a thing that has struck me as I read my morning news has been the number of stories about local nonprofits.
It has led me to think afresh about the importance of nonprofits (NGOs) and social enterprise in the space between what government and the for profit sector can do. It is in this space where change can happen, a difference can be made and humanity can be found. What would the world be like without all the various organisations in that space where you live?
There are said to be around 200,000 nonprofits in India more than one for every 600 of its 1.2 billion people. In India, as in much of the developing world, the ability of governments and the for profit sector to deal with the huge demands of extreme poverty and a fast growing population has limits. Here are some examples of how Indian nonprofits are stepping up to the challenges.
Keshav Srushti in a bid to spread awareness on solar cooking, will be recruiting students from 500 schools across Mumbai to cook solar-powered dishes. This solar cooker is a rudimentary piece of plastic foam that can reach a maximum temperature of 120ºC and can save up to 10,000 units of electricity on a daily basis and is functional for a year.
Salaam Balak is trialing solar powered school bags for the poor. This idea came to its designer when she was talking to her domestic help, “She told me about the problems her children faced while studying at night. There are frequent power outages in her slum". The backpacks look like regular schoolbags but turn into a lamp when their front pockets are unzipped.
GOONJ responded to the problem that 68% of rural women cannot afford sanitary napkins. When women cannot afford sanitary pads they resort to using cloth pieces or nothing. This causes infections and can lead to cervical cancer. GOONJ decided to act on this issue and started a movement of making sanitary pads out of waste cloth for rural women.
Sewa Trust provides free meals to city slum and street dwellers admitted to hospitals who are unable to afford their own. Many of the beneficiaries are migrant workers drawn to the cities from rural India by the opportunity of work and separated from family support during their time of need. Says one beneficiary, “I regularly come to this organisation and am offered free food by the members. I live on a footpath and do not have enough money to buy food for myself".
Sangama, an NGO for sexual minorities, sex workers and people
living HIV has been asked by the Kerala Government to conduct a socio-economic and situational survey of transgenders in the state through an NGO with a view of formulating
welfare measures for them.
To celebrate Indian National Day on 15 August, the Times of India ran a feature that highlighted several more NGOs and social enterprises:
Basic school skills
The focus of in-school programs has always been on children achieving basic skills. The depressing fact is that of children enrolled in class 1, about 40% drop out before class 8 and a total of 70% drop out before class 10, makes basic literacy and numeracy an urgent social goal. Akshara’s effort began in Bangalore when remedial programs were implemented with volunteers, trained to identify children with learning deficits and give them specialized inputs.
Microcredit and crowdfunding
Rang De combines microcredit and crowd funding to help people achieve freedom from poverty. It acts as a bridge between people who want to help the under privileged and those who need money to invest in small businesses. People living in cities can choose from a huge database of borrowers on rang these websites invest as little as Rs.100 into their business.
Out on the streets
Started in 2010 by an anonymous group of volunteers Ugly Indians are out on the streets fixing pavements, fearing a garbage, removing unauthorised posters, painting walls and planting saplings all over India. The regional initiative in Mumbai has been to document all the filthy and rundown parks and playgrounds and lobby the city council to remedy these.
Femininity and Fearlessness
The Fearless Collective are artists, activists, photographers and filmmakers who use art to speak out against gender violence. It was formed in response to the Nirbhaya rape and murder. The collective aims to redefine fear, femininity and what it means to be fearless.
Pay from your heart
Seva Cafe is a pop-up restaurant run entirely by volunteers. At the end of the meal diners don't get a bill, just a little note which says "Pay from your heart!". A hundred percent of the restaurant profits is used to support social service projects.
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