Sarasavadi, a small village 90 miles west of Ahmedabad, is home to 109 families; 80% earn their livelihoods through dairy and agriculture. The village has one government primary school; the closest government secondary school is 8 kilometers away. Many youth do not continue past primary school, most subsequently drop out of secondary school; for the few that pass, there are no local jobs.
Raju’s story is different. In 2003, Raju Thakor came to Ahmedabad. After working a few odd jobs, he found his way to Manav Sadhna, a Gandhi Ashram-based non-profit organization that truly “Loves All, Serves All.” Drawn to the philosophy and with great self-initiative, Raju learned computers, English, video-editing skills, and ultimate Frisbee. He also learned the power of selfless service. In 2007, prompted in part by his father’s death and increased family responsibility, Raju returned to Sarasavadi with the dream of creating a ‘model village.’ Raju has a ten-year plan.
In just two years, Raju has initiated a computer class, public health awareness campaigns, sanitation projects, and an ultimate Frisbee program within the village. With three donated computers, Raju teaches computer basics to two batches of 15 children each. He collaborated with the local government primary school on a village clean-up project where students engage in village clean up as part of their routine walk to the school every day. Raju emphasizes the foundational importance of developing the value systems of youth through programs, discussions, and “teachable moments.”
Need for Project:
While Raju has focused largely on youth, he recognizes the importance of family involvement for Sarasavadi’s development. Engaging families on a more personalized basis could increase overall engagement.
Raju hopes to focus initially on holistic health and sanitation practices. Raju has identified kitchen gardens, composting, and toilet construction as priorities. Many families in the village do not have a toilet. As Raju has used local masons to construct the toilet in his home, the knowledge to build such toilets exists within Sarasavadi. The local builders may prove useful in persuading families to construct a toilet.
Establishing a few families to be pillars of implementation towards the ideal ‘model village' may encourage others.
As an August 2010 Indicorps Fellow, you will frame a family-based health and sanitation strategy, select a few pillar families to pilot the programs, and then spread awareness to the entire community. The project will include three main initiatives – kitchen gardens, composting, and toilet construction – with the opportunity to implement more if appropriate. Each initiative should be researched, planned, and developed thoroughly before implementation.
You will introduce initiatives through personal contact and meetings with the families, especially the head of the household. Initially you may want to begin with families close to Raju, families of the youth leaders, or other community advocates. You will need to have a thorough knowledge of the initiatives in order to convince the families to implement one or more of the projects, and in order to not oversell the benefits of the project.
You will promote family kitchen gardens in the community, assisting in the creation and maintenance of small-scale gardens. This project will provide families with herbs and vegetables for daily meals and possibly extra produce to generate income. Those with agriculture backgrounds can use this space as a platform to refine their skill or experiment with new techniques. Similarly, those lacking skills could use this opportunity to learn new things. You will attempt to involve the entire family, including children in this project to ensure maximum buy-in.
You will educate all local families on the importance of proper waste management. You will educate the households especially on organic waste management: what constitutes “organic” waste and the uses of organic waste. You will then assist the most interested households construct and use of composting and vermi-composting pits. The composting pits could serve as raw material for the kitchen gardens. You can also research other uses for organic waste and suggest other options where appropriate.
You will identify households without toilets and encourage them to utilize government schemes that contribute up to 50% of the cost of a household toilet. You may want to explore possible savings plans to make the cost more realistic for these families. You may design or contribute to designing a proper sewage and water draining line.
You will research other small-scale, household-level improvements and determine their suitability and likelihood for implementation in Sarasavadi. You may then seek to develop implementation plans for those as well. You should engage youth leaders in the planning and implementation. You should also help build the capacity of the pillar families to advocate and mentor others. You should document your processes and find motivated community members to take over supervision of the projects you have started.
Target Community:
Sarasavadi has 109 families that 80% earn their livelihoods through dairy and agriculture. Major crops include grains, vegetables, and fruit. Most villagers also have buffaloes, goats, and cows which provide milk for consumption and sale. The children assist their parents in household chores and in the fields.
Objectives:
• To broadly educate the residents of Sarasavadi on the project initiatives
• To identify interested families and discuss potential projects with them personally
• To assist families implement projects, which will include locating government funding, sharing best practices, and securing qualified builders
• To provide training on the upkeep and maintenance of the projects
• To motivate the selected families to leverage the completed projects as a springboard for wider community implementation.
Challenges:
• Building trust within the community and specific families
• Finding motivated families and sustaining motivation throughout project implementation
Team-Based Model:
Each project is designed as a three-way partnership between you, Indicorps, and the partner entity. Each grassroots partner – in this case Raju Thakor – will host two to four Fellows. Consequently, the August 2010 Fellowship will have both an individual and a team component.
As a team of Indicorps Fellows, your focus is to assist in Raju’s efforts for community empowerment. The larger overarching vision/goal is to move Sarasavadi towards becoming a ‘model village.’
You will either live with a host family in Raju’s village or in a volunteer guesthouse. You will be responsible for washing your own clothes and helping with daily chores. You will be provided simple vegetarian food. Internet and international calling facilities are easily available in Viramgam, a twenty minute bus ride from Sarasavadi. Local travel between the villages will be by jeep, state transport buses or bicycle. Ahmedabad is approximately an hour hours away from Sarasavadi, and is connected by bus. Ahmedabad is connected by to the rest of India by the road and railway network.
The languages spoken at Sarasavadi are Gujarati and Hindi. For this project, a basic knowledge of Gujarati and/or Hindi is required. If you do not have basic knowledge of Gujarati or Hindi, you can still apply if you commit to learning the language before the start of your Fellowship year.
Please explain the qualifications that make you a strong candidate for this project - be sure to elaborate on any experiences with public health, nutrition and/or sanitation.
2.
Tell us about a family in your community that serves as an example for others on a particular social issue. What makes this family a model for change? How do you think a few families will spark change in Sarasavadi?
3.
One of the young adult males in your "model family" does not want to spend money on a subsidized toilet and a kitchen garden; he would rather buy a color television to watch cricket. How will you engage the family in making this important decision?
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