Social Enterprise

It takes courage to be a shining beacon for others. Especially for young and influential minds. However, it is a responsibility few take on, so that there is some kind of guidance available for children to make those tough career choices at the crucial time in life. Meet Kshitij Mehra, one such shining beacon, spreading awareness in the hills of Himachal at present.

In concluding our Water Week, we couldn't think of a more apt story than one that fills our hearts with gladness, and an old, defunct lake with water! Read how the efforts of an Environmental outfit, together with the co-operation and willingness of the villagers, revived a lake thought to be dead, and turned around the fortunes of a small region.

Ecologically sustainable wildlife tourism is best handled by local communities and the homestays run by Mountain Shepherds in the villages of Lata and Tolma in the Dhauli Ganga valley in Garhwal illustrate just that. Abutting the wild and pristine Nanda Devi National Park, Mountain Shepherds is an offshoot of the Nanda Devi Campaign for cultural survival and livelihoods spearheaded by the Marcha Bhotia community of this valley. You stay in small but comfortable traditional village homes, and enjoy some delicious local cuisine prepared by your hosts. The organisation even arranges for treks in the deodar and birch forests of the national park with local guides who know the local flora and fauna like the back of their hands. Learn more about this interesting model of community-backed tourism.

Sanchali, a social project, provides free alternate education to children & employment to the women in rural areas. We chat up with Dakshayini Gowda to learn how beautifully she blends education with jewellery to make this happen. “We have created look-alikes of pottery, textile, beads, etc. of that period to give them a chance to learn history in a fun, interactive, lively and more effective manner,” Dakshayini says. And since she wanted to ensure that the workshops were free for all, she decided to fund them by starting an eco-friendly jewellery project with the women in the villages in Karnataka.

Continuing our series on disability and the strides made in this field, we visit the office of one of India’s leading accessibility technology firms, and meet their visually impaired tester Priti Rohra, who decided to break away from the conventional jobs offered to persons with disability in India and try something new!

As a social enterprise committed to providing some of the poorest households in India with solar power, Mera Gao Power is making great inroads. Starting from Sitapur district in Uttar Pradesh, the venture has reached out to more than 3500 customers in just over a year. In this lovely photo essay, Anna Da Costa shows us some of the impact when people living off the grid are finally included in the growth story and shown the possibilities.

Continuing our changemakers series, here we present to you a very diverse bunch of people - an apartment owner who composts her kitchen waste, village women who stitch washable sanitary napkins and a traditional honey hunter in the Nilgiris. What can they have in common? They are all social and ecological entrepreneurs, and this is how they are making a difference.

What does a techie who now sets up rainwater harvesting systems in rural schools have in common with an urban farmer who advocates growing vegetables on terraces and balconies? Both of them are social and ecological entrepreneurs. This is how they are making a difference.