“No (wo)man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and (s)he’s not the same (wo)man.” – Heraclitus
“Exposure to the wild world”, this is the title of act 3 of the ‘Journey in Five Acts’ kanthari Curriculum. After having finalized their project concepts, we invite all participants for a 10 day south Indian trip to meet project founders in person. But this time, the Corona pandemic had crossed these plans and a good alternative was required. Thus, we soon found ourselves in a live video voyage through African kanthari projects, as you can read in our blog, for our participants a memorable experience. And for us? Like everyone in the room we were glued to our chairs, when our alumni who we worked with, showed us their campuses, offices, their teams, and especially hearing them talk about how they managed problems and arrived at great achievements.
The road for each of them was bumpy but in the end every single one of them could demonstrate that all the big dreams and ambitious plans they once announced during their graduation speeches at the kanthari talks, have become a reality.
Dear friends and supporters of kanthari, in the following newsletter, we are happy to share the latest updates with you.
inani
As announced in the previous kanthari Quarterly newsletter, here an update about the new inani program. Our participants have worked on ideas for products that are made from natural/earth friendly materials and that can be made within their social venture to generate income. 4 groups came up with several different products. The Pro-food group worked on a nutricious savoury mix made of millets, and several healthy spices/herbs. The Pro-body group works on pleasantly smelling eco-friendly soaps. The pro-waste group uses fibers of banana stems to create ropes and threads and they are experimenting making bio-polymers as a potential alternative for plastic packaging material. The pro-fauna group is working on the development of a remountable portable chicken-coop. The participants got support from 9 kanthari graduates who have returned to the campus to join the also newly developed act three. Act three is all about Business And Social CHange (BASCH). Having good and earth friendly products is one, to market them and to generate a regular revenue stream is another. During act three the participants undergo an experiential journey during which they not only learn about production processes, but also about marketing strategies, financial literacy, project planning, branding. All these of course are linked to a positive impact in their communities.
kanthari participants 2021
Akhina Mohan – Alarmo – India
Akhina Mohan from Kerala India, plans to start ALARMO, a youth driven, Kerala based task force that nudges people to act immediately. Nothing makes her more furious than the mistreatment and irresponsibility towards the environment. But Akhina never had the courage to stand up and speak out. Participating in relief work during the 2018 Kerala floods, helped her to break out of her shell. Now, she knows, her actions can make a difference! The younger generation needs to realize that their planet is on fire, and together they have to start saving it.
Tobi Adegbite – Entojutu – Nigeria
Tobi Adegbite from Nigeria has studied biology and discovered his love for a small creature that could be key in our waste problem. Farmers in Nigeria face many challenges, because of inadequate practices, many are in debt. An additional economic and environmental problem is waste. Being a passionate farmer himself, Tobi faced all these problems, however, he found that a small insect, the black soldier fly, could be a key to a sustainable solution. Solving environmental problems that the world faces does not need words but requires action. And Tobi is ready to act!
Puneet Singh Singhal – Ssstart – India
Only when children in his class started to mock him, Puneet Singh Singhal realised that he had begun to stammer. Witnessing violence in his personal surrounding shook him and took him to an island of isolation and loneliness. From a child who loved to be in the spotlight, he changed to a stammering, timid boy who tried to avoid any conversation. Today, he embraces his special style of communication and through his Delhi based organisation SSstart, he dreams to set free those who are prisoners of their inability to communicate fluently.
Updates kanthari alumni
Lawrence Afere – 2012 kanthari – Springboard Nigeria
Lawrence is the founder of Springboard, an organization that provides an ecosystem that helps young farmers to earn a sustainable livelihood. Since the time he has returned from kanthari to Nigeria in 2012 a lot has happened. 3408 farmers were trained in 30+ communities. From the trained farmers, 908 have joined a cooperative through which the produce is being sold. However, reaching where he is today, came with plenty of challenges. Being despised his by parents for choosing a profession like farming that is looked down upon in Nigeria as a poor man’s job, to many many organizational and bureaucratic hurdles. Learn more about Lawrence’s great work here.
Navina Gyawali – 2018 kanthari – SATH – Nepal
What’s cooking in Nepal? The blind leading the blind! Navina Gyawali is the founder of ‘supportive action towards humanity’ (SATH) an organisation that empowers blind women in Nepal. In September she ran a cooking training workshop for 10 visually impaired women. Being blind herself and having a passion for good food, Navina has developed simple techniques that make it possible for blind people to cook by themselves. Boiling milk, making milk/lemon tea, cooking rice for one or more people, cooking vegetables and dal were some of the skills that were part of the program. During the lockdown, Navina has done a similar training online. The parent’s support was crucial for the success. One parent said “As long as I am here, I can help my daughter if she spoils anything or burns herself, but when I am not in this world someday, she will need to be able to take care of herself. So, this training is a great opportunity to help my daughter to become more independent”. More information about the great work of Navina and SATH can be read here.
kanthari in the media:
Also in the 3rd quarter, several kantharis were interviewed by Yampier Aguiar Durañona of the Giraffe Heroes foundation Stick Your Neck out podcasts. Click on the links to listen to each episode:
– Kerlinda War (India) Early Intervention for Children with Cerebral Palsy
– Bashiru Adamo (Nigeria) Dream Again Prison Academy
– Satya Illa (India) Kaanthi: Raising awereness
– Gram Tinashe Makwarimba (Zimbabwe) Invisible women
– An article about Ruangtups HinghoyNoyorganisation in Thailand
– An article about the work of Kyila from was published in the China Daily
– An Article about Nematullah from Afghanistan was published in These Times
and we still write the kanthari corona blog
Dear Friends and supporters,
With the increasing number of problems that the world is facing, we need an increasing number of problem solvers. The intake process for the next kanthari course that will start in April 2022 has started. To reach change makers who could benefit from the kanthari course, please share this link within your network: https://www.kanthari.org/admissions/
THANK YOU for your ongoing support and for sharing this newsletter with family, friends, colleagues, and anyone else who is interested.
please stay safe and stay healthy! with warm regards from Kerala, India,
sabriye and paul
If you want to support the work of kanthari, then you can do that here – THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
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