The first time I spoke to S.M Tazammal Haque from Bangladesh Rural Economic Development (BRED) was on 6th Nov 2023. As Nawaz and I were to visit their office later in the month, I shared briefly about SALT and the baseline. There was warmth in his tone that immediately connected us. When we met at the BRED office in Dhaka, we formed an instant bond - we both confessed to not being morning people, which became an ongoing joke between us. …

 Commitment to Paolo Friere's pedagogy of the oppressed and his education theory were detractors to a comprehensive understanding of SALT. It seemed natural to relate SALT with other practices of community engagement. The first SALT workshop in Karachi (2020, 5 days, with two community visits) triggered a query: how is SALT different from the participatory approaches predicated on Paolo's Freire's vision of social transformation, and the role of adult education? The answer…

Have you ever felt like your emotions were running the show, steering you into rocky waters? I know that feeling all too well. Sometimes, it's like being on a rollercoaster with no off switch.

Lately, I've been reflecting on this with a dear friend, Tasnim apu. She's got this incredible knack for staying calm and collected, even when the world…

Knowledge Fair was organized by Rural Aid organization. For this, various organizations working in the context of SALT were called.

We were very happy. To go to a new place, to meet new people, to learn new things, to draw strength from people.

We first traveled by plane and reached Jaigaon. Discussed with Rural Aid Team. A friendship…

Have you ever had a conversation with someone who consistently expresses their emotions genuinely? The most recent SALT discussion I had was with Sadia Jafrin apu where Instead of a structured conversation, we had a heart-to-heart conversation where we opened up about our deepest feelings and innermost ideas. During our conversation, there arose the…

SALT Activity is conducted in Vashi village through the Avani organization.

A SALT family from Vashi village contacted me over the phone and asked me to take SALT in a family. There were some problems in that family regarding their children. I went to their house. There were 2 small rooms of 10 × 10. 1 elderly grandmother and a family of 4 lived in that house.

I started discussing with them and got to know them.

After a…

SALT as part of Every Day Life

Kausar S Khan



Aristotle spoke of ethics being a habit, and one wonders whether SALT can be a habit. Professionally using methodologies that bring into practice community centeredness, SALT became the foundational stone of all participatory methods – including participatory rural appraisal and theatre of the oppressed. Why is SALT the epicenter of all participatory approaches? The answer is simple; it draws attention to…

Empowering persons with psychoses is a much-discussed topic the world over. Yet, where are we today?

As part of a dream-building activity at a SALT workshop, a group of us, all psychiatrists, dared to dream. One day - may this be the way!

As doctors, we dream for you for you……

We the doctors, say you have Psychoses – 

for you a dreaded frightening…

Have you ever felt that amazing spark when a team comes together to dream big? Well, we did! Last week, our team had this fantastic in-house SALT conversation and it turned out to be a game-changer for us.

Our team is getting bigger every day, and during the SALT conversation, I could feel this incredible group energy for the very first time. It…

From 30th Jan to 1st Feb I facilitated SALT and CLCP with Team PIECES from organisation called SCARF in Chennai, India. They are working towards patient-owned approach to mental illness.  When the whole group developed their dream, one of the sub-groups which called themselves Zen group shared their dream in the form of pictures and had powerful insights. I feel honoured to share it as a blog in their…

In my ten-year journey as a clinical psychologist, I have had the privilege of witnessing the dynamic changes in mental health practices. While firmly grounded in the fundamental principles of Carl Rogers' patient-centered approach, my 1-year long exposure to SALT has been truly transformative. This innovative methodology has provided me with a renewed perspective, placing the patient in the role of the expert rather than the therapist.…

I have been practising SALT for the past few months and I feel more connected with people. SALT has made me have in-depth conversations with my closed circle, where I can feel their emotions as I'm more present in the conversation. Sometimes, when I can only have conversations over phone, SALT has helped me "be there" with the person talking. It has made long distance, short.

SALT conversations has helped me understand a different perspective (perspective of the…

I have found that using salt as a starting point for conversations has been helpful for me. However, in the beginning, it was not easy to incorporate salt into my conversations in a subtle manner. It took me a long time to even consider using salt approaches, and I often found it challenging to bring up salt components during conversations. I have even avoided using this approach as I was uncertain about how to integrate it into my discussions. Since most of my conversations have been with…

It was a hazy winter evening at the Tea garden community of Dima, around 4 pm- 20th Jan'24. We had conducted one home SALT visit. Nityam and Rati urged us to do another SALT visit to the home of a tea garden worker- Pushpa . Anuradhaji, Shahrukh, and me, we joined them.…

There is a saying in English, "The wearer knows best where the shoe pinches". Mean he who hurts is understood best. We also think that the problems of every community, every society are known and understood only by the people of that society. So before we do anything, we first sit down with our community and try to understand their needs.

In…

What Rohit Sharma didn't get to learn in the first ten matches, he might have learned in the last one. Defeat is a great teacher. His fee is not affordable but his teaching is enough for life, improves life, makes mature!

We enjoyed the first ten matches. We all celebrated the joy of winning. But still one last match upset the whole country.…

Hello everyone, this is Farjana Yeasmin, Co-founder of Alokito Shishu (Enlightened Children) Trust and part of the amazing SALT Team of the 'Addressing Root Causes' project in Bangladesh. I'm sharing today an amazing experience of our organization's Annual Workshop recently organized to recognize the efforts of 2023 and shaping a shared dream for 2024.…

A few days ago, I had a hearty chat with Sadia Apu, a wonderful person whom I had met earlier in my training session. Whom I lovingly call Lovely.

     Our conversation was wonderful and instructive. For example, I did not understand when we went through the salt while discussing. I am sitting thinking about my weakness,…

Ms P is a single woman, 26 years in age. A software professional, has had a steady work profile. She is academically very good.

I met her at a wedding reception of common friend. When she realised, I was a mental health professional, very hesitantly, she told me, “I don’t love myself. Is that wrong?” It is not unusual for a psychiatrist to be asked “mental health related” questions in a social setting. So, I geared myself to an extended conversation. However, instead of probing on the…