Towards shared responsibility in a sustained Constellation

IndoCompetence at the Heart of Global Support

Since three years a recurrent priority of the work plan of the Constellations Global Support Team is ‘organizing a Global Learning Festival’. It is our highlight of the year. People from all walks of life and all corners of the world come together. To connect, to share, to learn together. From Mauritius 2016, to Entebbe 2017 to now Bandung…

Soliloquy style [an utterance or discourse by a person who is talking to himself or herself or is disregardful of or oblivious to any hearers present]

“The good old days eh! These days are so full with threats of different types. How can young people especially, aspire to achieve their dreams? I want good for my family, but i am concerned about by 15yrs…

Let me take you down, because we are going to…… strawberry fields!

The drive uphill to village KB Sabilulungan is long. The curvy road takes us through the hills outside Bandung. The view on the tea-plantations is stunning. So fresh, so green and clearly maintained with so much diligence. During the #GLF2018 we are exploring sustainability of local responses. The 3 hours drive gives me time to…

In Lormagorhati, a remote village of Kamrup, the youth and ladies in the community have realised that the sanitary latrines being provided to every home in the village are either made of sub-standard materials or that households are being left out. Based on a Self Assessment done by the community earlier, proper sanitation was an issue that they felt they were lagging behind on, so it became a part of their action plan. They would ensure that each household would be covered using sanitary…

Today, Thursday 25th October 2018, I was interviewed by Anu about the online SALT-course my triad finished last summer. 

Preparing for that interview I was pondering about (among more) the question 'What is SALT for me?'. That is a powerful question that made me look inside and find answers I wasn't aware of before.  I like to share some thoughts with you.

For me SALT is:

- Respect for the individual, for the community and for the world.

- The wisdom of the…

(On 28th Sep 2018,  I facilitated a one-day session on use of SALT and Community life competence process in development and M&E . NILERD -National Institute of Labour Economics Research and Development (An Autonomous Institute under NITI Aayog, Government of India) organises M&E course for foreign professionals every year in Delhi, India. Here is a short summary of the discussion we had on our ‘common humanity’ and what it means in context of our work with people. This is part II…

A Taste of SALT: Intro session of 'Support, Appreciate, Learn and Transfer' (SALT) for ASHA or Ward Counselors as they are now re-designated, at the Family Health Center, Noolpuzha, Wayanad. This group of Ward Counselors will practice and facilitate SALT and Community Life Competence Process (CLCP) in their work and life to achieve the dreams of their…

On 28th Sep 2018,  I facilitated a one-day session on use of SALT and Community life competence process in development and M&E . NILERD -National Institute of Labour Economics Research and Development (An Autonomous Institute under NITI Aayog, Government of India) organises M&E course for foreign professionals every year in Delhi, India. Here is a short summary of the discussion we had on our ‘common humanity’ and what it means in context of our work with people. This is part I of…

We made a bridge !

(photo courtesy: Rafique Tunio)

The bridge may be rickety, but it is a source of pride for the villagers of Rato Rind of Taluka Mirpur Sakro, District Thatta.

At a SALT introductory session, when participants were asked to share the collective response for a common problem, (first question of the SALT session), one villager said: …

A very inspiring story of how community people took ownership in engaging an unemployed women as a teacher in the community. Kanara Beel a small and backward village in Bongaigaon, Assam…

For me , the SALT concept gives an insight into why our even our well-funded and well thought-out programs often fail.No matter how brilliant we are and how fat our wallets may be, all human development endeavors must start from the acknowledgement that we are all human beings- we make similar mistakes,we share the same dreams, and we are therefore able to collectively take charge of our destiny. We CAN build on our strengths. Imposition of solutions is bound to elicit…

Recently, we facilitated an introductory session with 11 girls aged 17-19 years who attend after-school English and computer classes at Saathi Centre, Institute of Social Studies Trust in Delhi, India. Ivanka, Kanika and Sneha were my co-facilitators. The project aims to build an enabling environment for the girls in a neighbourhood in Delhi. We are at step one of Community life competence process- Who are we? We began with a SALT meeting…

"We wanted to do this for ourselves as councilors, during heritage month, and especially so, because we are a new executive with responsibility to govern our village." Toshao Carl Peneux, the village leader of Orealla / Siparuta an indigenous community on the border with Suriname.…

Here is a gift from our colleagues in Assam. 

“We begin to change when we realize that we have the capacity and the strength within ourselves to overcome our challenges. When this happens, we convert those challenges into opportunities. SALT helps us to see the world from this perspective.” 

This short text captured for me the power of SALT. 

My thanks to Ashok. 

Phil

Living your dream by taking small steps

“Do you want a burger ? It is a vegan-burger, because that is the topic of today’s meeting – but it is not too bad!” A group of young men are joking behind the barbecue as they turn around the burger and sausage shaped vegan products. A bit further down a group is trying a little dance on the tunes of Shakira’s…

Constellation worked with NGO Mamta in Healthrise project on diabetes and hypertension funded by Medtronic Foundation and supported by Abt Associates. SALT and CLCP were used as a pilot in 14 villages in two blocks of Shimal district, State of Himachal, India. Nuggets from Shimla Knowledge Fair…

I am working with NGO MAMTA for healthrise program supported by ABT associates and funded by Medtronic philanthropy.Through SALT and CLCP we are trying to motivate patients to respond to hypertension and diabetes. I saw the following changes after CLCP in Patient Support Group in Madhorghat, Himachal, India.…