Intro to the meeting - Sai.
An overview of Asha projects - Murali.

[Swanirvar is an NGO working in WB. Non-formal setting for education - 3 schools. Chosen as a model NGO Asha. 2-pronged approach for education - socio-economic impact.]

Members intro.:
Murali, Sai, Param, Vidhi, Chandru, Manoj, Subbu, Navin (Asha-Madison)
Guha (IDS-Cincinnati).
Vatsan, Jayant, Vijay, Senthil, Sanat, Nataraj, Hari, Venu (AID-MN)
Ravikanth, Neeraj, Murali (Sankalp-Ames)
Prasanna, Reshma, Sridhar, Samir, Bindi (Asha Chicago)
Guruprasad (AID-Milwaukee)

Expectations of the meeting - Vidhi.

• Retaining volunteers; Milwaukee chapter, not being a major university community is having problems - Guruprasad.
• Tangible aspects of collaboration - Vijay.
• Good practices in our respective groups - Neeraj.
• Consensus that there _should_ be some tangible outcome. 'meeting of minds' - may 2002 - Guha.

Intro. to chapters:
1) Asha-Madison - Sai, Murali, Vidhi.
2) AID-MN - Vijay.
3) Asha-Chicago - Prasanna, Reshma.
4) AID-Milwaukee - Guruprasad.
5) Sankalp-Ames - Murali.
6) IDS-Cincinnati - Guha.

Collaboration is possible on various fronts:
1) Events
2) Presentation
3) Volunteer Base
4) Info Sharing
5) Unique Activities
6) what each org wants to do vs. actual involvement
7) Project Collaboration

logistics of day to day events/admin stuff vs. project involvement

new volunteers may take time to work on projects?? e.g.:AID-MN works on Shramdaan. Used to work on Aksharotsav - heavy work they are ok with the fund raising work via shramdaan now, their efforts now have been towards projects. Approval of projects is working well, but feedback is still slow. Have separate projects meeting. Priorities on projects have increased

Sankalp: reduce the apathy at the individual level, create a small volunteer base - fine with it for motivation, but not for fund raising etc. Defer project review to few people, as long as the individuals share info with others, contd.

Volunteer base

Asha-Chicago: - sometimes a abrupt intro - leads to confusion, leaves it to the individual, has worked well. Responses on email is slow

AID-Milwaukee: - large names attract volunteers and is needed for an org. for start want to do all the right things - low volunteer base. No time due to professionals - volunteers. Avoid confrontations via prior readings :)

IDS, Cin: share volunteer base for events, be committed to your volunteerism, yes or no - no problem. People who have left work with other orgs. Replacement of volunteers seems fine!

Info sharing

Hard to keep track of each others chapters within Asha!!

Keep open mind on how to collaborate and seek relevance with other orgs - before making a decision. Geographically centered, not org centered

yahoogroup for all orgs one member of each on this group/database - connect months in advance. can be any place around the area - can use half year plans to let everyone know. Proactively push for any agenda at one place to be broadcast at other orgs and chapters too.

If there is a prior idea that there is collaboration, it may happen well.

Exchange of resources, articles, people from the field, computer, book clubs etc

grant writing - how to do it? What kind or orgs, companies do we approach?

We can act as a conduit for NGOs in India for support

Contact points for Info-sharing

AID, MN - Sanat
AID, Milwaukee - Guruprasad
IDS, Cincinnati - Guha (Vidyakar's talk in September info)
Asha, Madison - Navin
Asha - Chicago - Bindi
Sankalp - Ames - Ravikant

(** immediate task: link regional chapters on websites **)

these five people will communicate once every set period - set up the link on respective web-sites.

Recruit volunteers through film festivals, booths, banners

retaining - mentor/foster on one on one basis: develop a bond, help the new volunteer settle down faster

hang out in other org's work zone: e.g. Asha working with Habitat for humanity/Apna ghar etc.

making your presence felt in the community - project a good image have fun and social image - not a brooding group, but energetic not enervating

look at the other person's perspective while presenting info attract local group - via your volunteering kind spirit :)

give new volunteers responsibilities. don't talk too much about philosophy, give time to settle down.

Need to figure out ways to increase diversity of volunteer base. Can we actively pursue diverse volunteers/ other orgs volunteers? - can learn from and access a larger world.

Goals:

1. To look at some of the common approaches of project volunteerism
2. Critique the project volunteering process for better interaction between the projects and the organizations working with them
3. Understanding the social, economic and political scenario of the community served - a collaborative action
4. Utilization of available resources - strategies and suggestions
5. Maintaining continuity of supported projects via a multi-organizational approach

• Asha projects: improving quality and locating them in a social context, by Srikanth Voorakaranam
• Gramya, Navgarh (Varanasi): A sample project to start collaborative work

Common approaches of project volunteerism:

• Application Form/Questionnaire
• Project owner - committed for the duration of the project.

Approval based on:

• Site-visit (announced or un-announced); need for training by experienced volunteers.
• Impact on various social issues.
• Length of project.
• Need for coordination on projects with respect to what the needs are of the NGO.
• Credibility/trustworthiness of the NGO.
• Need for aggressive utilization of existing contacts for Projects.
• Exhaustive analysis of all the details and back - forth discussions with the NGO based on questionnaire and site-visit.
• Relation to chapters goals/mission.

Project Follow-up (awareness and accountability/transparency):

Report

Site-visit by the original project owner or by a different volunteer;

Need for guidelines for site visits(?).

Volunteers need for looking into other aspects of the NGO or community being supported to ensure adverse impact on other areas.

Community visit as opposed to site visit. Need for a database of NGO's with/without their credibility/trust rating (CRY Cleveland is setting up such a database).

John Peck (worked with World Bank, worked in Africa)

Vidhi:
- Key players : commercial : WTO, IMF, WB

Subbu: Need of regulatory body in lieu of increasing trade: WTO And to facilitate free-er trade.

GATT, TRIPS (to protect IP) , TRIMS (removal of restrictions on "repatriation" of profits and limits on foreign investment and other investment measures), GATS (similar to GATT but w.r.t hotels etc. )

Strict penalty in case of violation

But : Fair play ?? probably NOT. Developed countries enjoy favors. (decisions taken at Ministerial conferences. Rich trans-national lobbyists)

Could term the WTO just an "official" face of large, influential corps. Similarly the FTAA, ICC, TABD, etc.

Point brought to notice that the above mentioned groups are rather uncivilized with clandestine operations. WTO (trade bureaucracy) against most social and environmental causes.

John : e.g., Chiquita Bananas.

Vidhi : as result of the subsequent verdict, former small -nation banana growers had to grow cocaine.

John : Free Burma movement. To over throw dictatorship. Similar to anti-apartheid movement in SA. Considered to be "illegal" by WTO laws.

Vidhi : US sued India for restrictive trade practices. So subsequently import duties removed on 700 commodities

Repercussions : e.g., 100000 locksmiths out of job in Aligarh (cheap Chinese locks). Indirect way of destroying self-sufficiency.

John: Free trade - a misnomer. Primary beneficiary : the corporations.

Vidhi : e.g., Increase of privatisation in Mexico : rich poor breach, higher rate of unemployment and increase in prices. Overnight debt doubled.

Vidhi : IMF & WB : conceived to "aid in re-construction of war-ravaged Europe." but "structural adjustment."

Program: cuts in govt. spending i.e., education, agriculture, health, etc. and privatisation.

Net effects: unemployment, cuts, dumping, devaluation of currency, rise of food prices, fall in wages. e.g. India : collapse of public distribution system - food prices increase.

SUGGESTED ACTION ITEMS:

• Research, understand and discuss in our own groups and amongst ourselves (in a study grp ?) on rather difficult issues like globalisation.
• Try to understand how our developmental projects fit into the above said scheme of things.
• What do we then want to do? Individual choices - like don't waste resources. Use banana leaves(!).
• Find qualified tutors to propagate "the dark side" to the students.
• To know of the "fair side" of globalisation.
• Try set-up a tangible debate on globalisation ?
• Bibliography.
• To be informed of Indian govt's decision.
• Live it.

[Presentation to be posted soon.]

Can we "create space" for individuals to work on aspects beyond fund-raising and projects? If so, what avenues exist?

Murali - Policy changes. Create database of expertise that volunteers have. That helps being a long-distance help. Contacting local senators in the U.S. - their influence has value.

Guha - Meeting of the Minds (MOM) is a space that provides an avenue for activism.

Prasanna - Govt lobbying is fine, but awareness of the situation by people in India is very important. One way of getting there is to use our support of networks in India.

Vatsan - Will it compromise with the goals of the organisation that you represent?! If so, how do we deal with it?

Sanat - The attempt should be to connect with the struggles already going on in India. We already have a base that we can tap into.

Out of the Princeton meeting, some individuals who are looking into important issues:

Lobby - Nagini
Tribal Issues - Shanmuga/Supriya
Dalit - Melli
Media/Info rights - Vidhi
Globalisation - Subbu, Vidhi, Vinay, Rajesh, Venu
Education - Anuradha
Chem/Pollut/Health/Enviro - Payal, Sanat
Portal - Ashwin/Anirban
Tech - Venkatesh.
Narmada - ?!

Importance of education system being different than what it is now.

- Bad effects of schooling :

"Much is taught but little is learnt or understood", psychological pressure, no diversity in learning style, alienates local langs and makes students blindly follow west, disconnects learners from nature, competition taking priority over collaboration, kills creativity, motivation through external rewards (bribing to do homeworks) 90% of learners branded "failure". Creates frustration and insecurity - violence, drug/alcohol abuse, hatred, suicide.

Population in India: financially better go to better schools financial situation plays a very important role. All hierarchies except for some exceptions are based on financial hierarchy. This is true globally..

-The idealogical roots of factory-schooling in India: A mandate

Stresses the importance of looking at the roots of schooling. Look at schooling as a process. Efforts of NCERT to change the system in India is good, but outdated. Its no more relevant to present situation in India. (reply to Neeraj's question)

Suggested reading: "Things Fall Apart"

Learning and schooling are different.

- The urgent need to rethink education

- transformation in the existing system

- building more schools is not the solution. Attaining 100% literacy is not the solution.

Learning for value addition rather than just materialistic change.

What is the underlying motivation for education? Go to schooling, get to the upper class. Get to the US. Survival of the fittest - get ahead in the rat race. Supposed to equalize the society. But that's not happening. Make responsible citizens in the state. Develop the economy - different levels of workers needed.

Quick exercise:

Question posed: what are the qualities of a "good" human being? Kinds of qualities people need to have for people to transform the situation? (given the crisis present now)

Answers from participants: adaptable, quick, critical thinkers, respect for environment, sense of place, collaboration, interconnectedness, openness, sense of justice, sense of exploration, sense of individual transformation, ability to live with lack of control, living with uncertainty, non-overly ambitious, honesty, caring, passionate. Survival of the fittest?

Question: do you earn all these qualities in schooling?

Answers: yes, bits of everything but don't know if the weightage is what it should be. Not just from the curriculum, from the environment also. Does the schooling system have to do this? All these are taught but how much inculcates is actually not stressed. "Its all competition that I learnt" - Manoj.

Hidden curriculum: schooling helps us learn but creates a sense of dependency. We cannot learn anything ourselves. We always need to go to an expert to learn something.

- We see ourselves as CATALYSTS

Questioning the education system, looking forward and working towards a new developed educational system.

SHIKSHANTAR
- Research for action: our philosophy - where the research goes?

- Neglected since Independence: Evolving a rich tradition of
visionaries - education for what?

- Udaipur as a learning city - rural areas have a lot of attention,
but urban areas are ignored.

- Why? To address the failure of school education

- Obstacles

- Lessons learned

- Questions for further discussion

Quick exercise suggested by subbu - what is the most lasting impression in school?

Answers from participants: Obedience, feeling of being a good boy, exposure to extra-curricular activities, the feeling of sharing with others, excellent teachers (more than academics), spoon-feeding, class system (cool kids, not so cool kids, racial (fair, not fair), smartness), competition, punishments, questioning authority of elders, etc.

General discussion: Good teachers can make wonders even if the curriculum is not good and vice versa. The system has a limitation on what a teacher can do. Unschooling activity - parents devote more time with kids making them learn by experience and mentorship. The regeneration process has already started. The existing system has to be reformed completely. A whole spectrum of societies exist in parallel.