Fellow Connect - July 2013

Special Edition | July 2013

n o i t i d E l a i c e Sp

fc | CONTENTS

Contents The ‘shapeshifting’ Of Social Enterprise: Is Our Moral Compass Due North?

01

Chaya Babu

What MOOCs Can Offer Social Entrepreneurs

03

Ashoka Staff

Looking Back, Going Forward

05

Ashoka Staff

Re-Imagining Cities

07

Olina Banerji

What India Needs

09

Samar Halarnkar

Storytelling For Social Change

11

Julie Wiscombe

Pest Control, Naturally

13

Romulus Whitaker

Walking the Talk: The Journey of a Young Fellow

18

Tarique Mohammad Qureshi

Editorial MANOJ CHANDRAN MEERA VIJAYANN OLINA BANERJI Contributors CHAYA BABU ASHOKA STAFF OLINA BANERJI SAMAR HALARNKAR JULIE WISCOMBE ROMULUS WHITAKER TARIQUE MOHAMMAD QURESHI Design SAMYAK JAIN Talk to us mchandran@ashoka.org Website www.indiaashoka.org Address 54, 1st Cross, Domlur Layout Bangalore 560071 India Telephone 080-4274-5777 Disclaimer The views and comments mentioned in the articles of fellowconnect are that of the respective authors and do not reflect the position of ashoka on these issues.

i | FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013

Photo courtesy: http://www.brammer.com/

D

fc | EDITORIAL

The Future Forum will offer us the opportunity to interact with other stakeholders in society to explore wider opportunities for collaboration.

Dear Ashoka Fellows, Fellowship (n): a friendly association, especially with people who share one’s interest. So says the dictionary. It’s not a coincidence that the Ashoka Fellowship follows the spirit of this definition. It’s just that instead of ‘shared interests,’ the foundation of the Fellowship among Ashoka Fellows is shared vision- a vision to see the world a better place for its people and others.

This edition of FellowConnect celebrates the coming together of the association of Ashoka Fellows, people who stand apart because of their action and the consequent impact.

Photo courtesy: flibbertygibberty.files.wordpress.com

Yet, for many, the Fellowship has been a way of sharing, which has worked wonders. Ashoka Fellows have led by opening their vast knowledge and rich experiences, which have repeatedly been of immense value to not only other Fellows but also several other social entrepreneurs.

It is with this opportunity in mind that Ashoka created the Hub (http://hub. ashoka.org). As the names suggests, Ashoka Hub is a place where Fellows meet, share, learn, explore newer possibilities and create rich bonds. The Hub envisions the further strengthening of the Ashoka Fellowship by leveraging the power of technology.

There are more than 1,000 Ashoka Fellows worldwide who stay connected through the Hub. In the coming months, the Ashoka team will add several new features to the Hub with the aim of making it easier for the Fellows to enjoy the power of the Fellowship.

Even as we create new technology platforms to strengthen the Fellowship, we are aware of the immense advantages face-to-face interactions offer. This is why Ashoka has been conducting the regional Fellow meets every year. This

Ashoka has always believed that the greater strength of Fellows lies in the Fellowship. Indeed, each one of you has created a niche for yourself through your innovation and the social impact you have led. There are several among you, who have figured out the numerous benefits of the Fellowship and have taken the lead.

You’ve identified spaces where you could collaborate with other Fellows, create value and impact disproportionately higher than what was possible individually. year, we have planned a unique gathering where we expect Fellows to convene from all parts of the country. The Ashoka Future Forum, planned in Pune during June 27-29, 2013, will be a first-of-its-kind get together of leading social entrepreneurs of the country.

Once again, in line with our vision for the Fellowship, the Future Forum will unleash a new set of opportunities for Ashoka Fellows to share and develop new partnerships. For the first time in India, we will have such a huge convening of the biggest social innovators, whose collective experiences, expertise and thought leadership will provide new dimensions to problem solving.

The Future Forum will also offer us an opportunity to interact with other stakeholders in society to explore wider opportunities for collaboration.

There is no denying that all the communities of society have their respective roles to play as problem solvers.

Social entrepreneurs will lead other stakeholders in the process of collective problem solving.

We hope that this gathering will help us identify a new paradigm in the Fellowship. What is the new definition of Fellowship that we will need for the new wave of social entrepreneurship that the country is currently witnessing? Who could be our new partners and what would their roles be?

Finally, my thoughts go back by three years, when we decided to launch FellowConnect, the latest edition of which you hold in your hands. The magazine was borne out of the need for a unique Fellowship platform that helps its readers leverage the thought leadership of Ashoka Fellows. It is your constant encouragement and support that has helped us take FellowConnect from strength to strength over the last three years.

We look forward to your continued support.

With respect, Manoj Chandran mchandran@ashoka.org

FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013 | ii

The ‘shapeshifting’ Of Social Enterprise: Is Our Moral Compass Due North?

By CHAYA BABU

T

The past few decades have seen some significant changes in the social sector and how we define products and services aimed at making a positive impact in society. As what we call a social enterprise’ continues to evolve especially in India, where we have a vibrant and active network of organizations working on issues relating to poverty, the environment, human rights and others new and different structures are emerging in the space. ith philanthropic capital not being a sustainable strategy, many pure non-profits that started off over a decade or so ago have diversified into programs and verticals that generate revenue for the organisation.

Hybrid organizations, models that have a non-profit entity and a for-profit entity under the same umbrella, have gained popularity. This trend will only pick up momentum next year with the new tax code being enforced where income earned through charitable means gets subjected to a percent corporate tax rate when it exceeds ten lakhs. But in our acceptance of these dual-mission organizations, how do we ensure that we tackle the potential conflicts between profit and impact appropriately?

Legal structure is a detail

look at all possible structures, and pick the one that best suits what you want to do.”

The non-profit model was once deemed the only way to guarantee purely altruistic work, which in itself was a prerequisite to doing good. The idea that one shouldn’t make money while benefiting others was a given.

This idea is now evolving for most in the social enterprise space, where those making an effort to create substantial impact understand that bringing a business model into the picture is often the avenue to scale and growth.

Mark Hand at FirstLight Ventures, a social investment fund, has seen diverse hybrid models. “You could have a non-profit that owns a for-profit company, you could have a for-profit company that has a non-profit arm, you could have two legally separate entities that are nonetheless run by the same person,” he says. “I’ve seen structures where an entrepreneur has a non-profit in the United States and a for-profit and a non-profit in India, so it’s hybrid on multiple levels. And they can operate independently; sometimes a non-profit will contract with a sister for-profit to do work.”

Professionals in the field agreed that

“My view is that the legal structure is just a very technical thing,” says Anurag Agrawal, co-founder and Senior Vice President of investment banking at Intellecap, a social-sector advisory firm. “It’s basically a facilitator because if you want to do something, you need to do it in a particular structure, so you 01 | FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013

hybrids do not seem to inherently suggest an ethical dilemma as long as certain criteria are met: transparency with the philanthropists who have given grants to fund the non-profit, proper governance, and operations that guard against straying from the goal of social good.

According to Hand, the litmus test for sound practices is the question, “Is the for-profit that I control materially benefiting from the non-profit that I control?” For example, Sourav Mukherji, who researches inclusive businesses at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, is working on a case on a hybrid organization in which the non-profit subsidizes much of the human labour costs of the for-profit, with the employees’ time allotted largely to the latter while their salaries are paid for by the non-profit. This would typically be a huge red flag, but in this case, the donors are aware of how their funds are being utilized.

“I go and spend time with the founders, with the employees, and study the organization from the inside,” Mukherji says. “Once you do that, you really will get a feel for whether it’s a socially-oriented organization or not, so for me the legal structure is really something that is not very critical.”

This idea is now evolving for most in the social enterprise space, where those making an effort to create substantial impact

When we invest in a company, we want to see that the entrepreneur is putting all of his blood, sweat, and tears into that venture

Photo courtesy: Koshyk

Dasra is a bit more particular when it comes to hybrids, stressing to the entrepreneurs they work with that such structures should probably have two discrete entities that are each able to operate independently. Vikas Bahl, Social-Impact Manager at Dasra, says that flow of finances and human resources should stay on their own respective sides. “In essence there should be two separate organizations. There’s a lot of partnership and collaboration between the two, but if you want to be able to exist in this model and have a clear line of philanthropic capital coming in to the non-profit arm and a clear line of investing coming into your for-profit arm, you’re going to have to be able to show that.”

Social entrepreneurs have a big enough challenge as it is in running a start-up, but trying to locate the delicate equilibrium between distinct, sometimes opposing, objectives of two entities adds a layer of complexity that can certainly be a strain on the organization. It’s imperative that the hybrid on the whole is run in a fashion that caters to this balance, but it’s a conflict of interest to have the entrepreneur be the head of both parts. “If you’re running a non-profit and for-profit, your non-profit donors are going to want to feel like you’re dedicating your efforts to scaling impact, while your for-profit funders are going to want to make sure you’re growing the business. A hybrid structure can build that tension right into the company,” says Hand. “When we invest in a company, we want to see that the entrepreneur is putting all of

his blood, sweat, and tears into that venture.” This means that for investors like FirstLight, a connected non-profit might be seen as a distraction.

Choosing someone to head the opposite entity and make proper decisions that are in line with the enterprise’s vision is integral to avoid losing sight of the organization’s purpose. The entrepreneur has to consistently monitor this pull from each side and find the right people to create an internal system of checks and balances. Integrity, motivation, efficiency, and skill set are all very important factors in assessing the quality and fit of people, but building the right team is most crucial.

There tends to be different mindsets in non-profits and for-profits which could create a DNA problem. “Traditionally in India, ‘profit’ is still a dirty word, so that sometimes becomes a cultural issue within the organization,” explains Madhukar Shukla, professor of organizational behaviour at XLRI School of Business. “So while the entrepreneur might be quite comfortable with it, those people who have joined and have been with an NGO for a long time might perceive it as mission drift.”

This concern that there is some innate contradiction on the part of those who are more impact-focused than business-focused is not unfounded. Many in the field can’t help but reference the downfall of microfinance, a fresh memory of mission drift, as a warning of the persisting dichotomy. “One of the big things which you find is that it’s easy to scale a process, it’s easy to scale a business model, but it’s very difficult to scale an ideal or an ideology. And

This article originally appeared in The Alternative and has been re-published on permission.

social enterprises are based on ideologies,” Mukherji says. “The moment you try to scale that, the ideology might get diluted, it might get completely changed, and that is the biggest danger that I see in this area.”

On the whole, the issues surrounding these models, once transparency is assured of, are less moral or ethical than they are cultural. The belief system of an organization is central to its cohesion and ability to function well, so even in a hybrid structure, divergent views can cause some strife. The entrepreneur has a big job of working to stay on target and leading a group of people with varying backgrounds and philosophies on social impact. Legal parameters and more formal shapeshifting of the space may affect the benefits, risks, and possibilities for hybrids in the future, but currently they provide an ideal path for for-profits to have a platform for awareness and capacity building and for non-profits to grow and see their mission through on a bigger level.

Chaya Babu is a freelance journalist and correspondent for India Abroad. Her articles have appeared in The Alternative, IQ and the Chicago Tribune among other publications.

FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013 | 02

Photo courtesy: Kalanese Kid

What

MOOCs can offer

W

Social Entrepreneurs

By ASHOKA STAFF

When Rajan Kumar signed up to take “Foundations of Business Strategy” on Coursera last month, he never expected to get feedback on his own company’s business operations. But within a few weeks, the biotechnology entrepreneur had recruited a team of 20 students to analyze Genome Data Systems, Inc.

This post was written by former Youth Venturer Nabeel Gillani (@coursolve), co-founder of Coursolve, and Amit Jain (@jaindrops), lead researcher at Coursolve. Coursolve connects courses with organizations to empower students to solve real-world problems.

For more information, please visit: http://coursolve.org.

03 | FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013

“When I signed up for this course, I had no expectation of having people analyze my company,” Kumar said.

Still, working with a diverse range of students—from complete novices to experienced business professionals—led Kumar to realize the merits of developing a diagnostic instrument instead of pursuing a service-based business model. Their research, in turn, helped him develop a business case and present the new approach to investors. In a thank-you note to students, he wrote: “Your discussion helped me sharpen my arguments and made me challenge my assumptions.”

Kumar’s experience is part of a growing exploration of real-world problem

solving in educational contexts. And much of this co-creation is done online on platforms like Coursera, which has partnered with more than 30 top universities to offer courses in just about everything from rhetorical composition to computational neuroscience— all free of charge.

Kumar is not alone: Organizations ranging from bakeries to construction companies to educational non-profits have successfully crowdsourced insights into their business operations from more than 50,000 students in the business strategy course presented by the University of Virginia and taught

by Darden School of Business professor Michael Lenox. Initial results have been overwhelmingly positive, suggesting that university students can indeed use their learning to contribute meaningful solutions to the needs of established organizations.

The opportunity to engage MOOC participants offline extends beyond business strategy, and will only become more common in the future, as Lenox

Photo courtesy: Niyam Bhushan

explains: “The concept can be applied in any number of domains. Imagine a course on graphic design where students prepare solutions for real non -profits or a computer program coursewhere students develop code for small startups with limited budgets. The potential is enormous.”

Supporters of social entrepreneurship like the leaders represented at the Skoll World Forum are highlighting the importance of data in addressing the impact of social enterprises across industries. Accordingly, another upcoming MOOC offered by Bill Howe at the University of Washington, “Introduction to Data Science,” is currently inviting organizations of all types to sign up to receive free data analysis help from students, including assistance with predictive modeling and data visualization.

Free, open access to talented students from around the world is one way to start meeting the needs of organizations while also adding value to—and perhaps renewing credibility in—higher education. However, MOOCs have

been criticized for their high attrition rates and low student engagement, and skeptics point to scholar David Noble’s prescient warning that the commodification of education in online settings would lead to the creation of “Digital Diploma Mills.”

Yet the value of MOOCs lies directly within the students that take them— people with unique life experiences, interests, and passions that serve as lenses through which they see the world. These are the people—industry professionals, stay-at-home parents, recent graduates, child prodigies—that spend hours assessing each other’s work and responding to forum posts with no incentive beyond the pursuit of knowledge. Trusting these students to help others not only contextualizes their learning, but also builds a network that connects and empowers them to bring theories of change from the classroom into the marketplace.

The concept can be applied in any number of domains.

Imagine a course on graphic design where students prepare solutions for real nonprofits or a computer program course where students develop code for small startups with limited budgets. The potential is enormous.

If we hope to build education systems that prepare students to be the problem solvers of tomorrow, let’s engage them to address the pressing challenges of today.

FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013 | 04

Looking Back, Going Forward Re cting on three decades of operations in social change was never going to be easy. Ashoka’s fellowship has grown at a robust pace every year, adding to the league of exceptionally talented, creative and empathetic social entrepreneurs. In the run-up to the Ashoka India Future Forum, we asked ve Fellows about the impact Ashoka has had on their work, and also about how they would like to see the fellowship evolve.

Here’s what we heard.

Lisa Heydlauff, Going to School “Ashoka has a lovely recognition value and that is one of the best things about the Fellowship. I was an early-stage entrepreneur. It meant a lot to me to have this new idea recognised, documented and communicated in the way the fellowship has done. Today, the idea has been recognised by the government.

This shows that you are doing something new, off-beat and being an individual. It has also been wonderful to connect with various committed visionaries who are never run-off-themill and have new approaches to problems. There are always ways in which Ashoka fellows can work together on new projects and network across sectors. Whether it is education in Mumbai or rural livelihoods in Tamil Nadu, there is always someone you can call even if it is just for a point. There is also a sense that there are other people who are working on issues they firmly believe in and are committed to seeing it done.”

There is a sense that there are other people who are working on believe in.

05 | FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013

I think Ashoka is a great organisation and it is great that it is now looking at young people who are getting into the sector.

Merry Barua, Action for Autism “The Fellowship allows you the opportunity to meet and get insights about their work. It also lets you know about the NGO sector in this country. Ashoka’s involvement has been expanding in many ways and that is very interesting. The benefit for me as an Ashoka fellow has been more in terms of giving my work credibility and importance.

Especially, since I am involved in a niche area. The network offers a great value to connect and learn.

The journey has been a positive one.

I think Ashoka is a great organisation and it is great that it is now looking at young people who are getting into the sector.”

The organisation has motivated me to develop and implement my idea in a much stronger way.

Biplap Paul, Bhungroo Vikas Private Limited

It is a powerful network and gives us a good platform to exchange ideas.

“Ashoka has changed the way I visualize change. In relation to a changemaking vision, I realised that one needs to visualize their own role in the world around them. Ashoka taught me to open up my heart, and my vision, very broad.

Ashoka took me from being a simple field worker to someone whose idea can potentially impact a large number of people, and put my work on the global map. Through platforms like the HUB and Globaliser, I’ve been able to reach wider audiences and new, dedicated mentors. My engagement with Ashoka has changed my approach to the work I do and find relevance in the work of fellows in Africa.

Ashoka is not a one-time association.

It’s about building the kind of person who can ensure exponential growth and impact. The whole philosophy of ‘systemic change’ is unique. We have to realize that we don’t live in times where we can wait for development to happen to us. We need self-sustaining solutions. That’s only possible when this vision is shared with everyone and Ashoka’s doing just that.”

Ashoka is not a onetime association. It’s about building the kind of person who can ensure exponential growth and impact.

Dipendra Manocha, Saksham “I like Ashoka’s concept and ever since my election, the organisation has motivated me to develop and implement my idea in a much stronger way.

It gave me the space to experiment and prove its success. The Ashoka model is such that it’s able to test the reliability of the idea and is able to help implement it.

The Ashoka fellowship has also let me forge both formal and informal partnerships. With several peers who belong to the fellowship, I have been able to create roadmaps and visions for the future. Because of the quality of the fellowship, these partnerships come with a level of confidence and trust and take the association to a much deeper level. Going forward, I would like to see Ashoka formalise as a major player in the sector and act as a nodal point for all its Fellows.”

Ashwin Naik, Vaatsalya “We have met incredible folks through Ashoka. Whenever fellows visit Bangalore, we invite them to talk at our office and this had helped us build a relationship and learn together.

It is a powerful network and gives us a good platform to exchange ideas. We have also built personal connections in the area of health and this has really helped us evolve.”

FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013 | 06

RE-IMAGINING

CITIES

By OLINA BANERJI

07 | FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013

We must ‘own’ our spaces to improve them.

The meaning of ownership here is linked more to responsibility than a sense of propriety.

Photo courtesy: Flickr User/ Must Bol

C

Cityscapes are a great canvas for change. Yet, to address most of our civic troubles, the onus lies either on the authorities or on a handful of citizen action groups. Our cities can change with big ideas, but only when we expand this idea of change to taking responsibility and constructive action.

This can, as two social entrepreneurs have shown us, be done by re-imagining the city as a ‘resource’ and citizens as the ‘force of good’.

tion works on the model of a bystander network that involves the citizen and local police authorities to mitigate the impact of road accidents, while simultaneously advocating for change in policy towards ‘Good Samaritans’ who come forward to help. “A Good Samaritan law, which ensures punitive action against offenders and due recognition and safety for volunteers, can help alter the culture of violence and apathy on our streets,” says Tewari.

Through their work with communities, they have shown how the presence of a platform for creating awareness, a process of due recognition and training can help change the attitude towards civic participation.

Activating change

Being part of the system We must ‘own’ our spaces to improve them. The meaning of ownership here is linked more to responsibility than a sense of propriety. Jasmeen Patheja, founder of the Blank Noise Project and an Ashoka fellow since 2007, says that citizens must be able to see themselves as part of the system, and by extension, the solution. “Citizens need to recognise and activate their roles in society,” she adds. Patheja’s community initiatives to curb street sexual violence and change the discussion around women’s safety from protection to rights, has in the recent past challenged several orthodox views about women’s engagement with the public sphere.

Her interventions are almost always community-based, and rely heavily on participation by citizens. One such ongoing initiative is the ‘Safe City Pledge’ that has everyone from taxi drivers to gynecologists pledging to make women around them feel safer and bring a paradigm shift in how women are viewed and view their own bodies.

Piyush Tewari, founder of the Save Life Foundation in Delhi, believes that to enable any kind of civic participation, the right questions must be asked.

“The media needs to be sensitized into asking why road accidents happen, and what’s lacking in the way we design our cities and enforce laws that needs to change,” he says. Save Life Founda-

When it comes to driving participation, both Tewari and Patheja value the medium as much as the message.

Patheja did this with her ‘Heroes Action Project’ in Yelahanka, a residential locality in Bangalore. “We organized our intervention as a community laughter club, a format that the women there were already familiar with. It was an indirect way of occupying a space and it gave women the comfort to open up and share their experiences,” says Patheja. By the end of the week, she adds, there was an unlearning of biases and several differences of class and language were forgotten in a ‘safespace’ being shared by these women.

For Tewari, it’s the multifarious nature of the intervention that helps. “When we began work in road safety, we had to focus on prevention as much as cure. It’s not enough to improve emergency services, but also make engineering and urban design evaluations.

It was also important to tackle corruption in the system,” says Tewari. The interventions, along with the Good Samaritan Law, are aimed at creating nationally an environment to fight injustice and violence on the streets.

shows a trend where women and their families have been courageous enough to stand up to the violence. She encourages creating positive narratives about the city to encourage citizens to take part.

Tewari is pushing participation by building trust in the bystander network. The aim is to turn the contentious issue of helping injured victims on the road into a positive experience by training them and also ensuring that their involvement results in recognition and not harassment by corrupt police authorities. “The Delhi Police has already adopted some of our prescribed guidelines, where a Good Samaritan can help without identifying himself. We now need to ensure these are well enforced,” says Tewari. Enforcement, according to him, is even more important in creating this environment of changemaking, so that the ethic can function without a threat to life, freedom and well being.

Cities don’t transform overnight. It’s unlikely that we can change much from the outside, looking in. Yet the future of our cities lies in collaborative change - between citizens, the authorities, policymakers, the media, among other stakeholders. Both physical infrastructure and mindsets must keep pace with each other. We need to re-imagine our cities and their people as resources who will fight to save their own futures.

Re-telling stories Changing minds cannot be a didactic process. Sometimes we need a bit of imagination to flip the problem on its head, and build a solution that starts from where despair ends. Patheja takes the example of the increase in rape cases reported in the media.

While most people are alarmed by the rising numbers, she believes that it also

Olina Banerji has a background in communications and works with the Framework Change team at Ashoka India. She can be reached at obanerji@ashoka.org.

FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013 | 08

What India Needs

By SAMAR HALARNKAR

Entrepreneurs who see the big problems, create the small solutions and see the beauty within 09 | FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013

D

D

The biggest opportunities lie in systems that are the most shredded,offer obvious solutions and allow entrepreneurs to make best use of available educational and technical qualifications.

“Difficult times have helped me to understand better than before, how infinitely rich and beautiful life is in every way, and that so many things one goes worrying about are of no importance whatsoever.” Karen Blixen was eminently qualified to talk about beauty and richness amid difficulty and defeat. A Danish writer, best known for Out of Africa, the sprawling, dreamy story of her solo attempts in the 1920s to run a coffee plantation in Africa, Dinesen should have visited India in 2013 to know what difficult times really look like.

The growth rate is down. Governance is down. Corruption is up. Anarchy even by India’s chaotic standard - is up. Poverty is down, but inequality is up. As for generating 100 million jobs over the next 15 years to cash in on the fading promise of the world’s largest demographic dividend, just appears like fantasy. There is no better time for optimism, to search for beauty, richness and abundance, no better time for the social innovator.

India’s most successful social interventions have sprung from difficult times.

The spectre of famine kicked off the Green Revolution. Milk imports, in a country where millions owned cows but could not get their produce to the market, created the white revolution, making India the world’s largest producer of milk. The endless line of people waiting to make ‘trunk calls’ and ‘urgent calls’ led to the telecom revolution.

So, are all the big revolutions done?

No, but India, now more than ever, needs millions of small revolutions to ensure its promise as a nation of tomorrow does not fade. These small revolutions are the blank spaces that

need to be filled in as the government attempts - however scratchily and shoddily - to re-engineer the gigantic systems that run India.

Take, for instance, a critical part of the health system, the 35-year-old Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS). It is the world’s largest programme for the health of children under six, and it was supposed to change the lives of poor, under-nourished children, to give flight to dreams and beautiful new things. To be sure, Indian children survive longer and are better nourished than ever before, but that is not saying much. Overall, the ICDS has delivered a less-than-acceptable return on investment. This year, India will roll out an expanded, revitalized scheme in 200 districts, spending Rs 1.28 lakh crore over the next five years, an increase of nearly 300 percent over the previous five.

the social innovator spots the gap, the system entrepreneur spots the moment. He or she must then draw others in—whether experts or financiers or, indeed, the government—to seed the innovation through the system.

But social innovation can function at every level in India. It does not have to scale up. It can remain small, medium, large or extra-large. What is important is that it goes from idea to implementation.

The biggest opportunities obviously lie in systems that are the most shredded and offer obvious solutions and allow entrepreneurs to make best use of available educational and technical qualifications. This is why so many enthusiastic young men and women qualified in finance, engineering and medicine are creating companies or devising solutions that address India’s big problems.

So it is with a variety of sectors, from education to electricity. The needs are huge, the intentions of the state are good—even if the implementation and leakages are not—and there are so many gaps at every stage that social innovators can find opportunities at the small scale or large. Apart from transformation, entrepreneurship is vital to India because it alone can offer the millions of jobs the country needs.

From my interactions with these men and women, it seems obvious that they are more excited to do that than plug away at a mainstream job in the vast technology, medical and finance sectors. There is greater risk and struggle involved, but there is also greater satisfaction. It is the gratification that comes from creating something beautiful and rich in times of trouble. It is what India needs.

No organisation is more familiar with these opportunities than Ashoka. After 15 years, Ashoka Fellow Harish Hande’s Selco is confident enough of itself and its impact to call itself an energy service provider, where once it was an innovator and pioneer. In a sense, Hande, who has taken technology and employment to the grassroots, is making the transition from social innovator to system entrepreneur. If

Samar Halarnkar is Editor-at-large for the Hindustan Times.

FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013 | 10

W

Storytelling For Social Change

By JULIE WISCOMBE

Key insights from the Ashoka Future Forum USA

11 | FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013

When I hear the word ‘veteran,’ I picture an old man with a beard, wearing an army t-shirt and hat. He might have a couple of tattoos and most likely he is holding a sign: ‘Homeless Veteran.

Please Help. God Bless.’ Unfortunately, this stereotype is very familiar in the U.S., where one out of four homeless men is a veteran.

I was presented, however, with an entirely different story of veterans at Ashoka’s Future Forum on May 30, 2013. In Washington D.C. the Ashoka Future Forum brought together 400 of the foremost social innovators, business entrepreneurs, philanthropists and media to share their biggest problems and celebrate their most thought-provoking solutions. During the session, Storytelling for Movement Building, facilitated by Kara Andrade, Paul Rieckhoff, founder of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, introduced me to Todd Bowers, a young, Purple Heart veteran who served for the US Military in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Todd was wounded when a sniper shot and hit the scope of his rifle, sending fragments into his face. He lost sight in one eye and hearing in one ear. Before joining the army, Todd studied Middle Eastern Affairs and Arabic at George Wash-

Photo courtesy: Ashoka Global

ington University. He worked with a Congressman for two years and today speaks out on behalf of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. Todd’s story alone changed my perception of veterans. I now understand that veterans are so much more than just a stereotype of an old man with a beard. Today’s veterans are young and accomplished. Over 2.5 million of them are women and thousands of them are coming home every day, using the skills and lessons they learned in the field to build their communities. Todd’s story can change how US citizens view and respond to veterans—as it did for me. And there are thousands of other stories just like his.

Storytelling is a powerful tool for social change across all sectors. Not only do stories cause us to empathize and motivate us to act, they also help us understand the important nuances of social issues and how to create effective solutions in response. As such, storytelling was thematically woven throughout Ashoka’s Future Forum. We talked about storytelling during the sessions, we dedicated an entire workshop to it, but most importantly we shared our stories with each other.

Here are three key insights about

Photo courtesy: Ashoka Global

utilizing storytelling as a tool for social change learned from Ashoka’s Future Forum: 1. There is power in being concise

Drawing inspiration from the Race Card Project, the ‘six-word story’ was a theme present throughout the Forum. Each participant was invited to write down his or her six-word changemaking story. And during Thursday’s evening program, new Ashoka U.S. Fellows were given the opportunity to introduce their work in just six words.

For example, Sarah Heminger, founder of the Incentive Mentoring Program shared, ‘Feel alone? Expand your definition of family’ and Kendis Paris, founder of Truckers Against Trafficking said, ‘Truckers Against Human Trafficking? Hell Yeah!’ In just six words each Fellow gave a powerful and memorable insight into his or her work.

2. Know the ‘why’ behind the story

During a storytelling workshop presented by Moth storytellers, attendees learned that a crucial—if not the most important—element of storytelling is defining the theme. What is your story about? Why is your story important?

What does it mean to you? The theme of the story is essentially the why behind the story. Why are you telling it and why does it matter to listeners? If you can answer these questions then you will be able to craft a powerful story based around the theme.

3. All relationships are fed by storytelling

Nothing sells like a good story. But more importantly, nothing builds a relationship like a good story. The combination of conviction and storytelling brings people together, fuels relationships, and changes perspectives. We each have the responsibility of telling our stories but just as importantly, letting others tell their stories. Something special happens when someone who has never shared his or her story is suddenly presented with a microphone or a tape recorder.

Like Todd, we are all authors and have the unique responsibility of sharing our stories. The story of social change is being written right now—it is a reality show and it is up to each of us to be co-authors and contributors. What stories have impacted you the most? And how are they influencing your path of changemaking today?

Storytelling is a powerful tool for social change across all sectors. Not only do stories cause us to empathize and motivate us to act, they also help us understand the important nuances of social issues

Julie Wiscombe works with the Global Venture and Fellowship team at Ashoka.

FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013 | 12

Pest Control, Naturally

By ROMULUS WHITAKER

13 | FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013

Photo courtesy: www.newswise.com

I

Irula tribes, though present in several parts of the country, primarily reside in the Thiruvallur district of Tamil Nadu.

These tribesmen are well known for their abilities to catch snakes and rodents.

In 1978, I, along with my colleagues, started the Irula Snake Catchers Cooperative, which deploys the Irula tribal technology. Today, the cooperative supplies over 80 percent of the snake venom used to make life-saving antivenom serum in India.

However, Irula knowledge goes far beyond the world of serpents.

Being big consumers of clean, tasty field rats that abound in our rice, wheat, corn and millet fields, the Irulas have devised ingenious techniques of locating and captureing rats that can put cats to shame. A hunter-gatherer can’t waste precious time and energy digging up a vacant burrow. He has to make sure burrow is ‘live’ by using his almost uncanny skills at detecting small signs like tracks, dung, fresh digging and even the presence of rat lice.

Crop destruction by rodents in India is a serious problem and grain losses due to rats may be as high as 20 percent. In 1984, with the support of Oxfam-India, a pilot project was set up to test the cost effectiveness of rat control by Irulas.

The Irulas proved to be so good at rat catching that in 1985 the Government of India’s Department of Science and Technology gave the Irula Cooperative a grant of a million rupees to do a

pilot project of rodent control by direct capture. During the 20-month period, the Irulas captured over 400,000 rats, collected several tons of rodent-stored crops, saving an estimated 12 tonnes of grain and other crops. All this without using a drop of deadly pesticide!

The average number of rats per acre at the start of the project was 7.8. This was reduced to 2.2 rats per acre at the end of the project. Unfortunately, the project was never taken to its logical conclusion: make rodent control in India a labour intensive operation that would employ thousands of skilled tribal people. Pesticide producers never took into account how dangerous and ineffective rodenticides are.

In 1986, my friends and I started the Rodent and Termite Squad (R.A.T.S.).

In a new direction to safe pest control, R.A.T.S. also applied Irula abilities to find and destroy queen termites.

Again, no one took advantage of these pilot findings and R.A.T.S. ground to a halt. There are several additional value-added avenues for enhancing income for the Irulas by converting captured rats into chicken and fish feed.

The Murrel (Channa sp.) is a valuable edible fish perfect for farming and just happens to love rats.

So, the opportunity to apply Irula tribal technology is waiting to happen. Rats and termites can be kept under control and tribal knowledge can be used and sustained. Moreover, the Irulas, one of India’s poorest minority groups, will have both a legitimate income and contribute to the country’s economy and food security.

Anyone interested?

There are several additional valueadded avenues for enhancing income for the Irulas by converting captured rats into chicken and fish feed

Thoughts “ Naturo Farming and sorting out the problems of crop damage due to rats with local knowledge are always good. But to scale it up depends on the ownership of this knowledge by the users i.e. farmers themselves.

Since it is labor intensive and a cost to the farmers, the rippling effect on the supply chain needs to be seen to ensure the adoption of this by the farmers.” - KC Mishra, Ashoka fellow.

Romulus Whitaker is an Ashoka fellow working to aid disadvantaged tribal groups to develop environmentally sustainable livelihoods from generally wild animals.

FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013 | 14

AshokaHub is an online platform exclusive to Ashoka Fellows, the Ashoka team, and other select members of Ashoka’s network. We built the platform to help these network members connect, share strategic resources, and accelerate impact.

For Fellows, AshokaHub provides the most direct link to the global Ashoka network, and to the valuable people, resources and ideas within. For Ashoka teams, AshokaHub is a space to convene and connect partners, Fellows and staff. For Ashoka Support Network members and other vetted partners, the space provides a window into how individual support and expertise best fit into an Everyone a Changemaker framework.

AshokaHub enables entrepreneurs in Ashoka’s global network to: • Find the right connections • Contact one another • Exchange knowledge, resources and opportunities • Share up-to-date information More than one-third of Ashoka Fellows worldwide are already connected with the global network on AshokaHub. Fellows have discussed innovations and sparked collaborations with one another, found volunteers and staff members for their organizations, and identified funding and promotional opportunities for their work. To join the growing community of Ashoka Fellows on AshokaHub today, visit hub. ashoka.org Need Help? Have Questions? Send them to hub@ashoka.org Website: hub.ashoka.org

15 | FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013

fc | RECOMMENDS

RSA Animate - The Power of Outrospection Introspection is out, and outrospection is in. Philosopher and author Roman Krznaric explains how we can help drive social change by stepping outside ourselves.

Watch the video at:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BG46IwVfSu8

Creating Good Work: The World's Leading Social Entrepreneurs Show How to Build A Healthy Economy - Ron Schultz A rich guide book that recounts the stories of some of the most successful social entrepreneurial programs operating today, with real life examples of how they overcame both physical and societal barriers to create a lasting impact on the world.

What Investees Think Keystone’s first report on the field of impact investing ‘What Investees Think’ presents robust feedback from social enterprises about the performance of their investors. http://www.sankalpforum.com/resources/what-investees-think/

To buy log on to: http://www.amazon. com/dp/0230372031

Seeds of Freedom (2012) Seeds of Freedom charts the story of seed from its roots at the heart of traditional, diversity rich farming systems across the world, to being transformed into a powerful commodity, used to monopolise the global food system.

Watch the video at: http://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/seeds_of_freedom_2012/

The Power of Unreasonable People: How Social Entrepreneurs Create Markets That Change the World - John Elkington and Pamela Hartigan Renowned playwright George Bernard Shaw once said "The reasonable man adapts himself to the world, the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man." By this definition, some of today's entrepreneurs are decidedly unreasonable--and have even been dubbed crazy. Yet as John Elkington and Pamela Hartigan argue in The Power of Unreasonable People, our very future may hinge on their work.

To buy log on to : http://www.amazon.com/The-Power-Unreasonable-People-Entrepreneurs/dp/1422104060 FELLOWCONNECT JUNE 2013 | 16

Walking the Talk:

The Journey of a Young Fellow

By TARIQUE MOHAMMAD QURESHI Koshish is not the story of just an intervention, based on the principles of social work, but a journey: exploring the self, learning about values that bind two individuals together, understanding human relations, and through all of this, exploring life. In this journey, we met some amazing souls. Absolutely beautiful and refreshing people who have ensured that our young team were never short of motivation.

More than anything else, it is an acknowledgement of our belief that change is possible. All one needs is the strength and preparedness to initiate and face the odds. The Ashoka Fellowship reaffirmed our belief that if honest efforts are made, nothing can stop us. We are firm believers in the youth’s potential and capability to bring change. If provided with little handholding, motivation and some direction, they can achieve just about anything.

I take lot of pride in being an Ashoka fellow. Ashoka, to me, is a beautiful family.

Within this network, my understanding and commitment was not measured in the number of years in my age.

Foremost value of the Ashoka Fellowship is the sharing of ideas. Being fellow means access to some of the most amazing people with brilliant yet simple solutions to really complex issues. Meeting people who have been challenging the systems and structures to defend the rights of vulnerable citizens, especially the poor, has certainly added to our own perspective and understanding. Ashoka is the hub of inspirational stories of grit and determination. The strength that we gather from listening to the journeys of other fellows is huge.

When we started, there was hardly any acceptance for our work. People, even close friends, thought we were unreasonable and playing with our lives. Justice had a different meaning for them. Even today, in many places, especially some of the government committees that we are part of, the initial reaction of some of senior members is: “how come he is here? Although they get their answers as soon as as we begin the discussion, what age means to people is communicated loudly.

Being an Ashoka fellow also enhances credibility of the work done, thus, making it relatively easier to reach out to people and seek support. Because of the positive space that Ashoka has created for itself, it’s easier to collaborate with other

interventions in our area of work. Some of the senior fellows who have been around for long and helped build institutions of significance, are readily available to you because you belong to the same community. Koshish is surely learning a great deal from the experiences of other fellows and shall continue to do so. Due to the huge presence of Ashoka fellows in almost every field of work, there are enough opportunities to collaborate and strengethen each others efforts, thereby maximizing outcomes.

Koshish has evolved as an intervention model for students to learn about working within systems. The strategies and methods developed by Koshish to address and overcome the constraints of being located inside custodial institutions demonstrate effective ways for positive non-threatening engagement.

Ten years from now, Koshish aims to be operating in a very different space.

Koshish should not be required to do what we are doing today. By then we would have facilitated a policy framework, supported by an evolved structure for implementation of the policy, where people from the affected community would be leading the change and we shall be playing a facilitator’s role.

Photo courtesy: Black Ticket Films

'For more stories from the Changemakers Series log on to http://india.ashoka.org'