Practical insights while working with vulnerable communities

Why local women self help groups play an important role when farmers bring huge arid areas back to life Vibha Varghees, CEO from the organization Vikasana, is one of our nine core NGO partners in the System Changer Network India. Vikasana is located in Karnataka, South India – a 6 hours drive away from Bangalore….

How to make your cow happy – and managers, too!

After a week of field experiences, including discussions with veterinarians and farmers, after visiting Milk chilling plants and the agricultural university and after some exciting hours of preparation… it’s time to give back: our managers, most of them veterinarians and/or a background in Animal Health are asked to develop and to run a training for…

There is one health only – for animals and human beings

A few photos from our Animal Health exposure week in our tribal project area in India. In the last three years more than 10 exposure weeks have taken place here, in the rural surroundings of Coimbatore in close partnership with KKID, a NGO. More than 200 people participated. And a lot of social and social…

Visiting a Cocoon market

There are two big cocoon markets in Tamil Nadu (South India) where farmers gather in the early morning and sell the harvest. One of these markets is in Coimbatore. Farmers from 100 km away are coming here. 1.5 tons are sold daily at the market. With our manager group participating in our Making More Health…

Again at the TNAU university – the mushroom production is growing

A few years have passed since I visited the TNAU university the last time. It is impressing to see the further development steps they have taken in mushroom growth, research and most of all on how to engage Self-help groups to take up the idea. Mushroom growth – income generation for the poor Meanwhile earlier…

If human are healthy then animals are healthy and vice versa

For two days tribal and urban Selfhelp group members have been trained in Animal Health, 50 participants in total under the umbrella of our Making More Health initiative. The programme was resourced by a local doctor in close collaboration with a Veterinarian of our company and the support of a local NGO. The focus lied…

Visit at the veterinary university, training & research center

Its a very warm welcome when we arrive and in the following two hours we learn a lot about the activities of the institute and the programmes they run with the farmers in the surroundings of Coimbatore. It’s a small team working here, but the impact and agile set up of the activities allows them…

Visit at kanthari, a training center for changemakers

Trivandrum, South India – that’s where kanthari is located. A real beautiful place, a place full of intense life and people who have one thing in common:  being “kantharis”, changemakers in the world.  kanthari is an accredited international institute that recognizes leadership in those individuals who come from and/or are positioned at the margins of…

When a cow is grown by sisters …

The story has been published yesterday on a local newspaper and the sisters proudly show me the article when I visit them.  “The story started two years back when I went for a meeting to a priest’s house who besides being a priest is taking care  of some cows, too. I really like cows and…