Quarterly Newsletter 2 – 2022
“The day the power of love overrules the love of power, the world will know peace. – Mahatma Gandhi
Picture the following: You enter the kanthari campus on Monday, June 13, and in front of you, you see 5 participants squatting tightly under a table on the stage of the Amphi Theatre, 7 other participants curiously moving around the table, taking notes, and another 8 participants who are observing the entire scene from the balcony of the auditorium. However, this group is too far away to get a direct understanding of what is really happening. Initially there were15 minutes of confusion before it dawned what this was all about. The kanthari curriculum is based on experiential learning. So, what was the purpose of this exercise? The participants learned that a problem can be perceived from very different perspectives. There are the frogs, the squatters, who are situated in the middle of the misery, the beavers, who have a close but outsider’s view, and then we have the eagles, who have a lot of theoretical knowledge, yet they are situated far from the actual problem and are rather detached. Each of these perspectives has its advantages and disadvantages. Most of our participants are frogs and have experienced the problem they wish to address firsthand. They suffer the most, but compared to others have one decisive advantage; they can free themselves from the frog perspective and become beavers and/or eagles.
Dear Friends and supporters,
when you watch the daily news, usually the
first words that you hear are ‘Good
evening!’. Ten minutes later you have the impression, that the evening is not ‘good’ at all. Most of the news that we receive is negative and it influences our mood! It seems that the problems that we are facing are endless. Yes, there might be many, yet we all can do something to get out of the state of hopelessness, and additionally, there are also many people who are working on solutions. The above-mentioned exercise forms an important starting point. Only if we approach a problem and learn to understand it from different perspectives, we will be able to find sustainable and relevant solutions.
We are very grateful that amidst the current challenging times, it has been possible to start the 13th edition of the kanthari course. We herewith wish to share a few updates about the work of kanthari and kantharis around the globe with you.
kanthari course
Every year, the months of March and April were pretty much filled with excitement as well as tension. Excitement because the 13th kanthari course was about to get started; tension, because getting a group of individuals from across the world to India, comes with a lot of paperwork and challenges. The entire kanthari team worked very hard and we are very pleased and grateful that the 13th edition of the kanthari course could start with 20 participants from 13 countries: India, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Kosovo, Nigeria, Indonesia, Cambodia, Nepal, France, Cameroon, Uganda, Philippines, and Guatemala. Initially, at the beginning of April, the course started with online sessions, but at the end of May, the on-campus part of the training began! We wish to thank everyone who has made this possible!
Updates about kantharis around the world:
alarmo – India – Akhina Mohan – 2021 kanthari
“Always walk through life as if you have something new to learn, and you will”.
Akhina’s organization alarmo focuses on empowering children to influence communities to conserve and restore the local environment. After graduating from the kanthari course at the end of March 2022, Akhina organized the first camp for 23 children that focused on environmental
awareness and empowerment to become climate leaders. For 15 days, during practical activities and being surrounded by nature, eight girls and seven boys learned about how climate change affects plants, animals, and us. Their understanding of what is happening in the world helps them to advocate for a greener and cleaner tomorrow.
entojutu – Nigeria – Tobi Adegbite – 2021 kanthari
Building resilient societies was Tobi’s mission when he left India in Dec 2021. Being a farmer, he had found a solution that could help other farmers from poor and marginalized communities to become more sustainable. The solution? A fly. Yes! a Fly!! The Black Soldier fly turns organic waste to feed and fertilizer for farmers. Recently, Tobi was invited to Kenya to train 111 rural farmers in 3 communities: Matulo, Kibisi, and Homabay. The trainees included people living with albinism, aged farmers, youths, survivors of gender-based violence, Substance addicted farmers and their wives. Tobi uses the DEAL approach which includes 4 steps: Demonstrate, Experience, Adopt and Leverage. Learn more about Tobi’s inspiring work here
Comparlante – Argentina – Lorena Julio – 2018 kanthari
Lorena Julio’s organisation Fundación Comparlante works on several activities to break down barriers that positively impact the quality of life for persons with disabilities in Latin America: training of staff of the Inter-American Development Bank on universal design and accessible communication. An online multidisciplinary art Program for persons with disabilities was organized with participants from 12 regional countries. And the We Feel photo exhibition is a program that promotes the capacities of persons with disability and brings down myths, negative stereotypes, and prejudice by using photos as support. Since the start of this program, 13.000 people visited We Feel La Plata.
Springboard – Nigeria – Lawrence Afere – 2012 kanthari
As part of their efforts to add value to cocoa beans production in Nigeria, Springboard Cocoa Farmers Cooperative has launched its chocolate bar with the brand name “Tiwa” meaning “proudly our own”. Founder of Springboard Nigeria, Lawrence Afere said the target is to make chocolate available to all Nigerians without compromising quality while also ensuring that farmers derive adequate rewards for their work. OSRC’s Zaheed Aribisala reports that farmers at Springboard are resilient in emplacing Nigeria as one of the largest producers of organic Cocoa in the World. Congrats to the entire Springboard team!
kanthari and kantharis in the Media:
Yampier Aguiar Durañona interviewed some kantharis for the Giraffe Heroes
“Stick Your Neck Out Podcast”:
– Recyclers of waste – Tobi Adegbite’s Black Soldier flies change waste management – Nigeria
– Fishing in dangerous waters – Cavin Odera – Wa-Wa women empowerment in Kenya
– We are here – Nematullah Ahangosh – Empowering the Disabled- Afghanistan
– Sabriye and Paul were guests in Erik Weihenmayer’s NO BARRIERS podcast
– George Abraham interviewed Sabriye for the Eyeway Conversations podcast
And you can find all weekly blogposts here
Dear friends and supporters,
Since the beginning of this year, we have seen that the world has gotten into more trouble. Yet, please don’t despair, we know that there are many people out there, who are working hard to create a more just and better world. Our team here and all the kantharis worldwide are giving it our very best to contribute to that goal. We are grateful for your ongoing support so we can continue our journey! THANK YOU!
If you enjoyed reading this newsletter, please forward it to others who may be interested.
And please share the kanthari scholarship opportunity within your network so it reaches those who could benefit from the course. Thank you.
With very best regards from Kerala, stay safe, stay healthy!
the entire kanthari team, sabriye and paul
Please support kanthari here – THANK YOU for your ongoing help!
www.facebook.com/kantharis – www.kanthari.org
Previous
Next
