Video | Self-help for and by members of rural communities in need of modern facilities: A video by Tribal Community Lab – Odisha

Ratha Duria from Rishabh Raghavan on Vimeo. Ratha Duria discusses his solar energy run kiosk in Gunpur, Kalahandi, Orissa and the need for such interventions. “We looked at a few solutions that would be cost effective and less effort to access these simple services [i.e. photo copying and taking photographs for identity cards] run on solar and in … Read more

Giving a voice to the Maya people of Central America: Award-winning film “Ixcanul” – Guatemala

Maria, a 17 year old Mayan woman, lives on the slopes of an active volcano in Guatemala. An arranged marriage awaits her. Although Maria dreams of seeing ‘the city’, her status as an indigenous woman does not allow her to go out into that ‘modern world’. Later, during a pregnancy complication, this modern world will … Read more

Video | Serving India’s working poor by partnering with grass-root level organizations: Solar microgrids for Santal villages of Purulia District – West Bengal

Mlinda’ s Bony Tarafder and Champ Tudu tell the success story of a remote Santal rural community in Purulia District of West Bengal: about the new possibilities that came with access to lighting for the first time, health services and sanitation. A film by Ruchir Saraf for milaap.org • Milaap.org is a new way of doing good. Giving loans to the communities … Read more

A love story noted for gracefully navigating between tribal society and modernity: Kurukh language film “Edpa Kana” (Going Home) – Jharkhand

A young man loves a young woman of his own tribe but a different religion. They speak Kurukh but it seems a global audience in Kerala has understood them well, proving that the language of good cinema is universal. Edpa Kana (Going Home) is the first Kurukh language film to win a special jury mention … Read more

Embarking on a collaborative process: “The tapestry” of a common Scandinavian-Santal heritage spanning 150-years – Norway

Tone Bleie is Professor of Public Planning and Cultural Understanding at the University of Tromsø, in Northern-Norway. […] The Bodding Symposium is one of the current initiatives under this umbrella initiative. Another is an ongoing book project, which aims at rewriting the history of the Scandinavian-Santal pastoral enlightenment legacy – making the book readable and available … Read more