3 decades in service of creative people: Network, institutions, individuals

A social movement needs an institutional support system for carrying forward various missions. SRISTI provided such a support during last 25 years to the Honey Bee Network and the other institutions it spawned by HBN such as GIAN and NIF-India.

Hundreds of volunteers will meet at Garmbharati, Amrapaur, Gandhinagar from June 1 to 3 to reflect, rejuvenate and recalibrate its commitment to the cause of serving creative farmers, artisans, mechanics, children, tech students, school teachers and innovators from and for grassroots level. In every mission, the network and the institutions tried to create global benchmarks in scouting, spawning and spreading frugal innovations not just in India but worldwide.

Naturally, not all missions have been achieved equally well. The common property institutions so vital for conservation of natural resources, including biodiversity and associated knowledge system, are still neglected. Similarly, the goal of sharing open source multi-language, multimedia content to each of the student studying in the government school in 6,50,000 villages still seems a distant dream. It seems that society has reconciled that children belonging to disadvantaged families studying in government schools will remain a second-class citizen of the country. The middle-class has withdrawn from there and, hence, has no stakes in their quality upliftment. Navodaya Vidyalayas have provided an outstanding support to aspiration of a small number of children in each district. We still don't have such a school in each block.

Innovations in school education and people's institutions need much more support from society than has been the case so far.

When SRISTI started honouring creative farmers, artisans and teachers, herbalists et cetera 25 years ago, little did we realise that the last three honourable Presidents of India and the present respected President of our country will bless the cause of grassroots innovations and inclusive frugal innovations by the tech youth. Today, a creative child and a rural innovator or an engineering student can hope to be the guest of the Honourable President of India and stay at the President's house.

Naturally, this could become possible only because a very large number of policy makers, public administrators, NGIs (non-governmental Individuals, more than NGOs), teachers, and innovators have helped the cause. Three of the recipients of SRISTI Samman got Padam Shri last year. I am sure many more will get similar recognition in coming years. India has made the term, 'grassroots innovations' popular world over through the usage has got a bit muddled. Innovations from grassroots should be distinguished from innovations for grassroots.

There are many more challenges ahead: How to connect corporations and small enterprises and communities, innovators? How to make district and taluka administration more responsive to local innovators so that these location-specific solutions get institutionalised? What should be done so that every school invites local and external achievers to inspire children so that notwithstanding all constraints, their aspirational deficit is overcome.

As the resource becomes scarce, the role of commons will become more and more important. Individualisation and privatisation will obviously leave many people excluded from a fair access to resources. Alienation takes little time to become aggressive. For a peaceful and amicable transition to new world order, it is essential that we learn to share the resources and manage them collectively. Common earth, common sky and common water bodies will have to become a central concern sooner than later.

All those who believe that cultural, educational, institutional and technological innovations need a new vigour please join us in a retreat at Grambharati from June 1 to 3 and help us rediscover new paths, new directions, and new solidarity.

The author is founder of Honey Bee Network & visiting faculty at IIM-A
anilgb@gmail.com