World Ark Magazine - March/April 2009 - (Page 17) the post-9/11 world has seen rising militarization and more people than ever living in poverty. development models must weigh the best options for using limited resources to promote both economic growth and human well-being. Virtually every mission, whether religious or secular, brings some form of social agenda along with material support. even in the grameen Bank system, microcredit recipients are required to sign a 16-point oath vowing, among other things: “we cultivate vegetables the whole year round,” and “we intend to have small families.” By contrast, the heifer cornerstones workshops offer such nuanced goals as accountability and Sustainability in the context of group conversations. The one nonnegotiable requirement is passing on the gift, in which recipients of livestock and training must pass on some of their animals’ offspring, along with workshops and veterinary training, to new recipients. in orissa the animals are always passed from one women’s group to a newer one they helped organize. These female-centered events tend to reach ceremonial heights that can outshine the material component. gift-goats wear marigold garlands; handmade gifts are exchanged both ways. during one such ceremony, an elderly man leaning against a tree remarked: “These women always used to start the day by fighting. Now look how they are.” participants rarely report serious complaints from husbands. according to Surojit chatterjee, state representative of care india, the men have more to gain than lose from these small livelihood projects, since women are unlikely to compete for their jobs. “at this point in indian society, some sectors of the economy are exclusively male. So the men aren’t threatened by the income-earning enterprises. These women won’t overstep the bounds. But who knows, maybe in 10 or 15 years that could happen.” dr. S.N. padhi, a member of the rural management faculty of orissa’s amity Business School, has been impressed to see women take to the cornerstones training so enthusiastically, independently of material aid. “we studied this for months before we began to understand it,” he said, but believes success lies in its reinforcement of pre-existing community mores. “This formalized training is building on ancestor values: respect, accountability, generosity. ours is w w w. h e i f e r. o r g a culture of extreme hospitality. That Heifer India translates very reasonably into passing is organizing livelihood and on the gift, for example.” gender inequity is also deeply im- self-empowerbedded in indian culture, as gandhi ment projects himself acknowledged. But heifer in the poorest, project participants in more than a most remote dozen orissa villages said they now villages of Orissa. feel more secure and equal in their families. Their most-cited reason was not access to credit or even a livelihood, but the breakdown of their social isolation. articulating core values proves a powerful bonding experience for women whose poverty has kept them apart. The psychological impact of having these can’t be measured on a bank balance. in the remote ganges delta town of Jaleswar, it shines in the faces of the women’s food manufacturing co-op, who open every meeting by singing: “Jagore! Jagore! Wake up, to women’s power!” This collection of wives and widows began as a 20-member self-help group. Now the 120-member cooperative, which is partnered with heifer, produces and sells mudhi (puffed rice) through local stores. The group has paid off its capital loan and has a spectacular $12,000 in its savings account. But one cooperative member insisted, “mudhi is just the beginning. This work brings us together. we talk about our problems. Now we have organized the women’s peace Soldiers so we can go to the police station to get results. The spirit of knowing we women can do it ourselves—that puts a smile on everyone’s face.” march/apri l 2009 | worl d ark 17 http://www.heifer.org
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