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EXPEDITION SCHEDULE NORTHERN INDIA: WATER, LIFE, FUTURE
March 21-30, 2015
UBELONG 1630 R St NW, Suite 5
Washington, DC www.ubelong.org
FRIDAY MARCH 20, 2015 OF NOTE TAKE IT EASY TODAY Today is the pre-‐Expedition day. We have a meeting at the Centre for Science and Environment in the afternoon to get the juices flowing before we officially start Expedition activities on Saturday. But take the opportunity today to relax and take plenty of rest. THE CENTRE FOR SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENT The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) is one of the leading nonprofits in India devoted to environmental protection. Founded in 1980, CSE works as a public interest think-‐tank advocating for effective policy-‐making in areas that include air pollution, climate change, food safety and water management. In 2005, CSE received the prestigious Stockholm Water Prize for its work in promoting effective water management. CSE was designated a “Center of Excellence” in water management by the Government of India. Dr. Suresh Rohilla, one of the most important experts in urban water in India, is the Program Director for this Center of Excellence at CSE. This unit within CSE conducts research on multiple water-‐related topics, and provides capacity building on decentralized wastewater management and rainwater harvesting, among other activities.
8:30-‐10:00 Breakfast and team greet at the hotel 10:30-‐15:30 Free time
15:30 Depart hotel to the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) 16:30-‐18:00 Meeting with Dr. Suresh Rohilla, Director of Water at CSE 18:30-‐19:30 Free time at the hotel
19:30 Dinner
NORTHERN INDIA WATER, LIFE, FUTURE
THE SCHEDULE
8:00-‐9:30 Breakfast at the hotel 9:30-‐11:30 Team introductions and itinerary review 11:45 Departure from hotel 12:30 Lunch
13:15-‐17:30 Unconventional Delhi: Chandni Chowk and Nizamuddin Basti 18:00-‐19:30 Rest at the hotel
20:00 Welcome dinner with special guest Ramaswamy Iyer OF NOTE AN UNCONVENTIONAL TOUR OF DELHI At 11:45 AM, the team leaves the hotel for an unconventional tour of Delhi. The trip is an immersive introduction to the complex socioeconomic realities of this megacity. We start in Chandni Chowk, one of the oldest and busiest markets in Old Delhi –and a true embodiment of the religious and social diversity of the capital. Beyond the market, the team will visit a slum community by the river. By 2:45 PM, the team will travel to Nizamuddin Basti, an urban village with deep history and considerable challenges. The team will get to know the Nizamuddin Urban Renewal Initiative, a project that aims to combine historic preservation with socioeconomic development. The project is focused on revitalizing and unifying three historical sites – Humayun’s Tomb, Nizamuddin Basti and Sunder Nursery into a unique heritage zone. At the same time, the initiative includes a community-‐based collaborative approach to improve the quality of life of the resident population. The team will meet women’s self-‐help groups pursuing entrepreneurial activities under this initiative. RAMASWAMY IYER Ramaswamy Iyer served as Secretary of Water Resources in the Government of India. In that capacity he was the initiator and principal draftsman of India's first national water policy in 1987. After his retirement from the Government, he served as Research Professor at the Centre for Policy Research, where he continues today in an honorary capacity. He was a member of two high-‐level committees set up by the Government of India to review the environmental and displacement/rehabilitation aspects of the Sardar Sarovar Narmada Project (1993 -‐ 95) and the Tehri Hydro-‐Electric Project (1996-‐97), and was a Member of the National Commission on Integrated Water Resources Development Plan (1997-‐99). He has also been a member of many other Government committees and commissions. He is a member of the Government of India’s National Council on the Artificial Re-‐Charge of Groundwater. Since 2007, he is a member of the High Level Expert Panel on Water and Disaster at the United Nations Secretary-‐General’s Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation. Ramaswamy Iyer is venerated among people working in the water sector in India today. In 2013, the Centre for Policy Research organized a three-‐day conference to pay tribute to his work.
SATURDAY MARCH 21, 2015
Rawasmany Iyer with Hamid Ansari, Vice President of India, at the 2013 conference honoring Mr. Iyer’s contributions
SUNDAY MARCH 22, 2015
8:00-‐9:30 Breakfast at the hotel 9:30-‐10:30 Preparation for the Delhi Dive-‐In 11:00-‐16:00 Delhi Dive-‐In 16:15-‐17:15 Team reflection at hotel 17:15-‐18:30 Free time
19:00 Family dinner OF NOTE DELHI DIVE-IN Today is World Water Day and it’s time to dive in. You cannot really know Delhi until you try to discover it by yourself. The team will be divided in four groups of three. Each group will be instructed to go to a Delhi destination and establish informal conversations with people about the three words that give title to this Expedition: “Water, Life, Future”. You will document what you learn and present it to the rest of the team back at the hotel. DINNER WITH THE ARORA FAMILY We end our first weekend with a very special vegetarian dinner with the Arora’s, a family of food entrepreneurs that includes daughter Kishi Arora, a graduate of The Culinary Institute of America, Ted Fellow, and collaborator in television hit Masterchef India –among many other accomplishments.
MONDAY MARCH 23, 2015
6:00 Departure from the hotel 8:00-‐12:00 Meeting with Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak at Sulabh International 14:00-‐17:00 Visit to Lakshyam: Water and sanitation in a slum setting 18:00-‐20:00 Free time at the hotel
20:00 Dinner OF NOTE BINDESHWAR PATHAK, FOUNDER OF SULABH INTERNATIONAL Bindeshwar Pathak is a hero in modern India. His vision has become a movement, giving him the status of a sort of national celebrity. He is the founder of Sulabh International, an India-‐based social service organization which works to promote human rights, environmental sanitation, non-‐conventional sources of energy, waste management and social reforms through education. His work is considered groundbreaking in social reform through sanitation and hygiene. A prolific writer and speaker, Pathak has authored several books, the most well-‐known of which is The Road to Freedom, and is a frequent participant in conferences on sanitation, health, and social progress around the world. He established the Sulabh International Social Service Organization in 1970, combining technical innovation with humanitarian principles. The organization works to promote human rights, environmental sanitation, non-‐conventional sources of energy, waste management and social reforms through education. The organization counts 50,000 volunteers. He has made innovative use of biogas creation by linking Sulabh toilets to fermentation plants, he had designed over three decades ago and which are now becoming a byword for sanitation in developing countries all over the world. One of the distinctive feature of Pathak's project lies in the fact that besides producing odour-‐free bio-‐gas, it also releases clean water rich in phosphorus and other ingredients which are important constituents of organic manure. His sanitation movement ensures cleanliness and prevents greenhouse gas emission. He is the recipient of multiple honors and awards. He is a Padma Bhushan recipient from the Government of India. In 2003, his name was added to the Global 500 Roll of Honour. Bindheshwar Pathak also received the Energy Globe Award, the Dubai International Award for Best Practices, and the Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Award for Environment. The prestigious Stockholm Water Prize was awarded to him in year 2009.In June, 2013, he also received the Legend of Planet award from the French senate in Paris, ahead of World Environment Day. LAKSHYAM After having lunch with Bindeshwar, we will travel to visit Lakshyam, a social organization working in a small slum where 3000 people live. We will walk through the community to understand the challenges the face in the areas of water and sanitation, followed by an interactive session with Lakshyam staff, volunteers and community members.
Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak, Founder of Subabh International
TUESDAY MARCH 24, 2015
9:00-‐10:45 Breakfast with Amit Jain, CEO of E Health Point 10:50 Departure from the hotel
11:30-‐13:00 Meeting with Louis-‐Georges Arsenault, UN Resident Coordinator 13:30-‐14:00 Lunch 14:00-‐15:00 Free time 15:30-‐17:30 Meeting with Nidhi Parsi at WaterAid India 18:00-‐20:00 Free time at the hotel
21:00 Dinner OF NOTE AMIT JAIN, CEO OF E HEALTH POINT Amit Jain is the CEO and Founder of E Health Point, a globally acclaimed nonprofit in the field of water and sanitation in India. He has worked, mentored and incubated various social marketing businesses serving the base-‐of-‐the-‐pyramid communities in healthcare and water and sanitation, in India and across the world, with specific domain experience in social marketing behavior change communication, public private partnerships, and social business start-‐ups. He established a health products social marketing network across 50,000 villages at HLL Lifecare Limited and anchored Naandi Foundation’s water business from inception to 500 units reaching-‐out to 3 million people in 2.5 years while working as President and COO. He is now fully devoted to E Health Point -‐-‐providing low-‐cost, high-‐quality basic healthcare and clean drinking water for low income communities through a unique model leveraging technology. Amit’s work in E Health Point has become a case study at the Harvard Business School. He is the recipient of multiple honors and awards, including the Changemakers & Robert F Johnson Foundation Award in 2012, the Global Changemakers with Ashoka for Water Program in 2008, and recently Outlook Business recognized him as a leading social entrepreneur. LOUIS-GEORGES ARSENAULT, UNITED NATIONS RESIDENT COORDINATOR Louis-‐Georges Arsenault is the UN Resident Coordinator in India –the highest-‐ranking UN official in the country. Prior to his current position, Louis-‐Georges served as UNICEF’s Director of the Office of Emergency Programmes from March 2008. Louis-‐Georges served as the UNICEF Representative in Bangladesh from October 2005 to February 2008. Prior to that, he served as the Deputy Director, Programme Division in UNICEF New York. From 2001 to 2003, Louis-‐Georges served as the UNICEF Representative in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. As UNICEF Representative in Afghanistan from 1998 to 2001, he managed one of UNICEF’s largest humanitarian operations. Louis-‐Georges joined UNICEF in Mali in 1995 as Deputy Representative. Prior to joining UNICEF, he worked for the Canadian University Services Overseas (CUSO) as Regional Director for West Africa based in Togo. In the mid-‐eighties he was Director of the Canadian International Development Agency-‐supported bilateral project on Integrated Water Supply and Sanitation, covering the maritime region of Togo.
NIDHI PASI, DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH AT WATERAID INDIA Dr. Nidhi Pasi is the Director of Research at WaterAid India. WaterAid is one of the most important international non-‐profits dedicated to water, with operations in multiple countries. In India, WaterAid works closely with its partners in local communities to utilize low cost technologies to deliver sustainable water supply, sanitation and hygiene solutions to the poor. Since its presence in India from 1986, WaterAid India has been growing in its significance in providing assistance to the poor in both rural and urban areas. Today, WaterAid covers over ten states (Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh).
Louis-‐Georges Arsenault, UN Resident Coordinator
WEDNESDAY MARCH 25, 2015
8:00-‐9:30 Breakfast at the hotel 9:30-‐11:30 Free time 11:30 Departure from the hotel to the airport 14:40 Flight from Delhi to Udaipur 16:30 Arrival and check-‐in at the Udaipur hotel 17:00 Free time in Udaipur
THURSDAY MARCH 26, 2015
7:00-‐8:00 Breakfast at the hotel 8:00 Pick up at the hotel to go to Seva Mandir
9:00-‐9:30 Greetings at Seva Mandir 9:30-‐17:30 Field visits in rural communities 18:30-‐20:00 Free time at the hotel
20:00 Dinner
FRIDAY MARCH 27, 2015
8:00-‐9:30 Breakfast at the hotel 9:30 Pick up at the hotel to go to Seva Mandir
10:30-‐13:00 Workshop at Seva Mandir 13:00-‐14:00 Lunch 14:00-‐17:00 Worshop at Seva Mandir (continued) 18:00-‐20:00 Free time at Udaipur
20:00 Departure for train station 22:20 Night train from Udaipur to Agra
OF NOTE ON WEDNESDAY First, be ready with your luggage at 11:30 AM at the lobby of the hotel. We will be catching the Delhi-‐Udaipur flight at 2:40 PM. After arrival in Udaipur and checking into our hotel, there is free time for the rest of the Delhi. Please note that this day dinner is not included. SEVA MANDIR Seva Mandir is a prestigious grassroots NGO based in Udaipur. Founded in 1966, it is currently headed by CEO, Priyanka Singh. Seva Mandir works mainly in natural resource development and sustainability, village development, women empowerment, early childhood education and health care, continuing
education, and children's welfare. The scope of projects has allowed them to affect 70,000 households and 30,000 residents in the Udaipur and Rajsamand districts. Developing projects in over 600 villages and almost 60 urban locations, Seva Mandir maintains a full-‐time staff of close to 300 and annually accepts about 100 volunteers and interns from India and abroad. Over 90 percent of the people in the Udaipur area rely on subsistence agriculture, but the region’s natural resource base is severely degraded. For over 35 years, across more than 400 villages, Seva Mandir has protected and developed 16,000 hectares of common land, made sustainable watersheds for 6,000 families, and helped another 10,000 farmers improve their agricultural yields. These efforts have strengthened farming livelihoods, ensuring that the poorest people have food and financial security, and nurtured a demand for better, more ethical management of the environmental commons. The team will visit several rural water and sanitation projects managed by Seva Mandir in the Udaipur area, and collaborate with Seva Mandir staff to discuss practical solutions to the challenges we observe. *Note: For the visit on Thursday and Friday, please dress conservatively. ON FRIDAY Friday morning before departing for Seva Mandir, please bring down your luggage to the hotel lobby. We will pick up our luggage in the evening to head to the train station and catch our overnight train from Udaipur to Agra. *Note: You will have a bed on the way to Udaipur to Agra. Bring comfortable clothes.
SATURDAY MARCH 28, 2015 11:20 Arrival in Agra 12:30 Arrival and check in at the Agra hotel 13:00 Lunch
14:00-‐19:00 Free time in Agra 20:00 Farewell dinner
SUNDAY MARCH 29, 2015
6:00-‐9:00 Guided tour of Taj Mahal at sunrise 9:00-‐12:30 Free time 13:00 Lunch 14:00 Departure to Delhi 17:00 Back in Delhi and quick check in at hotel 19:00 Departure to the airport
OF NOTE WHAT TO TAKE After an intense week, it’s our time to have fun together. For both days, you need to bring comfortable clothes. And relax! OUR LAST DAY IN DELHI Expedition activities officially end on Sunday at 5 PM. However, note that you have your room at Ivory 32 in Delhi for a few hours to refresh and finish packing. Be ready at the hotel lobby at 7 PM for your ride back to the airport.
www.ubelong.org
NORTHERN INDIA | WATER, LIFE, FUTURE
A UBELONG Expedition
