Help on a woman empowerment and sustainable development project in Delhi and U.P., India

Infos

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  Description

  I am Meera Arya, a mother of two children. I live in a joint home with my family and in-laws. I have started a women's organization based in Delhi and which involves some nearby rural communities. It is called Sakhi Kunj which is Hindi for "a gathering of female friends." The mission of the organization is to create sustainable communities through the empowerment of women. We create many products with eco-friendly fabrics and upcycled materials like saris and other Indian clothing. We provide women living in slums and other rural areas with the education and materials to make items to sell (pants, potholders, loofas, bags, and more). We provide different types of useful trainings for our women to increase their marketable skills, teach them about health, and connect them with other government programs available for them. The trainings help the women become financially independent, gain useful skills, and learn how to best take care of themselves.
  
  I grew up watching my mother create a social welfare program of her own. She still runs this welfare project in a rural area of Uttar Pradesh, 200 kilometers from Delhi and about 75 kilometers from Rishikesh. There is an ashram, senior citizen home, orphanage, a school for rural children, and land with 40 cows and a vegetable farm. Volunteers can help on these projects.
  
  I am involved in my own projects and my mother's. We are working towards 5 of the 17 sustainable development goals: GENDER EQUALITY, ZERO HUNGER, NO POVERTY, CLIMATE ACTION, QUALITY EDUCATION. If you are passionate about these goals too and would like to help, you are in the right place.
  
  Alongside my social welfare work with Sakhi Kunj, I also have a job in a project advocating for the importance of sustainable waste management and environmental protection. I work on initiatives to teach the community about the importance of separating waste and reducing single use plastics. This is also something that you can be involved with as a volunteer with me.
  
  Some more about me - I love to grow plants and I care for many plants in my home. I like to reduce plastic in my day to day life and find other ways to live an environmentally friendly lifestyle. My family is vegetarian. Also, I used to work in a yoga institute in Rishikesh, India.
  
  I started Sakhi Kunj to help make our underprivileged women in India self dependent. I want to have more women come to work with me on this project to achieve the goal of empowering women together. I love sharing my experience, knowledge, culture, and more, and love to learn more about how we can improve the lives of our women around the world and here in India. I am looking for support, guidance, and more people coming to contribute to this social cause. Please send me a message if you are interested in helping :)

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  Types d'aide et opportunités d'apprendre

  Bénévolat

  Pratique d’une langue

  Aide avec des éco-projets

  Compagnie pour pers. âgée

  Enseignement

  Jardinage

  S’occuper des animaux

  Aide dans une ferme

  Aide à la maison

  Aide informatique/internet
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  Objectifs de développement durable de l’ONU que cet hôte essaie d'atteindre

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  Qu'est-ce que c'est ?
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  Echange culturel et opportunités d'apprendre

  Volunteers staying here can experience the Indian culture, regional cultural differences, rural life, women's status in rural Indian society, and how we are trying to make improvements of lives of women here.
  
  You can learn so much here and I will help you through everything, answering all questions, and helping to guide you through a new culture.

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  Aide

  There are different types of help that volunteers can assist with:
  
  If you are interested in women's empowerment and sustainability, volunteers can help with improving our website, social media posts, product marketing, checking the quality of the products, handicraft work, photography or videography, modeling the products, and assisting me in setting up a center for women to work. Volunteers can also join me in awareness activities regarding waste management around the community. The daily activities and chores in the change often and every day is different.
  
  Another option is for volunteers to help with the cow shed, assist with farming, gardening, teaching people who stay at the ashram, cleaning, sweeping, cooking, daily chores, playing with the kids, welcoming the guests at the ashram, some office work, teaching people about computers, etc.
  
  I am looking for a flexible volunteer who is open to volunteering but I am also looking to get to know new people and make connections and form good relationships with others. I would like to build community with people from both inside India and outside. I am very flexible and volunteers can help in whatever way suits them the best :) They can also simply enjoy Indian culture with us and share companionship. I am very flexible with everything.

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  Langues

  Langues parlées
  Anglais: Courant
  Hindi: Courant

  Cet hôte propose un échange linguistique
  I have two kids, a daughter age 11 and a son age 7. You can help teach them French or English if you would like. There are also opportunities to teach English for people at the ashram. I can teach you Hindi and chanting Sanskrit mantras if anyone would like to learn.
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  Hébergement

  Volunteers can stay in a room with an attached toilet, veranda/small Balcony, and kitchen. The volunteers may share a space together. I can support and guide volunteers in their travel.
  
  As for food, we provide healthy, vegetarian food both cooked meals and pantry items. Volunteers can have a glass of fresh Indian cow milk. Volunteers should not smoke, have alcohol or drugs. Non-vegetarian food is not allowed either (which includes eggs).

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  Autres infos...

  I am happy to host people with my organization and leading them to enjoy learning about Indian culture and meeting people. We do not expect a lot of help from our volunteers but it is good that they do what they can for this social cause. I would love to connect with people who are happy to make changes in Indian women's lives and learn about rural life.

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  Informations complémentaires

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    Accès Internet

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    Accès Internet limité

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    Nous avons des animaux

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    Nous sommes fumeurs

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    Familles bienvenues

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  Possibilité d'accueillir les animaux

  At the rural organization, we have a big open space so it is no problem if a volunteer wants to bring their pet, but the volunteer should maintain the cleanliness of their pet.

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  Combien de volontaires pouvez-vous accueillir ?

  Plus de 2

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  Nombre d'heures attendues

  3 to 4 hours

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