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September 7, 2016

Women’s Empowerment: At a Price!

Listening to ‘the story behind the story’ and hearing the pain behind every success may be ways of validating the sacrifices that women across every strata of society make. Empowerment can only stem from this recognition of the inequalities inherent in the lives of men and women, in terms of responsibilities, work and sacrifices, and the appreciation for their contribution
September 7, 2016

Mulberry Sericulture: An Alternative, Farm-based Livelihood for Small Farmers

Establishing mulberry sericulture as an alternative farm-based livelihood activity was a slow and steady endeavour of the PRADAN team in Betul district of Madhya Pradesh, leading to income-generation and a degree of prosperity for women farmers
August 14, 2016

Sustainable Farming: Building the Identity of Women as Farmers

Introducing sustainable organic farming and power-operated implements, holding training programmes and exposure visits for women farmers, thereby enhancing their knowledge and decision-making abilities has been a rewarding investment of the PRADAN team in some villages of Odisha, creating the path to self-sufficiency and food sufficiency
August 7, 2016

Folk Rice Diversity in West Bengal: Conserving this Neglected Treasure

Replacing region-specific, salt-tolerant Folk Rice Varieties (FRV s) with Modern Varieties (MVs) of rice was a costly mistake because it became clear that the MVs could not survive in the marginal environmental conditions. By reintroducing FRV s, efforts are being made to regain the time-tested wisdom of traditional practices and the local population
July 26, 2016

Seed Sovereignty: Empowering Farmers

Going back to using indigenous seeds and growing indigenous paddy after realizing the short-term and long-term advantages of these over HYVs, farmers are beginning to reclaim their power to decide what they want to sow and grow because they can better appreciate their own local context and needs
July 22, 2016

A Patch of Green in the Forest: Organic Farming in Paraswada

Shifting from agricultural practices that were expensive, unsustainable, harmful to the environment, degenerative to the soil, and biased towards rich farmers, the women of Paraswada, Madhya Pradesh, with PRADAN ’s support, decide to make the transition to organic methods of farming, which include using indigenous seeds, SRI, crop diversification, bio-manure and a host of other practices, showing positive and promising results
July 13, 2016

More Production and Better Livelihoods with Unhealthy, Undernourished and Fatigued Workforce? Rethink

July 8, 2016

Organic Farming Initiatives in Dantewada: From Subsistence to Sustainability

Skirting the hazards of chemical farming by a whisker, the tribal farmers in Dantewada district, with the help of a strong and supportive District Collector, set an example to other villages by using traditional seeds cultivated the SRI way, to find that their produce, both in terms of quantity and quality, is comparable to any crop produced with newer techniques. Age-old wisdom prevailing over modern quick-fixes!
June 20, 2016

My Journey in Araria

Providing a safe space in the SHGs and VOs for women to share and discuss not only issues related to livelihoods, savings and credit…although these are important…but also themselves, their lives, their health, their choices or the lack of it, their decision-making abilities, and their self-image, the PRADAN team in Araria is working with women and teenage girls to bring about fundamental changes in mindsets by challenging age-old beliefs and traditions
June 4, 2016

The Power of Collectivism: A Showcase

Having tasted victory once and having experienced the power of collectives, the women of Sundro village are unstoppable…they are better informed about their rights and entitlements and speak as one, demanding changes and challenging corruption in public services