The I CAN mindset equips every child to be AWARE of the world around them, ENABLE them with skills to take action and EMPOWER them to design a more desirable and sustainable future – TODAY!  The FIDS (Feel, Imagine, Do and Share) framework helps to develop the much required 21st Century Skills in children, builds their social and emotional competencies and promotes employability skills. The most unique feature of the Design for Change initiative is that it is not only simple and constructive, it is open-source, accessible, adaptable and replicable. The power of Design Thinking allows both children and adults to transform the world into how they envision it – the power to create a more compassionate, empathetic world. By spreading Design Thinking globally, Design for Change was one of the first organisations to pioneer this progressive way of thinking to schools and children.

“My Own Neighbor” Design for Change Project – 2018

SAI International Residential School (SIRS) is located across three-hillocks in the serene Chandka forest, amidst a picturesque landscape with the mighty river Mahanadi meandering nearby. In its periphery lie several small hamlets and villages who earn their living as marginal workers or farmers. Earlier these villagers depended on forest or farming for their livelihood, but as the area started getting populated and the forest receded, these people tried their hands at doing small part time jobs or farming.

To create and develop the Social connect activity of the newly built School, students and teacher coordinators started exploring the nearby areas to understand the people, the locality and their needs. In one such trip, the team came across the tiny village of Bhalunka. It is located in Chandka Tehsil of Khordha district in Odisha, India. Total geographical area of Bhalunka village is 532 Hectares and the total number of house hold is 39. Nearest town is Bhubaneswar at a distance of 33 km.

During the Walk in the Village, it was found –

• Acute shortage of drinking water – with two tube wells and one well without wall. Stagnant and smelly water around the tube well.
• Water logged roads
• No proper drainage system and clogged narrow temporary drains made by individual house hold, leading it to an open area
• Roads littered with twigs, leaves, animal waste, which has narrowed it to a thin walking path
• Unhygienic living conditions, no proper disposal of kitchen water
• Practice of open defecation
• Many non-working people
• People unaware of Government schemes

Our mission aims to address two important Sustainable Development Goals as mandated by the United Nations like Goal 3 – Good Health and Wellbeing and Goal 6 – Clean Water and Sanitation.

By creating awareness and spreading the knowledge through the children as well as providing handholding support we can empower the villagers to help themselves by maintaining their health and hygiene, keeping their surrounding clean, stop open defecation, keeping the water sources clean etc. This would solve many of their health-related complications and problem.

Testimonials:

Debi Nayak – “I feel like a teacher when I tell my mother and aunty not to throw the household waste outside the house and put it in the specified place. I feel nice doing it. Earlier many people have come to say something good, but as children we were always ignored, no one asked us to do anything like this. We were given biscuits and a long lecture and let off. Now we feel special.

Niniya Singh – I am 102 years old and I have seen many changes taking place in this village. When these children first came, I felt some rich children have come, they will give some food and go. But when they started sweeping the road and cleaning the well, it really touched me. I feel bad that these small children have more wisdom than us.