SVM Monthly Newsletter- March 2022

In This Issue

Another Salesforce Trailblazer Lab at Nongwah | SVM Pilot for Watsan Clean Water Solutions | Road to Gujarat- Executive Chairman Dr. Anil Shah meets with Former Chief Minister Mr. Vijay Rupani | Chairman’s Education Initiative in Gujarat with Ekal Vidyalaya | Blog – Explore Meghalaya – Food & Culture

Dear Friends,

Smart Village Movement has now spent four years in deep research and on-ground study to understand India’s rural landscape. From Andhra Pradesh in the South to Arunachal and Meghalaya in the Northeast, we have quickly learned that each village, district, and state have a unique set of challenges and needs. Our role is to find out exactly what those needs are and bring technologies and business partners with customized solutions that address these gaps. It is not a one-size-fits-all model. SVM’s successful Open-Innovation model of development as envisioned by the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business has successfully piloted critical projects in the Agriculture, Healthcare, Education, and Household sector. These are now being widely adopted and scaled in Meghalaya and are receiving keen interest in other states as well.

As we begin to expand our technologies and network of corporate partners to other states in India, we are committed to gaining meaningful insights from in-depth field research and understanding the true aspirations of villagers and rural communities we seek to serve. Across India and the world, their hope is that someday they can enjoy life at home in their village with the equal opportunity to access technology, healthcare, education, finance, and food security as urban areas do. Thank you for your good wishes and support, as we continue to bring them this access and equality. One village at a time.

Yours Truly,
Smart Village Movement Team India/USA

The newly remodeled Salesforce Trailblazer Lab at Nongwah opened its doors to welcome the community amidst much excitement. A huge thank you to G.W.Lang’s Arts team for bringing in splashes of fun, quirky colors, and graffiti that inspire imagination, innovation, and hands-on, self-directed learning.
With over 60 students and community members registering and joining the orientation, Nongwah lab is kickstarting operations with an array of interesting learning pathways. The lab’s first cohort will feature students on a 90-day program who will complete all the phases of the program in a linear manner, and the second group of learners will learn at their own pace.
The lab has a goal of ensuring open access and innovation, with our facilitating partner Sauramandala Foundation, implementing partner Project DEFY, Curiosity Gym, Tiny Owl, and energy partner Hygge Energy.Read more

As they say, water is life. Access to safe water is critical to maintaining a certain standard of living. Inadequate or inaccessible water supplies can lead to many illnesses such as diarrhea, fluorosis, cholera, hepatitis A and trachoma. We need basic clean water for cooking, cleaning, general household hygiene. Smart Village Movement with Watsan wanted to find cost-effective water and sanitation solutions in rural areas of Meghalaya with challenges in accessing clean water. In order to take the first steps towards solving the problem, a pilot project was initiated to conduct water testing in 50 SVM treatment villages. The pain points that were identified in these areas were: 1. Inaccessibility to potable water 2. Contamination of water resources 3. The prevalence of waterborne diseases. All the water testing kits are provided by Watsan. And the water testing process was done by SVM project lead Divine Dkhar, block coordinators, and interns from Martin Luther Christian University. Read more.

In February, our Chairman Dr. Anil Shah met with former Chief Minister of Gujarat Shri Vijaybhai Rupani in Anaheim, California, and discussed Smart Village Movement (SVM) initiatives & the socio-economic impact that our Open-Innovation model can bring to rural economics. Gujarat is one of the most industrialized states, with a significant presence in pharmaceuticals, chemicals, petrochemicals, ceramics, textiles, automotive sectors. However, even in an economically vibrant state, there is a huge urban-rural divide. Many villages lack opportunities for education, entrepreneurship, and employment and the young choose to migrate to industrial towns and cities with more opportunities. SVM seeks to reverse this imbalance by bringing skilling, new technologies, access to education and healthcare to rural communities closing the gap of socio-economic inequality. Progressive political leaders bring about the most meaningful and lasting change in their states as they adopt sustainable development projects, pilot new technologies and entrepreneurship programs like Smart Village Movement.

Chotta Udaipur, Gujarat – Mahesh Doshi, Gujarat State Lead
As part of his personal philanthropy efforts, our Executive Chairman Dr. Anil Shah and his wife Preeti funded projects in 30 villages in the Chota Udaipur district in Gujarat adopted through The Integrated Village Development program by Ekal Vidyalaya. These seek to bring education and skilling to women and students. Message from Dr. Shah, “The alleviation of rural poverty is one of the defining challenges of our time. Nearly seventy percent of India’s population and about half the world resides in villages. Mahatma Gandhi wisely demonstrated that the future of India lies in its villages and ensuring self-reliance and sustainable development opportunities in rural communities forms a sound basis for a just and equitable socio-economic order.
To learn more about the Education & Skilling Opportunities created through this project in Gujarat, Click here

Smart Village Movement works towards building Smart Villages to empower rural communities in India. In this Part 2 of our Blog Explore Meghalaya – Food & Culture of Meghalaya, we’d like to honor the beauty of the natural environment, culture, and people we seek to enrich and strive to open global markets for them.
Meghalaya is a hilly belt in the northeastern part of India endowed with splendid natural beauty, mild weather, and plenty of rainfall that keeps the soil rich and fertile, and the land green as far as the eye can see. The staggering natural beauty of Meghalaya, this “abode of clouds”, is an ideal vacation spot that delights tourists from all over India and the world with its diverse landscapes, food, festivals, music, and artisanal handicrafts that can be traced back to its rich cultural heritage.
Click here

To learn more about all our projects, please visit our Website and join our SVM Platform

SVM needs your support- skills, knowledge, and financial donation to help us undertake our various projects on the ground in the rural areas of India.

Every small or big contribution will help us bring crucial development to the rural world that alleviates poverty and connects them to the global economy.

Learn more about our projects and please consider donating. We are so glad you are part of our community and engaged in helping build a better tomorrow!

What is the SVM Platform?

The Smart Village Movement platform provides a digital platform for Governments, Educational Institutions, Business Organizations, and Village Entrepreneurs to come together in a collaborative effort to find innovative solutions in rural communities and build ‘Smart Villages’.

Please sign up and access our platform engage with our movement and help us with creative & innovative solutions. Together we are all ‘smarter’.

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Visit our new website and connect with us on our Social Media to learn more about us

www.smartvillagemovement.org

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