Travel

Regenerative Travel, a benefit corporation, travel planning service, and a collection of independent hotels and lodges committed to regenerative hospitality, closed its second annual Regenerative Travel Summit recently. Built to foster solutions-oriented conversations, the three-day virtual summit featured a mix of panels and open discussions giving a platform to passionate conservation experts, indigenous tourism consultants, regenerative agritourism specialists, social entrepreneurs, hoteliers, and journalists. All weighed in on the question- how can we harness travel to regenerate community and place While many topics were covered throughout the three days and though diverse in their backgrounds, missions and brand ethos, some consistent themes held strong amongst all speakers throughout each day: Day One: Whole Systems Thinking | Key Takeaway We should build on the discipline of not imposing what regenerative is and instead take into account the many perspectives and breadth of knowledge held by community and place. Human diversity is just as critical to society as biodiversity is to an ecosystem… We cannot just rename the problem, we need to also renew our mindsets and become the innovative futurists that we’re waiting for   Day Two: Honoring Sense of Place | Key Takeaway When we talk about honoring sense of place—it is an expansive definition of place, one that doesn’t just mean a location on a map. It requires we take the time to understand the full context of the place, who the knowledge holders are, and how tourism can not just reflect local values but also how it can empower knowledge holders, valuing their culture and personal experiences.   Day Three: Continual Coevolution | Key Takeaway Regeneration begins at home within ourselves and regenerative leadership is essential for us all to make the necessary changes, to create the paradigm shift within our own communities. We know that the evolution of our communities is not separate from our own evolution, that we are continually evolving and learning from one another and changing each other. Reflecting on the close of the Summit, Co-founder of Regenerative Travel, Amanda Ho stated, “Regenerative Travel was born from the desire to effect meaningful and holistic change. To build on the existing principles of what has sustained us and to forge new ways of ensuring a lasting legacy for a thriving humanity and the planet at large. This new way however is nothing new. Nature reminds us that everything comes full circle. We return to, and regenerate forgotten wisdom which has moved us forward since the beginning time. We are now at that point where a cycle has come full circle, and are ready to begin anew. To learn from what has been and move forward in greater numbers with a unified mission of ensuring a positive legacy through travel.” In line with the brand’s mission to drive change as the Regenerative Travel Summit wrapped up this year, the team announced its next event — the first Regenerative Travel Trade Show & Industry Forum which will unite ethics-aligned industry stakeholders and provide tools for them to engage with regenerative principles across two days on October 26 & 27th. The Regenerative Travel Summit 2021 brought together diverse perspectives in regeneration—from established thought leaders to emerging innovators—to discuss how the travel industry can be designed to thrive and serve as a catalyst for change, generating economic, social, and environmental wealth. The summit invited changemakers from the travel industry and beyond to develop their regenerative mindset, learn about practical solutions for the industry’s greatest challenges, and tools to unite travel with conscious consumers’ desire to do good. The Regenerative Travel Summit, Sept 20-22: Harnessing Travel to Regenerate Community & Place ### About Regenerative Travel: Regenerative Travel is a shared benefit corporation and booking platform providing marketing and hospitality services to a network of over 50 independently owned eco-luxury boutique hotels dedicated to the highest levels of social and environmental impact located in over 24 countries worldwide. Through sharing individual best practices and through collaboration, Regenerative Travel enables the Regenerative Resorts hotel collection to work together to achieve significant economies of scale and to make a deeper impact. —

Poonam K Malhotra

With the Earth Overshoot Day coming early every year, it just shows how fast we are depleting our resources.  Earth Overshoot Day is the date when humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what the Earth can renew in that year.  Last year it fell on Aug 22, 2020 while this year it was in July 29, 2021.  Going by this, soon we would need 2 planets to satisfy our demands.  However the reality is we just have ONE EARTH,  and there is no other alternative to this.  There are already evidences of irreversible climate damage, and the increasing temperatures, wildfires, melting glaciers, floods and droughts are all just pointing to one single aspect – the over consumerism is killing the climate and in turn killing us.

The Earth Overshoot Day is a wake up call for the humanity to consume less, preserve what we have  and regenerate more.  The pandemic is a proof that nature rebounded itself when there was minimal  indulgence. This has led people to take the climate change issue more seriously. Everyone is now talking about leaving a better world for the future generations. Regenerative tourism means the same for the travel industry. “Regenerative” describes processes that restore, renew or revitalize their own sources of energy and materials, through the principles of living systems and nature.

How is Regenerative tourism different from Sustainable tourism ?

While sustainable tourism works on the concept of not harming the place, regenerative tourism is a step further, of improving the destination. Sustainable tourism is about preserving what we have and maintaining the ecological and social balance, while regenerative tourism is about restoring and then regenerating, making a place better for future generations.  It’s the next step after sustainable tourism.

“At Center for Responsible Travel (CREST), we believe that regenerative travel refers to tourism that not only ‘does no harm,’ but protects and enhances the conditions and systems at the destination while benefiting both residents and travelers. That said, we do not believe this term is a replacement for sustainable tourism”, says Dr. Gregory Miller, Executive Director, CREST.

CREST uses the UN definition of sustainable tourism: “Tourism that leads to the management of all resources in a manner that economic, social and aesthetic needs are fulfilled while maintaining cultural integrity, essential ecological processes, biodiversity, and life support systems.”

“True sustainability is not about maintaining the status quo (especially if the status quo means maintaining degraded systems or failing systems) but rather is about protecting and stewarding functional and working natural, cultural, and economic systems that promote the triple bottom line: people, planet, and prosperity. We believe regenerative travel can help restore nature and culture in a destination, building on the foundation of sustainable tourism, putting us on a path to achieving true sustainability”, Miller added.

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Countries at the helm of Regenerative Tourism

While tourism’s success has largely been measured in economic terms to date, the world is now moving into a new era of thinking. How to create more value  for people, place, and collective prosperity. With regenerative tourism gaining ground, countries across the world are looking beyond GDP to measure its wellbeing.

Over tourism is no more a buzzword,  wellbeing of its people is.  Leading the way to a regenerative future are countries like Bhutan, New Zealand and Hawaii, where governments measure success in the tourism sector not just by number of tourists but also by the welfare and wellbeing of its people and place. 

Bhutan being the first country to have done this.  The Country developed its signature Gross National Happiness index based on four pillars: sustainable development, environmental protection, cultural preservation, and good governance. Bhutan limits the number of visitors entering the country with a daily fee of $250 per person to ensure the environment is not spoiled by mass tourism.

While New Zealand hasdeveloped the Living Standards Framework, representing the Treasury’s perspective on what matters for New Zealanders’ wellbeing, now and into the future. The  country’s tourism organization, is talking about measuring its success not solely in economic terms, but against the well-being of the country, considering nature, human health and community identities.

Similarly, travel leaders in Hawaii are discussing repositioning the state as a cultural destination to  re-engage islanders, many of whom are fed up with overtourism. On the other hand, the Hawaii Tourism Authority takes the responsibility for protecting the iconic brand of the Hawaiian Islands, including perpetuating its culture, preserving its natural environment and strengthening communities by managing tourism in a way that helps improve the quality of life for residents, families and communities on all islands.  The authority formulates  its tourism goals around resident sentiment, measured by the Resident Sentiment Survey it’s been conducting since 1999.

Likewise, in Costa Rica, the Social Progress Index, is used to measure the effects of the tourism industry on local communities. While  Venice, Italy, will be  charging daytrippers entry fees (up to $12) starting January 1, 2022 to combat the negative cultural and environmental impacts of over tourism as well as boost the economy. The city receives 30 million tourists in a year.

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Travellers too are getting responsible

The travellers too have become conscious about their carbon footprint while visiting a destination. They are happily shifting from being eco-travellers to eco-builders. They are opting for value driven experiences, eco-luxury stays, community engagement activities,  environmental initiatives and more.

Future of Tourism Coalition : Guiding Tourism industry into a more regenerative future

Last year, six nongovernmental organizations came together to form the Future of Tourism Coalition in 2020. The coalition, under the advisory of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, published a list of 13 principles that seek to guide the global tourism industry into a more regenerative future, and to place destination needs at the center of tourism’s new future. So far, about 600 organizations—governmental, nongovernmental, businesses, academic institutions, media, and investors—have signed up.

“We developed the 13 guiding principles to unite businesses and destinations behind a single vision for what #buildbackbetter actually looks like for the future of tourism. Our priority is to find new ways to activate the community we are building and create a global hub for knowledge, resources and solutions. Our work with Tourism Declares a Climate Emergency, to develop climate action blueprints, will become much more prominent as we approach the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow in November. And we have ambitions to work much more deeply with a small number of destinations to demonstrate the Future of Tourism principles in action through new forms of destination stewardship, new measures of success, and new, low impact, tourism products”, says Jeremy Sampson, Chair of the Future of Tourism Coalition (and also CEO of the Travel Foundation) on the role of the Coalition to activate change.

​​​13 principles to guide the global tourism industry into a more regenerative future

1. See the whole picture

Recognize that most tourism by its nature involves the destination as a whole, not only industry businesses, but also its ecosystems, natural resources, cultural assets and traditions, communities, aesthetics, and built infrastructure.

2. Use sustainability standards

Respect the publicly available, internationally approved minimum criteria for sustainable tourism practices maintained by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) for both industry and destinations.

3. Collaborate in destination management

Seek to develop all tourism through a collaborative management structure with equal participation by government, the private sector, and civil society organizations that represent diversity in communities.

4. Choose quality over quantity

Manage tourism development based on quality of visitation, not quantity of visitors, so as to enhance the travel experience while sustaining the character of the destination and benefiting local communities.

5. Demand fair income distribution

Set policies that counter unequal tourism benefits within destination communities that maximize retention of tourism revenues within those communities.

6. Reduce tourism’s burden

Account for all tourism costs in terms of local tax burdens, environmental and social impacts, and objectively verifiable disruption. Ensure investments are linked to optimizing net-positive impacts for communities and the environment.

7. Redefine economic success

Rather than raw contribution to growth in GDP, favor metrics that specify destination benefits such as small business development, distribution of incomes, and enhancement of sustainable local supply chains.

8. Mitigate climate impacts

Strive to follow accepted scientific consensus on needed reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Invest in green infrastructure and a fast reduction in transport emissions involved in tourism – air, sea, and ground.

9. Close the loop on resources

When post-pandemic safety allows, turn away from use of disposable plastics by tourism businesses, and transition to circular resource use.

10. Contain tourism’s land use

Limit high-occupancy resort tourism to concentrated areas. Discourage resort sprawl from taking over coasts, islands, and mountain areas, so as to retain geographical character, a diverse economy, local access, and critical ecosystems.

11. Diversify source markets

In addition to international visitation, encourage robust domestic tourism, which may be more resilient in the face of crises and raise citizens’ perceived value of their own natural and cultural heritage.

12. Protect sense of place

Encourage tourism policies and business practices that protect and benefit natural, scenic, and cultural assets. Retain and enhance destination identity and distinctiveness. Diversity of place is the reason for travel.

13. Operate business responsibly

Incentivize and reward tourism businesses and associated enterprises that support these principles through their actions and develop strong local supply chains that allow for higher quality products and experiences.

Indian Scenario

In a latest research done by a digital travel company Booking.com, it  has been found that a majority of Indians have become more aware of the wider impact of their trips, with 70 per cent of travellers wanting to travel more sustainably in the future, the Future of Travel research findings reveal. The survey also reveals that 78 per cent of travellers expect the travel industry to offer more sustainable travel options to meet their goals of sustainable travel in the future.

Willingness to support local communities

The pandemic has amplified people’s awareness about their impact on the environment and local communities. As such, travellers are now considering more sustainable and regenerative travel. The research finds 75 per cent have indicated they want their travel choices to also support the destination’s recovery efforts, and 73 per cent want to see how their spending supports the local community.

Recycle and upcycle

The impact of pandemic has inspired 55 per cent of Indian travellers to consider reducing waste and recycle plastic when travelling, once travel restrictions are lifted. This shows that people are not just committed to protecting themselves, but also the places they visit. Regenerative travel ensures that the benefits contributed by visitors outweigh the resources they consume.

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Conclusion

“The travel industry needs to move beyond ‘do no harm’ and think more holistically about the natural, cultural, and spiritual elements of a place – not just how to preserve and protect these elements but how to actively enhance them.  The travel industry need to get smarter when it comes to understanding the difference between current conditions in a destination, which may be degraded or damaged, to what functioning natural and cultural systems should look like. Contributions towards natural and cultural regeneration are critical steps on the path to true destination sustainability.

Travellers too can contribute to a regenerative system by doing their research. They can consult guidebooks and other online resources to learn more about the destination’s environmental, social, and political issues. Travelers can also support locally-owned accommodations, tour operators, and restaurants, especially those actively working to enhance the community, environment, and spirit of the place.

Individuals can also consider visiting a destination with an Impact Tourism program. Impact tourism is tourism that makes strategic contributions of time, talent, and treasure to social and environmental projects in destinations. These community-driven projects are partnerships between communities and businesses, travelers, and organizations, meaning they meet the genuine needs of the community, as expressed by the community. With impact tourism programs, travelers can be sure their support truly has a positive impact on the communities they are visiting”, adds Miller.

Regenerative tourism aims at contributing towards the wellbeing and welfare of society, culture, communities, and the environment, ensuring that the balance is not just restored, but replenished and regenerated.

Can you believe that a sustainable and responsible hotels project in a remote rural region can change the fate of neighbouring villages and nearby towns?

The per capita income goes up from 5 odd US dollars per family per month to well over 400 US dollar. In a period of 10 years, happiness quotient goes up, NIL unemployment, finds a market for all village produce, all children go to school and the list goes on. Works with the local administration to make its town and railway station one of the cleanest. Treats 100% of its solid waste and above all has about 50 odd air-conditioned bus stops with ATM’s attached. All-girls schools have been provided with a toilet. Again, this list also goes on. The question is why we have not reproduced this model across the country?

The story of India’s first sustainable and rural tourism dates back to as early as 1992. A young man set out to revive Indian villages. After having worked globally at the UN, Government of India, Press, Films, Hotels and the Corporate, he bought a sick company in India, revived it and sold it to find the money to create these Rural Hotels. Being the hotelier wasn’t his business plan. It was his passion to work for the villages. The rural and urban inequalities causing total damage to the rural economy was his primary concern. This was followed by a chance meeting with the late Hindu pontiff Shankaracharya, who inspired him to follow his passion.

He set out to establish big, responsible, sustainable and regenerative tourism businesses in remote rural and tribal pockets of Tamilnadu to mend their broken backbone. The person acquired three abandoned dilapidated historic villages in SWAMIMALAI near Tanjore. He redefined Hospitality from being a mere shelter to development, protection and preservation. All with what the local people know have and do. And in the process preserve their art, heritage, culture, livelihood, antiquities, flora, fauna, lifestyle, ecology, technologies, tradition, skills, traditional cuisine & sustainable practices.

The destiny changed not only for him but also for the villages and the town around. Wherever he established businesses, Per capita income increased from less than USD5 to USD 400 per family per month. In addition, the happiness quotient went up and attained high employment, hygiene and sanitization levels. Today, the man STEVE BORGIA is India’s pioneer in rural tourism.

Steve is one of the founders of the Ecotourism Society of India (ESOI) which is now the Responsible Tourism Society of India (RTSOI). He’s also the Vice President of the Indian Heritage Hotels Association (IHHA). He is the founder chairman of Association of Agri & Rural Tourism Society of India (AARTI) and several smaller travel and tourism organisations.

His unique properties are as follows:

1. INDeco Hotels Swamimalai, in Kumbakonam, Tanjore District, S.India established in 1992. India’s unique Heritage Hotel.
2. INDeco Hotels, Mahabalipuram was established in 2003 to create job opportunities for the fisherman communities around.
3. INDeco’s Lake Forest Hotel was created in 2007 with 100 rooms amidst coffee plantation without damaging the ecology.

Kumbakonam today is the cleanest town in India. Its Railway station is one of the best kept Railway Station. No beggars in the town, 100% solid waste is treated, the cost of electricity is 10 % less than the rest of the country. All girl schools are provided with toilets; the only town in India which has airconditioned bus Stops with ATMs attached.

Another very interesting feature of INDeco hotels is that each of these properties houses a Museum.

“The Indian heritage museum is the soul of INDeco Hotels. These museums contain very pristine objects right from the World’s smallest gramophone to the first aircraft that landed at the Madras presidency. The Gate of Madras Central prison, the prison cell in which Subhash Chandra Bose was kept overnight before being moved to the cellular jail, very interesting objects which the British brought from England and left behind. The museums are very interactive as we encourage some objects being touched and operated by the visitors. We are lucky to be in historical space, therefore it serves the very purpose of the museum”

says Steve.

Fortune magazine awarded INDeco Hotels as the 6th best idea to save planet earth minuscule all the other national and international awards bestowed.

“Steve, the creator of this facility is the Viswakarma in building heavenly resorts. This is what we must expose to the Western World. I like the way INDeco cares for insects, birds& animals, protects heritage, promote culture, work with local people with what they know, have and do. This is a workable model for the nation to develop our villages, It is truly overwhelming to know that this hotel project has had such an impact in the neighbourhood. I feel I am in a village and not in a hotel.”

This is what a Former Indian Prime Minister had to say…

Steve is now all set to take sustainable rural tourism to the next level. He is now in the process of creating a world wonder THE LAST RESORT for human wonderment and the ecoVILLE. a sustainable village for earth-loving people in the Kodai foothills near Palani in Tamilnadu.

Thanks to CORONA, the world will now be moving to sustainable, rural and responsible tourism products. And this shift will quickly be on the upward trend as it is across the globe. Today people want to go to natural spaces where there is not much of human intervention.

On being asked, why have we not reproduced this model across the Country, Steve says, “These things like Museum, ecology are all the end products of very passionate people, govt can support in terms of tax benefits and subsidies. But passionate entrepreneurs need to take charge to reproduce this model. One has to be innocently brave, logically sane, shamefully courageous, dream big and achieve their dreams passionately. I am very hopeful of the younger generation to follow my footsteps as I see a lot of compassion, care for earth and sustainability among youngsters. I strongly believe that more and more young people will do responsible businesses and not polluting businesses. You will not find somebody put up a cement factory in a remote rural area, as my generation did.”

I just have one piece of advice for the Tourists in general who desire to holiday in Rural Areas. “if you go to villages, you need to be highly responsible, if you cannot give back to the rural community, don’t go there. You must offer benefit to the local community otherwise you are not being fair. Also, I request young people from rural areas, who go to urban cities for education to come back to your villages, revive them, regenerate them, and take care of your people. Believe me, you are going to be the winners and not the ones scaling heights in the share market.”

The government on the other hand should create policies that support such activities by entrepreneurs, maybe some tax cuts, electricity subsidies, etc. To build a hotel in a remote area or a hill station is twice as expensive as building it in the city. The government should consider this seriously as this could really give a boost to sustainable and rural tourism and make the villages self-sufficient.

There is no other country in the world that is as rich as India when it comes to Tourism. We have everything, from North to South, East to West, we have so many countries and cultures packed in India. In fact, we are the only country that can sell emotion in the whole world. If India needs to smile longer, we need to act now, the hour is now.

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INDeco Hotels

Can you believe that a sustainable and responsible hotel project in a remote rural region can change the fate of neighboring villages and nearby towns?

The per capita income goes up from 5 odd US dollars per family per month to well over 400 US dollars in a period of 10 years, happiness quotient goes up, NIL unemployment, finds a market for all village produce, all children go to school and the list goes on. Works with the local administration to make its town and railway station one of the cleanest, treats 100% of its solid waste and above all has about 50 odd air-conditioned bus stops with ATM’s attached, all-girls schools have been provided with a toilet. Again, this list also goes on.

The question is why we have not reproduced this model across the Country.

The story of India’s first sustainable and rural tourism dates back to as early as 1992 when a young man set out to revive Indian villages. After having worked globally at the UN, Government of India, Press, Films, Hotels and the Corporate, he bought a sick company in India, revived it and sold it to find the money to create these Rural Hotels. Being the hotelier wasn’t his business plan. It was his passion to work for the villages. The rural and urban inequalities causing total damage to the rural economy was his primary concern. This was followed by a chance meeting with the late Hindu pontiff Shankaracharya, who inspired him to follow
his passion.

He set out to establish big, responsible, sustainable and regenerative tourism businesses in remote rural and tribal pockets of Tamilnadu to mend their broken backbone. He acquired three abandoned dilapidated historic villages in SWAMIMALAI near Tanjore. He redefined Hospitality from being a mere shelter to development, protection and preservation. All with what the local people know have and do. And in the process preserve their art, heritage, culture, livelihood, antiquities, flora, fauna, lifestyle, ecology, technologies, tradition, skills, traditional cuisine & sustainable practices.

The destiny changed not only for him but also for the villages and the town around. Wherever he established businesses, Per capita income increased from less than USD5 to USD 400 per family per month and the happiness quotient went up and attained high employment, hygiene and sanitization levels. Today, the man STEVE BORGIA is India’s pioneer in rural tourism.

Steve is one of the founders of the Ecotourism Society of India (ESOI) which is now the Responsible Tourism Society of India (RTSOI). He’s also the Vice President of the Indian Heritage Hotels Association (IHHA). He is the founder chairman of Association of Agri
& Rural Tourism Society of India (AARTI) and several smaller travel and tourism organisations.

England and left behind. The museums are very interactive as we encourage some objects being touched and operated by the visitors. We are lucky to be in historical space, therefore it serves the very purpose of the museum”, says Steve.

Fortune magazine awarded INDeco Hotels as the 6th best idea to save planet earth minuscule all the other
national and international awards bestowed.

Here is what a Former Indian Prime Minister had to say…
“Steve, the creator of this facility is the Viswakarma in building heavenly resorts. This is what we must
expose to the Western World. I like the way INDeco cares for insects, birds& animals, protects heritage,
promote culture, work with local people with what they know, have and do. This is a workable model for
the nation to develop our villages, It is truly overwhelming to know that this hotel project has had
such an impact in the neighbourhood. I feel I am in a village and not in a hotel.”

Steve is now all set to take sustainable rural tourism to the next level. He is now in the process of creating
a world wonder THE LAST RESORT for human wonderment and the ecoVILLE. a sustainable village for earth-loving people in the Kodai foothills near Palani in Tamilnadu.

Thanks to CORONA, the world will now be moving to sustainable, rural and responsible tourism products. And this shift will quickly be on the upward trend as it is across the globe. Today people want to go to
natural spaces where there is not much of human intervention.

On being asked, why have we not reproduced this model across the Country, Steve says, “These things like Museum, ecology are all the end products of very passionate people, govt can support in terms of tax benefits and subsidies. But passionate entrepreneurs need to take charge to reproduce this model. One has to be innocently brave, logically sane, shamefully courageous, dream big and achieve their dreams passionately. I am very hopeful of the younger generation to follow my footsteps as I see a lot of compassion, care for earth and sustainability among youngsters. I strongly believe that more and more young people will do responsible businesses and not polluting businesses. You will not find somebody put up a cement factory in a remote rural area, as my generation did.”

I just have one piece of advice for the Tourists in general who desire to holiday in Rural Areas. “if you go to villages, you need to be highly responsible, if you cannot give back to the rural community, don’t go there. You must offer benefit to the local community otherwise you are not being fair. Also, I request young people from rural areas, who go to urban cities for education to come back to your villages, revive them, regenerate them, and take care of your people. Believe me, you are going to be the winners and not the ones scaling heights in the share market.”

The government on the other hand should create policies that support such activities by entrepreneurs, maybe some tax cuts, electricity subsidies, etc. To build a hotel in a remote area or a hill station is twice as expensive as building it in the city. The government should consider this seriously as this could really give a boost to sustainable and rural tourism and make the villages self-sufficient.

There is no other country in the world that is as rich as India when it comes to Tourism. We have everything, from North to South, East to West, we have so many countries and cultures packed in India. In fact, we are the only country that can sell emotion in the whole world. If India needs to smile longer, we need to act now, the hour is now.

AZIM PREMJI, INDIAN BUSINESS TYCOON

The most generous Indian

Wipro’s Azim Premji emerges as the most generous Indian in FY20. India’s IT major Wipro’s Azim Premji donated Rs 22 crore a day or Rs 7,904 crore in a year to emerge as the most generous Indian in FY20 and top a list of philanthropy.

An Indian business tycoon, investor, engineer, philanthropist and founder of one of India’s finest companies, admired globally for its uncompromising ethics and best practices in business, Azim Hashim
Premji is informally known as the Czar of the Indian IT Industry.

For a man who gives away Rs.22 crores of his wealth every day to improve elementary education in the country, Azim Premji, has been an enigma.

RAVI KALRA, EARTH SAVIOURS FOUNDATION

A home away from home

Earth Saviours Foundation (ESF), also called
Gurukul is home to around 450 homeless people, including over 300 mentally-challenged persons.

Founded in 2008 by Ravi Kalra, 49, who was moved to see a beggar child scouring garbage along with street dogs on a busy Delhi road. With all the money he had, he started his foundation and, since then, has dedicated himself to improving the lives of abandoned senior citizens, physically and mentally disabled, victimised women, and people suffering from incurable diseases. “I feel all of them deserve to live with dignity,” he said. The Earth Saviours Foundation runs without any government support, doesn’t have enough beds for the 450 people who reside there, but always has its doors open for the homeless.

An astonishing fact, Kalra has come across beggars who are NRIs, retired army officers, IAS officers who were abandoned by their families in old age.

FARHAN PETTIWALA, AKHAND JYOTI EYE HOSPITAL

Passion to serve

All of 48, Farhan has a distinguished 27-year long career as a serial entrepreneur, a senior corporate executive with MNCs in India, Australia, UAE, Singapore and has been engaged in running for-profit and not-for-profit social organization.

His excellent relations, both in the government and with corporate leaders are testimony of the fact that he has been instrumental in raising donations of over Rs.50 crore every year for the wonderful work done by a little-known organization in the remote Mastichak village in Bihar, Akhand Jyoti Eye Hospital (AJEH), working towards eliminating curable blindness from poorer states like Bihar, and Eastern U.P. and empowering women through “Football to Eyeball” girl education and development program.

Now looking at getting back to the mainstream as a CEO using his experience in both sectors, Farhan has been recognized by The Honourable Prime Minister of India and The President of India as the emerging Business leader of the year. Farhan currently serves as an Honorary Advisor to the Prime Minister of India (PMO).

 

ANSHU GUPTA, GOONJ

True giving always respects and preserves human  dignity

Anshu Gupta, popularly known as the Clothing Man is the Founder of an Indian based nonprofit – Goonj. One of India’s leading social entrepreneurs, Anshu left a corporate job in 1998 and founded
GOONJ with a mission to make clothing a matter of concern and to bring it among the list of subjects for the development sector. Anshu is creating a mass movement for recycling and reuse of tonnes of waste material by channelising it from the cities
to the villages, as a resource for rural development.

Anshu brings to the table an instinctive empathy and connects with people, moving the focus from the conventional – giver’s pride to the unconventional – receiver’s dignity.

Asia’s Noble, the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay award 2015, conferred to him credited him for ‘his creative vision in transforming the culture of giving in India, his enterprising leadership in treating cloth as a sustainable development resource for the poor, and in reminding the world that true giving always respects and preserves human dignity.