CLABIL Outreach Program - Agrasar at Islampur Village, Gurgaon

Yesterday, we took the CLABIL Outreach Program to the Agrasar Center at Islampur village, Gurgaon.

It was an amazing experience. The school itself is run so beautifully, using the Montessori pedagogy and very engaging educational methods. I was totally overawed.

There were 38 children there listening to the content. They loved English Hindi stories, Akbar Birbal stories, and some of them liked Magic Maths.

 

Online Audio Library - CLABIL - now crosses 5000 files

Today, we moved the catalogue from 4916 to 5014 files - 98 files added to the library, with more on the way.

The current batch upload has content in Hindi, Oriya, Bengali, Punjabi  and English.

The content includes Oriya academic content, lots of GK quizzes in English and stories in Bengali. Hindi has some more children's poetry added today.

Enjoy! And do share your feedback!

 

The CLABIL Outreach Program is Underway!

In December this year, we had one of our audacious dreams. We dreamt that we want to take CLABIL directly to a large population that can benefit from it directly. The idea was to test the hypothesis that we can make a difference to people by giving them free access to knowledge content in their own language - without needing to read.

CLABIL Outreach Project in Delhi NCR Region, upto March 2016

Am happy to share this - we have done some extensive work around this outreach project since January 1.

The pics are in the collage above, but they really don't do justice to what we actually saw!

In other news, we also did a Braille session on March 5th at the Galleria Market, Gurgaon.

Learn Braille in 15 minutes!

 

Guest Post by Toshit Chouhan, Student, B.A., L.Lb (Honours)

Toshit has worked on the CLABIL outreach program for 20 days in February, taking the content where it is most needed - directly to our intended beneficiaries -without the need to depend on the govt, or a program. We have decided to take the content and take the direct feedback of our beneficiaries, and to use that feedback to create a more useful resource - in design, content and distribution.

अक्सर जब मैं अपनी जिन्द्दगी में खुशियाँ देखता हूँ
मुझे मेरी अम्मी जान का चेहरा नज़र आ जाता है
मेरा दिल भर आता है, एक ख्याल हमेशा मुझे सताता है
ना जाने कब मैं अपने पैरों पर खड़ा होकर , तेरे कुछ काम आ पाऊंगा माँ
ना जाने कब , जो कुछः तूने और धरती माँ ने मेरी थाली में परोसा है ,
उसको सूद समेत लौटा पाऊंगा माँ

ना जाने कब, इस देश के कुछ काम आ पाऊंगा मा

I was overwhelmed with my comfortable life and getting treated with +A grade education, a thought always killed me from inside that a huge population of our country  still has no access to education. And just as my poetry explains I decided to step out of my comfort zone and planned to take my after semester internship with an NGO so that I can start my journey of serving the nation. I always wanted to be in Delhii as it is a home to our constituency. Here, in the selection process of choosing an NGO to start my work,  I was highly inspired by my cousin brother Gaurav bhaiya, who has always kept himself involved in community services and continues to do so. He had read about Esha and recommended me for the same. I got through the screening and the interview process and was invited by Nidhi  mam onboard,  who gave me the golden opportunity to work with ESHA.

Which I will confess, working with ESHA for 20 days has brought a huge change in my life.

I got to meet mrs, Geeta who narrated her story, And how she battled with the domestice violence she faced at home and took a decision to leave her house for the welfare of her new born daughter.

I also met Mr. Nath who lived in an old age home, he narrated  the untold story of how an old age home in reality works and many a problems that go unheard and unnoticed by the people.

 Being a law student, it was very important for me to know where my country lacks legal awareness, so that I can take an initiative to spread the same. While I was working for ESHA I felt very proud when I saw the students from the poor  and the underprivileged sections waited for my ESHA story telling classes. They welcomed me with a huge smile, and my send off was always a standing ovation.  The field work taught me the struggle, I got the chance  to meet 1000+ people in my 20 days work, 1000+ strangers who taught me a lesson that one should always take some step to start sharing one’s  fortune to make the lesser fortunate people in the society a chance to be happy, to be able to bring stability in the society. And I feel happy that I was able to make an effort to educate 1000+ people through ESHA library. For this I extend my heartfelt gratitude to Nidhi mam who gave me an opportunity to be a part of ESHA family.

Band ankhoo se sapne dekhna sekh liya hai.. Sapne purey kerne k liye mahnet kerna sekh liya hai.

CLABIL outreach @ Sai Bhoomi - Kanhai Village and Rao Ram Singh School - Sector 45 !!!

After our exciting journey with Tour de Vision we have geared up for CLABIL outreach project with Esha. The day one of the outreach program was very eventful. We were able to receive the feedbacks and observations of 50 kids, also educating them with topics they weren’t aware of, through our audio books. The audience was 8^th standard students from Rao Ram Singh High School and Primary kids from Soil Alumni Initiative (SAI) Bhoomi. The diverse feedback, views and observation recorded today will be extremely helpful for the team to keep in mind while collecting/recording audio files in future. 

The prominent feedback from the Rao Ram Singh School in Kanhai Village, Sector 45 Gurgaon was that the language used in few of the audio files (Hindi/English) was quite rich. It would have been further effective if the contents are recorded using simpler vocabulary. The students also said slowing down the speech rate would help them in grasping the content, as they get quite distracted while listening to an audio file. The School uses Hindi as a medium of instruction, hence the students were able to receive the contents in Hindi much effectively than the English files with rich vocabulary. 

Apart from meeting the objective of the project, the experience we had at both the schools were amazing. The students were very supportive and the energy they displayed was infectious that has boosted us to further proceed with the project.

We asked the students basic questions related to the content to know if they had prior knowledge about the subject. ‘Fundamental duties of an Indian Citizen’ was one such. The students had very basic knowledge about the same, post listening to the audio for a couple of times they were able to summarize and point out the sections and the duties.

SAI Bhoomi kids enjoyed the Akbar Birbal stories and they also had complete fun reciting the poems and panchatantra stories.  

Rao Ram Singh School @ Sector 45 Gurgaon 

Rao Ram Singh School @ Sector 45 Gurgaon 

Kids at SAI BHOOMI - Kanhai Village reciting rhymes

Students with eyes closed listening to the audio content

     

Tour de Vision 2.0 – Gurgaon Pedals for an inclusive Environment!!!

Esha’s Annual Cycling Event, Tour de Vision – Miles for Lives had a participation of around 80 cyclists from Delhi NCR and Gurgaon this year.  There was diverse participation from people of all walks of life. Professional cyclists from different cycling groups like Pedalyatri, JNU Cycling Club, Let’s walk Gurgaon and many other groups who came together not only to raise funds for the visually not abled but also spread awareness towards creating an inclusive environment for all. The high spot about the event was that many students who were first time riders were not only enthusiastic about participating in the event but also with great determination completed 25 Kms and made it to the finishing line.

The day started at 4:30 AM for the organizers who transformed the venue (Shiv Nadar School, Gurgaon) to an event spot. Banners, mikes, tables, registration desk, desk for welcome kit, feedback desk, live braille spot, book stall, food/drinks and desk for thank you kit were all in place to welcome the cyclists.

Cyclists started entering the campus. Sachin Sachdeva 60 year old cyclist was the first to enter, who was full of energy and enthusiasm. We had around 70 registrations in 20 minutes. The cyclists took the pledge which said:

“I pledge to aid and spread awareness for the challenges faced by the visually not abled people.  I understand the need for this awareness and recognise and respect the right for every person to have access to public spaces. I will support and promote that offices and public spaces should be designed as per their convenience.  I pledge to support them in their need for a safe and inclusive environment which affects their day to day life. I will strive to promote an atmosphere that not merely accepts their uniqueness but also celebrates it.”

The rally was flagged off by Shri. Upasana Arora, Director Yashoda Multi speciality hospital. The cyclists started pedalling with great passion. The professional cyclists helping the budding ones was a beautiful sight to watch. Rajesh Dhuddu the event convenor finished his 10,000 mile feat during the second edition of TDV.

80 Cyclists pedalled on a pleasant Sunday morning to remind rest of the citizens of Gurgaon their duty towards creating an inclusive environment, where everybody can be themselves and can access the environment without dependency.    

   

The play by National Association for Blind (NAB) Delhi was a heart-warming one. The message conveyed by them and their brilliant performance was one thing all the participants would have taken back with them after the event.The fifteen minutes short theatre workshop by Mr. Raju Kohli was also an amazing treat to watch as it excited the participants and engaged them in experimenting their acting skills.

The stunning stunts by cyclomaniacs was a visual treat. The recyclable goody bag from ‘I am Gurgaon’ with accessories for cyclists, food and beverages was also a boost to all of us.

We are very grateful to our corporate and individual sponsors who played a significant role in enabling the event. Our venue sponsor Shiv Nadar School provided us massive support, special mention to the admin team who helped us shape the venue for the program. Our health sponsor Yashoda Multi speciality hospital enabled the event by providing monetary support and also the director graced the occasion by flagging off the rally. Our safety sponsor W-Hospital ensured the safety of every participant by sending their ambulance and nurse. Our fitness sponsor Gym Club were the first to arrive and they gave our cyclists free trial passes and sippers that they can use during the ride. Our sports partner Cyclo fit helped us by providing cycles for our 15 students who participated. Our cycling partners Pedal Yatri and JNU cycling club turned out in large numbers to support the event. Students from SOIL organized, volunteered and participated in large numbers to make the event a grant success.   

Founder's Note - Why Tour De Vision is Important

Some of you have participated in a Blind Walk perhaps. If you haven't, just close your eyes and try to walk at any normal public place - the park in front of your house, a tourist attraction in your city - anything at all. And you will know how accessible our public places are.
I have always maintained that we are a small part of society - small, but hopefully, not insignificant.
...

When we do Blind Walks, Theater Workshops and our biggest event - Tour De Vision, we take tiny, but important steps towards an inclusive, sensitised citizen population. Every person on the road who thinks about an inclusive road is an important part of an inclusive society.

Our riders raise funds for the cause of Esha (this year, we are focusing on the CLABIL Outreach project), but more importantly, they carry the message of an inclusive society.

When you contribute for your friends, when you share this on our own facebook page, when you hold a braille card in your hand, or close your eyes in the park for 2 minutes, when you count the stairs going up or down - be sure of one thing - what you are doing is not time consuming - and it's very, very significant. Our thoughts make our society. Inclusive thoughts make inclusive societies.


Tour De Vision 2016... More Power to Inclusion!

Blind Walk at Cyber Hub!!

“Walk by faith even when you can’t see, as it holds enough light for those who want to believe”

Blind walks give us an opportunity to experience the difficulty in accessing the public spaces when one lacks sight. Sometimes in our busy routine we tend to forget our basic responsibilities. An inclusive environment for our fellow beings is something that’s long forgotten. A brilliant design, be it of any product or business should be thought about keeping in mind not only the masses but also the extreme users of the product. Activities like blind walk remind us our responsibilities.

We had conducted 3 blind walks last year in Galleria and Leisure Valley. We planned to conduct one at the busy Cyber Hub to engage the corporate employees in the social experiment. The response we received was different from the other two walks. In our previous walks we received immediate interest for volunteering and experiencing the walk from the public. In cyber hub, on a busy Wednesday afternoon the corporate employees showed less enthusiasm in joining the walk as they were busy with their daily routine and schedule at work. We wanted to grasp their attention and make them experience the walk.

We were 10 volunteers from Esha and SOIL, we demonstrated the walk to the crowd. There was one volunteer from the crowd who was curious and agreed to participate. Slowly it turned out that many folks were interested in trying it out. Around 50 corporate employees participated. Group of friends, colleagues who had come for a team get-together, reporters from media started joining the walk.

We got diverse responses from the participants after the walk. Some were surprised, some were taken aback, some struggled to cross a stretch, some had to be guided for every step they kept, some walked really fast bumping into the crowd. There was this one person who came up to us and gave his mail id and asked us to call him when we conduct other events. Overall it was an enriching experience that had sensitized the corporate mass at the cyber hub.

The media coverage helped us share the message to a wider audience. Gurgaon Times, NavBharat Times, Times of India Gurgaon and Bhaskar News Gurgaon covered the walk. 

Esha's 12th year.. and a lot to look forward to!

Writing the year end note of Esha is always such a pleasure. As you probably know, we finished 11 years this January 5. This year, I hope to share our recap of the previous year, and also our plans for the year ahead.

This year, our existing partnerships- SOIL, The Sri Ram School and Copal Partners continued to remain strong and we were fortunate to partner with Abhay Mohanta of We4U. They have contributed a whopping 900 files covering an entire gamut of academic content in Oriya. So now our Oriya friends can expect a windfall as soon as we are done cataloging.

 Some other partnerships are being discussed as we speak, and I am particularly excited about some of them. Keeping fingers crossed, and hoping that we are able to add them in the next year’s pipeline. 

 ·         On Theater workshops, Raju has concluded another successful year. Thanks to Maithreyi, a friend of Esha, and Mr. Sharad Agarwal, we did 10 workshops across 5 PSBB Schools in South India. The feedback was positive and it was the biggest single order of the year for Raju.

·         On CLABIL, we are closing the year with a very successful 4916 files. This year,we had to take the painful decision to delink the files from our partner site – inclusiveplanet. The site has been down since its Founder, Rahul Cherian, tragically passed away. We were waiting and hoping for a revival, but looks like that may never happen.

·         Tour De Vision 2016 is on track.. this year, it promises to be bigger, better, with many more participants.

·         We did the Painting Workshop at the Junta Blind School again this year. You won’t believe me if I tell you that we can close our eyes and draw flowers, leaves and even basic landscapes. But its possible. And if you are participating in the TDV this year, or if you were with us last year, you have held, or will hold, such a card in your hands.

It IS possible to draw without seeing. Our painting workshop at the Junta Blind School.

 

·         We also did the Blind Walk in a big way. Not only did we complete 5 Blind Walks in 2015 (getting enough press for most of them), but also that SOIL would like their alumni to  do the Blind Walk wherever they are. So watch out for Blind Walk in Bangalore and Chennai soon! It’s a very simple thing – choose a public place, give people canes and ask them to navitage the place with their eyes cloed. 5 minutes of this activity enlightens people to the fact that our public spaces are inaccessible. Each Blind Walk sensitises at least 100 people.

Creating More Inclusive Public Spaces is EVERYONE's responsibility

 

·         Our Festive Braille Cards managed to generate awareness in at least 10,000 people who had never seen a Braille Card before. As people tagged their gifts with these beautiful cards that say “Happy Diwali”, “Season’s Greetings”,  and “Happy Birthday” , we saw a small but significant change.

Braille Cards that truly make your gifts stand out.

 

·         Read Fests were a delight too. This year, we generated almost 500 files from the various Read Fests held at schools, colleges and offices. 

 

And in the year 2016, our focus areas will be:

CLABIL Outreach

 Taking CLABIL to everyone who can benefit from it. We plan to cover the country, taking the audio content with us. We will try to reach Gram Panchayats, village children, slum children in urban areas, and of course, blind schools. When we close the 12^th year of esha, it is my fervent hope and desire that CLABIL will have reached at least 10,000 beneficiaries who are using it regularly, and at least 1 lakh children who have access to it and are aware. These are 2 separate targets – outreach is 1 lakh over the next year, and repeat users are to reach 10,000. It’s a massive target for an organisation that has at best done exploratory outreach so far, so you can wish us luck. This is why, this year, funds are going to be important to esha.
 
Creating Inclusive Citizens of tomorrow
In 2015, through Blind Walk, Blind School visits and Theater Workshops, at least 1000 Citizens of tomorrow became Inclusive Human Beings. This year, we hope to keep the momentum on that, and at least double that figure. That might look like a small number, but our inclusion efforts are not educational. They are experiential. Every child experiences special ability and at the end of that experience, they are truly transformed. Every child’s experience needs special attention, so I will not target aggressive numbers on this one.

 So there, those are our focus areas for next year.

Thank you, once again, for every ounce of support. It has helped Esha live for 11 years. As the 12^th year begins, and we become more audacious, that support will mean a lot more. And honestly, I don’t know how to end this email. So Happy New Year, and Happy 11^th to all of us.