ANot

efr
om t
heFounde
r
Wri
ti
ngthi
snot ein2020, atati
mewhent hewholewor l
disingri
pofapandemic, i
sa
r
eminderoftheunpr edi
ctabi
li
t
yoflif
e; howev enthebes t
-l
ai
doutplansdon’twork.More
i
mportant
l
y,ithighl
i
ghtsthateveninthet oughestti
mesourv al
ues,pur
pose,res
il
ienceand
st
andi
ngwi t
ht hepeoplec anbethec ompas stonavigat
ewhat ev
erthefut
urebri
ngs .

Goonjcomplet
editsj
ourneyoftwodec adesin2019,t
urni
ngiti
ntoay earofc
elebr
ati
onand
i
ntr
ospect
ion.Whatstar
tedwithj
ust67c l
othesinDel
hihasnowr eachedvari
ed
geogr
aphies,c
ult
uresandtradi
ti
ons.Thisj
ourneyisareflect
i
onoft wothi
ngs.

One,wehav eaccompli
shedal lthiswit
hadedi cat
edteam wor kingdayandni ghttobri
ng
sol
uti
onstotheprobl
ems ,alargear myofpas si
onate,
commi ttedv olunteers,contr
ibut
ors
andpeoplewhohav esuppor t
eduswi t
hmat eri
al,
ti
me, effor
ts, dedicati
on, networksand
har
dwor k.Theconvi
ct
iontos ti
ckwi theachotherhasmadet hisjourneybeaut i
ful
.Ourstory
i
sthestoryofpeopl
eofIndia.Goi ngforwardinthefaceofnewi ssues,c hal
lengesourpat h
wil
lal
soev ol
veandemer gear oundpeopl eandwi l
lbri
ngnewhopesf orabet terf
utur
e
wherewewi ll
bebett
erequi ppedt odeal wi
ththenewwor l
dpr oblems .

Two, as harperfocuson‘ natureatt hec ent

er ’emer gi
ngf rom ourgrowingwor kondi s aster
respons e.Thec orrelat
ionbet weenpov ert
y,disastersandc li
matechangeandv ulner abil
iti
es
emer gingoutofi tc oul
dbec l
earlys eenont hegr ound.Ourwor kdoesnots t
opbec aus ea
naturaldisasterhasphas edoutbutr atheritisac onti
nuouspr ocessofhelpi ngpeopl efi nd
wor k,maker oads ,digwel ls
, buil
dpr ivat
ebat hings paceset c,ensuri
ngthei rdignit
y. The
corepr inci
pleofourwor khasal way sbeent oi mprov ethingsfi r
stbeforewet rytoc hange
thewor ld;weneedt ocons erv ethet hi
ngswhi c harealreadyi nourhands .Thequant um of
problemshasnotr educ eddes pi
tet wodec ades ’ofwor k;itneedss ust
ainedeffor t
sand
commi tmentf rom eac honeofus . Alongwi ththeeffor ts,whatweneedt owor kmos tuponi s
thec hangei nthenar rati
on, i
nt hel anguagear oundgi ving, devel
opmentandpeopl e.
Peopl emi ghtbefi nanc i
ally‘poor’ buttheyhav eal argepool ofski
ll
sands oc i
alresour ces .

Mywordtotheteam,
ourpart
ner
s,cont
ri
but
ors,
theyout
handthel
argermas
ses
,don’
twait
f
ort
herightt
imeandoppor
tuni
ty
.“Thi
sworl
distheworl
dofvol
ume,wedoneedsol
uti
ons
i
nvol
umeandt hepeopl
ewhowor konthos
earealsoneededi
nvol
ume.”

Let
’sbui
l
das oci
etywher
ewerespect
,val
ueeac hotherandpaybac
ktotheoneswhoar
e
t
het r
uenur
turer
s.I
ti
stheti
metor
emov eourdis
tor
tedlensandlookatl
i
fethr
ought
hei
r
eyesandunderst
andwhoaret
hereal
beneficiar
ies
,them orus.

AnshuGupta
ForTeam Goonj
AboutGoonj
..
Sohowdoweus ethewor l
d’sso-
c alled“was t
e”?Goonj ’
smodel takesac ompr ehensi
ve
appr
oacht odev elopmentconsideringfi rstandelement al
ly,humandi gni ty
.Its
tarted21
year
sagoasani deat oaddressbas ic ,
butoftenignoredneedsofpeopl e,wit
hc lot
has
ametaphor .
Clothisoneoft hethreebas i
cs-Food, ClothandShel ter
,forhumani tybut
i
t’
snotli
stedany whereonanydev elopmentwor kagendaorl istofissuest owor kon.
Overthey earswec ameac rossmanyunaddr essedbas i
cbutnegl ect
edi ss
uesoft he
masses.Wedec i
dedt oreposit
i
ont hes ur
plusmat er
ialofthewor ldasa newr esource
tomobil
izeandmot i
vateciv
icparti
c i
pat i
oninurbanandr uralcommuni t
ies.

Simpl yputwepos iti

ont heex cess/wasteofthewor ldasas ectoragnos ti
ct ool t
ohel p
addr essmanydev el
opmenti ssues.That’
swhatgav ebi rt
ht otwonewal t
er nate
currenc i
esfordev elopment–under uti
li
zedurbanmat er i
alandr uralwisdom andl abour,
toac hieveats caledev elopmentandi mpact.TheGoonj model isoffer i
ngas hif
tfrom a
fragment edtoani ntegrat eds y st
emsmodel ..nudgi ngf orac ul
turalleapthatours ociet
y
needst omake–t hroughf rami ngandunder standingt hei nterrelati
onshipsbet ween
citi
esandv i
ll
agesi nani nt egratedway .Themodel isc reat i
ngawhol esys t
em of
mut uall
ybenefi ci
al r
elat
ions hipsf r
om thec i
t
iest othev i
llages .
Bydoi ngs o, t
hepot enti
al
ofthismodel mov esbey onds ust
ainingthecit
iesorv il
lagesort heenv ir
onmentt oone
that’
sr egenerati
ngt hewel lbei ngofallt
hree.Thi sgoesf r
om c ommonc i
tizensinc i
ti
es
toc ommonc iti
zensi nvill
agesonapanI ndi
alev el.It
’samor edis t
ri
buteds cal
e,maki ng
andc i
rculat
i
ngv al
uer athert hanus inganynewr esour c es,creatingapl atform and
sour ceofex changeandv aluec r
eationbutunlikethet r aditi
onal compet i
tivewayGoonj
i
sgr owi nginitswor kbyfi ndingnewway sforours takehol derstoc reateandr etai
nmor e
value.

eaboutusonwww.
Mor goonj
.or
g
OurGui
dingPr
inc
ipl
es
1
.HumanDigni
tyatt
hecenter;Di
gnityandhumanit
yatt
hec ent
erofhowpeopl
eliveandwhat
f
reedomst
heyenj
oyorl
ack.
Ens ur
ingthatourac
ti
onsneverunder
mineit
spossi
bi
li
t
yi nours
elf
,
t
hoseweworkwit
handmostimportant
lyi
nthoseweassi
st.

Val
2. uel
ocal
iz
eds
olut
ionsbyengagi
ngl
ocal
res
our
ces
,wi
sdom andeffor
ts.

3.I
mpr ovebeforeweChange, f
ocus
edonv al
ui
ngandful
fill
i
ngthepotenti
alofwhatt
hewor
ld
has
,bei tmat
erial
,peopl
e,r
elat
i
onshi
ps,
tal
entandr
esourc
es .
Focusonc i
rcul
ari
t
yatever
y
l
evel.

Val
4. uec
oll
abor
ati
oni
never
yspher
etoi
ncr
eas
eeffec
ti
venes
sands
cal
e.

Seeever
5. yent
it
yasas
takehol
deri
nthepr
oces
sofdev
elopment
.

Foc
6. usont
hei
gnor
ed,negl
ect
edpeopl
e,mat
eri
al
,needs
,is
sues
,geogr
aphi
es,
rel
ati
ons
hips

OurDes
igna
ndSt
rat
egyPr
inc
ipl
es
1
.Buil
daconnect
ionofempat
hy,
digni
t
yandv
aluebet
weent
hei
ssuesoft
her
esour
cef
uland
r
esour
ces
c ar
ce.

Lever
2. ageandexplor
ethepotent
ialandpos
sibi
li
ti
esofal
readyav
ail
abl
eres
our
ces
,
wi
sdom,t
ime,
ski
l
lsandeffor
tsofpeople.

3.Ahumanc
ent
eredandc
ommuni
tyl
eadappr
oac
htoc
ompl
exandi
nter
wov
enc
hal
l
engeof
pover
ty

Equi
4. pands
uppor
tst
akehol
der
sinc
it
iesandv
il
lagest
othr
iveandev
olv
esus
tai
nabl
y.

Li
5. s
tendeepl
ywi
t
hhumi
l
it
y,t
ocommuni
t
ies
,tr
eat
i
ngt
hem wi
t
hdi
gni
t
yandr
espec
t.

Wor
6. kwit
hpeople;
faci
l
it
ate,
nudgeandempowerpar
tner
s,c
ommuni
t
iesandnat
uret
o
ev
olv
es ol
uti
onsandi
nfus
enewl i
f
eandvit
ali
t
yint
otheworl
d.

7.Ber
espons
ive,opentonewideas;Li
st
en,
lear
nandl
ever
agef
rom t
hec
hangi
ngr
eal
i
ti
esof
peopl
eandnatur
eandthei
rrel
ati
ons
hips.

8.Rootideasi
nCommuni t
y;Bui
ldf
rom t
hecont
ext
,cul
t
ure,
knowl
edge,
wis
dom,
res
our
ces
,
needs,andaspi
rat
i
onsofpeopl
ewewor kwi
t
h.
ADeepDivei
nto
201
9-2020
 Ke
yHi
ghl
ight
s
22 ST
ATES/
UTst
aki
ngpar
tinGOONJoper
ati
ons

5,
000+ VI
LLAGESr
eac
hed

7
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OPMENT
ALPROJ
ECTSt
hroughDi
gni
tyForWor
kini
t
iat
i
ve

5,
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eri
alhandl
ed

245,
000+ FAMI
LY/
RAHATKI
TSr
eac
hed,
compr
is
ingofes
sent
i
ali
t
ems

1
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LI
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eac
hedt
hrough'
Rahat
'i
ni
ti
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ve

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ll
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cl
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hannel
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zed

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000+ STUDENTSr
eac
hedt
hroughSc
hoolT
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ONDRI
VEScamps/
stal
l
s/bookf
air
sac
ros
smaj
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banhubs
1
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alDe
vel
opme
nt
Wor
kingi
ndi
sas
ter
sformor
ethant
wodec
adesandemphas
izi
ngdi
gni
t
yasa
bas
icbutof
teni
gnor
edhumanneed,
weatGoonj
hav
ebeenaddr
ess
ingt
hisi
dea
t
hroughour‘
Digni
t
yForWor
k’i
ni
ti
ati
ve(
ear
li
erc
all
edCl
othf
orWor
k).
UnderDFW,
ourt
eamsenc
our
agec
ommuni
t
iest
ounder
takedev
elopment
alac
ti
vi
ti
esby
mobi
l
izi
ng,
mot
i
vat
i
ngandempower
ingpeopl
e.

n201
I 9-2020,7
,000+dev
elopment
al
pr
ojec
tsimpl
emented
 1
400+pr
ojet
sonwater

Wat
er
Aswat
erhasbeendi
rec
tl
yas
soc
iat
edwi
t
hpov
ert
yandt
hewel
l
-bei
ngof
c
ommuni
t
ies
,Goonj
hasbeenf
ocus
ingonwat
err
elat
edac
ti
vi
ti
esi
nrur
alar
eas
wi
t
hanai
mtoi
mpr
ovet
heac
ces
sofl
ocal
communi
t
iest
omeett
hei
rwat
err
elat
ed
needsper
tai
ni
ngt
oagr
icul
t
ureandl
i
ves
toc
k.Byi
mpr
ovi
ngandr
epai
ri
ngt
he
ex
ist
i
ngs
our
cesofwat
erl
i
keponds
,lakesandc
hec
kdams
,weempowerr
ural
c
ommuni
t
iest
ofindt
hei
rowns
ust
ainabl
esol
uti
onsf
ormanagi
ngt
hei
rwat
er
r
esour
ces
.Byc
hannel
i
zingt
hewat
erfl
ow,
cons
truc
ti
ngnewwat
erac
ces
spoi
nts
anddeepeni
ngwat
err
esour
cesbyr
emov
ingt
heac
cumul
ateds
il
t1
,400+pr
ojec
ts
wer
etakenupunder‘
Digni
t
yForWor
k’i
ni
ti
ati
ve.
Outoft
hes
e, ound1
ar 000
pr
ojec
tshav
ebeenonc
anal
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ponds
/wel
l
s.
 900+pr
ojec
tsonroads

I
nfr
ast
ruc
tur
e
UnderDFW i
ni
ti
ati
ve,
rur
alc
ommuni
t
iesar
emot
i
vat
edt
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ti
vi
ti
esr
angi
ng
f
rom t
her
epai
randr
ebui
l
dingofr
oads
,dr
ains
,bamboobr
idgest
othemaki
ngof
c
ommuni
t
yspac
esl
i
kes
ti
tc
hingc
ent
res
,comput
erc
ent
res
,li
brar
ies
,bands
tands
,
benc
hes
,wai
t
ings
hedset
c.f
ort
hebenefi
toft
heent
i
rev
il
lage.
Thi
syeart
oo,
mobi
l
izedandmot
i
vat
edbyourt
eams
,peopl
ecamet
oget
hert
omake/
repai
r
r
oads
,t ough900+pr
hr ojec
ts,
toens
urebet
terac
ces
sint
hei
rregi
ons
.The400+
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tandsmadeorr
epai
redar
oundt
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,notonl
ypr
ovi
deas
pac
efort
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c
ommuni
t
ytos
itt
oget
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somaket
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tronger
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rom bei
ngupr
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ojec
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Agri
cul
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& Pl
ant
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on
Ofal
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icul
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maki
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mpac
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oods
ecur
it
yof
c
ommuni
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henut
ri
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onal
int
akeof
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hil
drenandwomen,
espec
ial
l
y,pr
egnant
andl
act
ati
ngmot
her
s.Thi
syear
,700+
ki
tchengar
denpr
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tswer
e
under
taken.
Mor
eov
er200+t
, ree
pl
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ivesandac
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ti
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or
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000+t
rees
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Sani
tat
ion
Ov
ert
hey
ear
s,ourwor
kons
ani
t
ati
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l
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own,
toens
urebet
ter
ac
ces
stowat
erandov
eral
lwel
l
bei
ngofr
ural
communi
t
ies
.Wedot
hisbywor
king
c
los
elywi
t
hwomen,
nudgi
ngt
hei
rvoi
cei
ndec
isi
onmaki
ngf
ort
hei
rdi
gni
t
y,heal
t
h
andhy
giene.
Thi
syear
,at
ot of600+pr
al ivat
ebat
hings
pac
eswer
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made/
repai
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2.Me
nst
rualManage
ment
Ourworkonmens tr
ualhealth&hy gi
eneisbui l
taroundt heTri
pl
e- A(Awareness,
Acces
sandAffor dabi
li
t
y )
chal l
enges,wit
hal argerfocusones t
abl i
shi
ng
menst
ruati
onasahumani ss ue.I
tint
egrat
est hereachingofclothpadstowomen
wit
htr
iggeri
ngamas s-
scaledi al
ogueonthisissueinur banandr ural
communi t
ies
andencouragi
ngtheparti
cipantstotakeupmens t
rualhealt
hrelatedacti
vit
ies
.

Theunder l
yi
ngtheoryofc hangeistoempowerwoment oaddressthei
rown
chal
lenges.Thelargescalemakingofclothpadsisals
oanempl oyment
generati
onresourceforwomen. Thisi
swhySpec i
alWomenKits(c
ompr is
ingbasi
c
garments,MYPads ,undergarmentsandtoil
etr
ies
)haveemergedtoaddr esst
he
needsofwomen. Thisyear
,wec hannel
izedmor ethan1.
2mi l
li
onpi ecesofcl
oth
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er 10,000+under gar
ment st
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mens t
ruat
ors.

Ourt
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tnerorgani
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odoBaithaks
mens
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t
hawarenessmeets)
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ngmor
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3
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on
Underour'
School
toSc
hool
'(
S2S)
ini
t
iat
i
ve,
wer
eac
houtt
othous
andsofr
ural
s
chool
chi
l
drenwi
t
hes
sent
i
als
chool
it
ems
,inc
ludi
ngs
tat
i
oner
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,books
,
not
ebooks
,et
c,whi
l
eatt
hes
amet
i
mes
ens
it
is
ingt
heur
bans
chool
chi
l
drenabout
t
hei
rrur
alc
ount
erpar
ts.
Fil
l
ingt
hev
astmat
eri
algapbet
weent
het
wo,
ourt
eams
wer
eabl
etor h1
eac 50,
000+s
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sin1
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il
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her
s),
wit
hbas
ic
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chool
mat
eri
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sandaas
ans(
si
tt
i
ngmat
s)
.
4.Li
vel
ihood
Connec ti
ngdi saster-hi
tpeopl etol ocallow-inves tmentr ural occupat i
onsf ortheir
sustenanc eVaaps i (
Bri
ngingbac kt oLi v
el i
hood) i
sGoonj ’stri
edandt es t
ed
l
iveli
hoodi niti
ativei mplement edinmanydi saster s.
UnderVaaps i
,oc cupational
ki
tsar edes ignedandpr ov i
dedtor ec i
pientsaf t
erex t
ens ives urveys.Ithas
multif
ac etedi mpac toni ndivi
dualsandaddr es sesmac roi ssueslikemi gr
ation,
sustenanc eofnat ur alresourcesandec onomi cv it
ali
zationofar egion. Thisy ear
withourpr incipleof‘ Let’
simpr ovebef orewec hange’, ourteamswor kedc l
os el
y
withdi sasteraffec tedbambooar t
isans ,
forkar tgr oups, neglec t
edc ommuni ti
es
andgr oupsengagedi nt r
aditi
onal occupationsl ikepot terymaki ngandc oir
maki ng.
Mor eov er
, wes etups chool bag,jhola,sujni(patc h-
wor kqui lts)
andas an( si
tti
ng
mats )maki nguni tsi nruralareas,buy i
ngbac kthefi nishedpr oduc t
sf r
om t heunits.
Thisnotonl ygav eanewl easeofl i
fetopr e-usedc lot
h, italsohel pedf ami l
iesin
att
ainingfi nanc i
als tabil
it
y.Thes ujnisandas ansmadeatt hes ecenter sbec omea
vi
tal componentofourr el
iefkit
sindi saster-
hitz ones .

Morethan1000tonsoftext
il
ewas t
ewasusedthi
syeartocr
eatesujnis
,
asans
,MY-Pads,under
garmentsandhundr
edsofenvi
ronment-
fr
iendlyGreen
byGoonjrecyc
ledproduct
s.
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.Rahat
UnderRahati
ni
ti
ati
ve,
Goonj
channel
i
zeses
sent
i
alr
eli
efmat
eri
al
stodi
sas
ter
affec
tedf
ami
l
iesi
nthemos
tfar
-flungandunr
eac
habl
ear
eas
.Thr
oughi
t
srel
i
ef
andr
ehabi
l
it
ati
onoper
ati
ons
,Goonj
reac o1
hedoutt 00,
000+f
ami
li
esi
n1900+
vi
ll
agesbypr
ovi
di
ngRahatKi
t
scompr
is
ingofmat
eri
al
srangi
ngf
rom t
arpaul
i
ns,
r
eady
-to-
eats
nac
ks,
dryr
ati
on,
utens
il
s,es
sent
i
alc
lot
hing,
sol
arl
i
ght
set
ctot
he
di
sas
teraffec
tedpeopl
e.Thr
oughourRahatFani
oper
ati
onsi
nOdi
sha,
ourt
eams
r
eac o20,
hedoutt 000+affec
tedf
ami
li
es.Ourt
eamsal
somobi
l
izedt
heaffec
ted
c
ommuni
t
ies
,pan-
Indi
a,t
ounder
take2000+l
arges
cal
ecommuni
t
yrehabi
l
it
ati
on
pr
ojec
tsi
ndi
sas
ter
-affec
tedar
eas
.
Ur
banEngage
ment
I
nthec
it
iesac
ros
sIndi
apar
all
elwor
kofr
esour
cegener
ati
on,
engagementoft
he
mas
sesandhi
ghl
i
ght
i
ngofs
omei
gnor
edi
ssuesgoeson.Ourf
ocushas
c
ons
ist
ent
l
ybeenonc
reat
i
ngaf
orc
eofac
ti
vec
ivi
cengagement
,par
ti
ci
pat
i
on
andawar
enes
saboutt
hei
rrur
alc
ount
erpar
tsandt
hei
ris
sues
.Ouri
deai
sal
sot
o
hi
ghl
i
ghthowmat
eri
alunus
edi
nur
banhomesc
anbeanewc
urr
enc
yfor
dev
elopmentwor
k.Thous
andsofv
olunt
eer
sandur
banpar
tneror
gani
zat
i
ons
or
gani
zec
oll
ect
i
ondr
ivesands
etupdr
oppi
ngc
ent
ersi
nres
ident
i
alar
eas
,
offic
es,
school
s,i
nst
i
tut
i
onset
c.Thi
syearmor
ethan1
000+c
amps
/st
all
s/book
f
air
swer
eor
gani
zedi
ncl
udi
ng300+c
ampsi
n‘DaanUt
sav
’(ear
li
erknownas
J
oyofGi
vi
ngWeek)
.
 “ Pov
maj
ori
t
y
er
t
.
.
.
yi
sthebi
gges
tongoi
Whydowewaitf
ngdi
oradis
as
s
as
t
terf
ert
orav
os
t
as
t
andwi
th
peopl
e?
” Ans
huGupt
a,Founder
,Goonj

Goonjworksamongs omeoft hemos tignor

edc ommuni t
i
esin
t
heremotestpar
tsofIndia.Al
otofthes epeople, al
readyli
vi
ng
i
nextremepovert
y, haveal
sobeent heworsts ufferer
sof
di
sast
ersinthel
astf
ewdec ades.
Wel ookatev erydisast
eras
anoppor t
uni
t
ytobr i
ngmoreatt
ent i
onandr es ourcesto
addressthei
gnoredi ss
uesandneedsoft hes epeople.
BreakingsomeMythsabout
di
s as
tersanddi
sas
terhitpeopl
e

MTYH#1 Thi
ngsar
ebac
ktonor
mal
wit
hinaf
ewweeks
REALI
TY:
I
ttakesmonths,sometimesyearsforpeopl
etoful
lyr
ec over.When
communitykit
chensclose,
mediaat t
enti
onwanes,peoples t
il
lst
rugglef
or
f
ood, cl
othi
ngands ust
enance.Everyyearpos
tmons oonfl oodspeople
f
acewi nt
ers,wi
thoutbarebasi
cs.That’
showwintert
urnsintoas econd
dis
asterf
orthem.

MTYH#2 Di
sas
terhitpeopl
earepoorandv
ict
i
msandt
heywi
l
l
t
akewhateverwegiv
e
REALI
TY:
Weoft
engivewhatwehav e,notnecess
ari
lywhatisneededbypeopl
e.
Thi
smismatchhurt
sthedi
gni
tyofthedisast
erhitandleadst
owast
ageof
res
our
ces.Peoplewhosufferthebigges
tlossesaretheoneswhohave
somet
hingtolos
e.

MTYH#3 Whent
her
ear
eal
otofdeat
hsadi
sas
teri
sbi
g
REALI
TY:
I
rrespecti
veofthedeathtol
ldest
ruc
ti
onofland,propertyandliv
eli
hood
destroy
slivesf
orgenerat
ions.I
n2018Ti
tl
iCyc l
oneov er6mi l
l
ionpeopl
e,
across3s t
ates
,faceddevast
ati
onofhomes,landandl i
veli
hoodbutthe
deathtoll
wasles st
han100people.

MTYH#4 Rel
i
efmat
eri
ali
sfine.
Whydoy
ouneedmoney
?
REALI
TY:
Wit
hmat er
ial
,moneymat t
ersforlogist
i
c alc
os t
sofreachingmos t
under
-serv
eddisast
erhitcommuni t
iesandf orbuyingurgentl
yneeded
mater
ial
.Ourteamsgotogr eatlengthstopriori
ti
zemos tremotedis
ast
er
hi
tcommuni t
i
es.Moneyisalsoneededt obuywhatwedon’ tgetenough
f
rom t
hemas sesli
ketar
ps,blankets,dryrat
ionetc.
MTYH#5 Onl
ypeopl
edi
rec
tl
yhi
tbyadi
sas
terneedhel
p
REALI
TY:
Evenpeopleinanc il
l
aryi
ndustr
ies/
occupati
onsdir
ectl
yorindi
rect
lyli
nked
t
oadi sas
terhitcommunity
/geographyalsosuffer
..
Migrantl
aborer
sin
Kashmi
r&Ut tarakhandpostfloodsandicefactor
yworkersinTamilNadu
postTs
unami sufferedinabigway .

MTYH#6 Disas
terhitpeopl
edon'tac
ceptoldcl
othest
hat
’
swhy
hugec l
othpil
esonroadsaft
ereverydi
sast
er
REALI
TY:
Mismatchbetweenwhat ’
sgivenandwhat ’
sneededendsuponther
oads.
Att
entiontodet
ailaboutsoci
al,
c ul
t
ural
, economicandcl
i
mati
cneedsof
peoplemakesabi gdifference.Goonjturnseventheun-
wear
abl
edisas
ter
wastageintoal
iveli
hoodresourceforpeople.

MTYH#7 Any
onec
angoi
ntoadi
sas
terz
oneanddor
eli
efwor
k
REALI
TY:
Withoutadequateknowledgeofthearea,communit
iesandthei
rneeds,
evenwi t
hgoodi nt
enti
onspeopleendupwas t
ingpreci
ousti
me,energy
andr es
ources.Wealway swor
kwi t
hlocalvol
unteer
s,exper
ienc
edfi el
d
teamsandournet workofgras
srootsorgani
zat
ionsonground.

MTYH#8 Extens
iveinf
ormat
ionondamageandl
ossi
sav
ail
abl
e
soonafteradis
ast
er
REALI
TY:
Evenr
eachingdisast
erhi
tar
eassometi
mestakesweeks
.Eager
nessar
ound
pr
ojec
tfunding,
stres
sondatal
eadstowrongdata,
guessworkandunr
eal
pl
anni
ng.

MTYH#9 Char
it
yist
heonl
ywayt
ohel
pthev
ict
i
msofadi
sas
ter
REALI
TY:
Disasterhi
tpeoplehav eli
t
tl
eleft
,apartfr
om theirdi
gnit
yands elf
-respect
.
Theydon’ tneedpit
y,theyneedinit
ialsupportandpeopletos t
andwi t
h
them togetbac kontheirf
eet.Goonj’
srehabili
tat
ionworkiscentered
aroundengagi ngandinvolvi
ngthedisasterhitpeopl
einrepair
ingtheir
owni nfr
astr
uctur
e.

MTYH#1
0 Moneyal
onei
stheonl
yres
our
cef
ors
olv
ingpr
obl
ems
REALI
TY:
Aft
eradisas
ter,
ofteness
ent i
al
sar
enotimmediat
elyav
ail
abl
eor
acces
sibl
e.Aspeoplegetc utofff
rom t
heworl
dinthei
nit
ial
days
someti
mesev enthoughtheyhavemoneytheyst
ruggl
eforthebas
ics
.
Wor
kingondisas
terr
espons
e
i
nnon-di
sas
terti
me
Goonj
’
sdi
sas
terwor
kgoesont
hroughoutt
hey
earev
eni
nnon-
dis
ast
ert
i
me,
bui
l
dingadeeperunder
standi
ngaboutdi
sas
ter
samongur
banandr
ural
mas
ses
;
aboutmi
ndf
ulgi
vi
ng,
bui
l
dingpar
tner
shi
ps,
mappi
ngofneedset
csot
hatatt
he
t
i
meofadi
sas
terwec
anf
ocusoni
ntens
if
yi
ngournet
wor
k,pr
oces
sesand
r
esour
cegener
ati
onandi
mpl
ement
ati
ont
ores
pondr
api
dl
ytoadi
sas
ter
.

DI
GNIFYINGRELIEFtomatchit
cl
osel
ytourgentneedsofdi
sas
ter
hi
tpeopl
e

Rel
iefworkwi
thHUB&SPOKE
MODELt oeffect
ivel
yreac
hdeeper

Tappingint
oanongoi
ngNETWORK
OFCOLLABORATI ONStogener
ate
resourc
es

MOBI LI
SING&MOTI VATI
NGdi s
as t
er
hitcommuniti
esasst
akehol
dersto
rest
orethei
rdamagedinf
ras
tructur
e

Turni
ngdi
sas
ter
sint
oac
hanceto
bri
ngRESOURCESANDATTENTION
TONEGLECTEDCOMMUNITIES

Buil
dingac
ult
ureofMI
NDFUL
GIVI
NG
Cr
eat
ingLiv
eli
hoodwi
th
Di
sas
terwast
age
Sujniahumbl epatc
hworkquil
tmadef rom l
astpiecesofclot
h.Commonl
yusedas
aquilti
nwinterandasamat t
res
si nsummer. T
odayhundr edsofwomen
acrossI
ndiaarewor ki
ngwit
hGoonj i
ncreat
ingthousandsofSujni
swhi
char
e
reachedtofamil
iesacros
srur
alIndia.

Aasanisas mal
lsquar
es it
ti
ngmat ,
madeoutofl ayer
sofc l
othpieceshand
st
it
chedbywomeni nvi
l
lages. Thes
ear eprovi
dedass i
tt
ingmatsinruralsc
hools
acr
os sI
ndi
aasas impl
es olut
iontotheabs enc
eofbas i
cfurni
tur
et osi
ton.Aasan
makingatGoonji
sabigi ncomegener ati
onandl i
vel
i
hoodi ni
ti
ati
ve,engagi
ng
hundredsofwomen.

Jhola,abasi
cc l
othbagunderourlabel‘Gr
eenbyGoonj’
,i
shandcraft
edusing
urbansurpl
usunwear abl
e/unus
ablemateri
al
.Weupcycl
ethecl
oth/mater
ial
asour
team ofwomendes igner
spickthepat
ternandputt
oget
hereasy-
to-useand
envir
onment-f
ri
endlybags.

MYPadi sas i
mple,cl
ean,r
eusabl
e,biodegr
adableandaffordablesol
uti
on
t
owomen’ sneglect
edbas i
cneedformens t
ruat
i
on.Makingofmi l
li
onsofMY
Pads
,hasoverthey ear
sens ur
edli
veli
hoodtowomenandhel pedspread
menst
rualhygi
eneawar enesstomi
ll
ionsofwomenac r
ossIndia.
Rehabi
li
tat
ionasawayof
get
ti
ngpeoplebac
kontheirf
eet
Di
sast
er-
hitpeopl
earemostv
ulnerabl
etol
oansharksori
ndesper
ati
onendup
t
aki
ngsomeunf or
tunat
eli
f
edecisi
onsli
kemigr
ati
ngtocit
i
es.

OURSTRATEGY:
.Cont
1 inuer
eli
efeffor
tst
osus
tai
nfami
l
ies
.
Under
2. standandfi
llgapsi
nongoi
ngr
ehabeffor
ts.
3.I
mpr
oveandbr
ingr
esour
cest
oanyc
urr
rent(
pre-
dis
ast
er)
loc
ali
ssues
.
OurRehabi
li
tat
ioni
nit
iat
ives
VAAPSI(meansBri
ngi
ngbac
kt oLi
vel
i
hood)Isaboutconnect
ingdis
ast
erhi
t
peopl
etolocal
lowinv
est
mentrur
aloc
cupati
ons.Occupati
onalki
t
saredesi
gned
andprov
idedtorec
ipi
ent
saf
terext
ensi
vesur
v ey
s.

CHEHAK( meansc hir

pingofbi
rds
)-LearningCenter
sdev el
opedasstr
essfree
spac
esfordis
as t
erhitchi
ldr
entoaddressanypostdisast
ertr
auma,nur
tur
ingthei
r
i
nnocence.Fi
rstst
art
edi nBi
haraf
ter2008Kos iFl
oods,ChehakCenter
slater
cameupinUttarakhand,J&Kandotherplaces
,aft
erdisas
ters
.

DIGNI TYFORWORK( r
evivi
ngbas i
cinfrast
ruc
ture)
-Fewweeksaf t
errel
iefwork
Goonj teamsmobili
seandmot i
vatedisas t
erhi
tcommuni t
i
estor epai
randr evi
ve
t
heirowni nfr
ast
ruct
ure,f
oll
owingtheOLEappr oach,OPENMI NDEDt ol
earnand
cust
omi zeourwork.Keepthepeoples ’LENSESasourdr iv
ingforce.Keep
EVOL VINGc ons
tant
lywit
hthec hangingneedsofpeopl e,t
oc overgapar eason
mult
iplelevel
s.
Fi
nanc
ial
s
Whenyoul
ookatourBal
anc
eSheet
Pl
eas
eNote.
..

I
tisafull
-fl
edgedorgani
sati
onofaf
ewhundredpeopl
e,wor
kingac
ros
surban
andruralI
ndi
a,al
sohandl
ingmanydi
sas
ter
swhichdonotgetmedi
aatt
ent
ion.

Wet r
y,notv
erysuccess
ful
ly
,tokeepac ushionf
orther
unningexpensesofone
yearf
orrent
als
,tr
ansport
,people,PF-
ESItomanyregul
arexpens
es .Wearenow
t
ryi
ngt omakeac or
pusandwi l
lreachouttoyouf
orthesameaswel l
.

Mostofourmoneycomesduringdis
aster
s,f
orrel
i
efandrehabil
i
tat
ionwork,
that
goesonfor3to5yearsdependingonthescal
eofdis
aster
s.Thismoneyis
ut
il
iz
edaspermandatedneedf orafewyear
s,f
orthepredecidedpurpos
eonly.

Unfor
tunatel
ymos tofthemonet arycontri
butionc omesduri
ngdisast
ersorfor
workinafews tat
esonl y.
Stat
esl i
keBihar,Wes tBengal,
Odisha,Nort
heastern
st
ates
, Utt
arPradesh,Chhatti
sgarhandUt tarakhandaregrossl
yignoredi
nt hi
s.
Att
enti
onands upportfrom i
ndivi
dualsandi ns t
it
uti
onswit
houtbi
ndingthe
geographyandc auseisneededt oaddr esst hesegaps.
Aspeci
alNoteofThanks
t
oa l
lourcontr
ibut
orsands
uppor
ter
s
Wearedeepl
ythankf
ult
othousandsofi
ndivi
duals
, cor
porates
,ins
ti
tut
i
onsand
agenc
ieswhohavecomealongonthisover2-decadejourneywit
hus.

Pleas eknowthateachandeverycont
ri
but
ionisimpor
tanttous.I
nti
mes,when
ever yyeardi
sast
ersarehappeni
ngmorefrequentl
yandinplaceswhi
chhave
nev erseenadisast
erbefor
e,al
lofuscont
i
nuous l
yworkingtoget
heri
sespeci
al
ly
valuable.

GOONJ.
.(H.
O.)
J-
93,
Sar
it
aVihar
,NewDel
hi
-11
0076T
el:
011
-41
401
216,
26972351

Emai
l:mai
l
@goonj
.
orgWebs
ite:www.
goonj
.
org

Goonj’
sCityOffices
Bengal
uru,
Chennai
,Del
hi
,Hy
der
abad,
Koc
hi,
Kol
kat
a,Mumbai
&Ri
shi
kes
h

f
acebook.
com/
goonj
.
org

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wit
ter
.
com/
goonj

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nst
agr
am.
com/
goonj

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goonj
.
org