Sierra Club of US to aid SEWA in green mission

The Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), which works for the economic development of rural people and the urban poor in an eco-friendly manner, will join hands with the Sierra Club, an environmental organisation based in the US, to launch a Centre for Excellence meant to increase green livelihood.

The mission of the Sierra Club is to protect wildlife by promoting the responsible use of the earth ecosystems and resources, and restoring the quality of the natural and human environment.

SEWA and the Sierra Club will officially announce their tie-up on Saturday, when president of the latter, Carl Pope will visit the city. The two organisations are sensitive towards retrogressive climate change and are making independent efforts for its mitigation.

SEWA has taken up initiatives under the green movement and for green livelihood. Green livelihood at Sewa comprises biodiversity, vermiculture, water harvesting, operations and maintenance of water resources, rural infrastructure and distribution. The green energy and green livelihood campaign at SEWA will be taken up by the Centre for Excellence, which will work towards generating an annual income of Rs1,175 million for 1,39,685 members, along with creating environmental awareness.

Under the partnership, Sewa and the Sierra Club will launch the Centre for Excellence for the aim of upgrading green livelihood, which will take care of SEWA’s initiatives under the green movement and to replicate the same in other states and regions through its networks and other organisations working for the cause.

The Centre for Excellence will impart training to develop leadership skills among women and also enterprise development. It will capture case students and its spread, material development for communication, detailed interactive training modules, build a cadre of community workers and set up Green Funds.

SEWA believes that the effects of climate change can be coped with through an integrated and eco-friendly manner, at the same time it working towards empowering the rural poor and generating green livelihood, thus leading towards the strengthening of rural infrastructure. In its experience with such communities, SEWA has observed that the poor welcome such technologies and enterprise, and also express interest in commercialising such techniques and broadening their application.