Wednesday was probably the day everyone was looking forward to the most – the chance to get out on a field trip and see what’s actually happening out there in the real world beyond the walls of the conference auditorium, and talk to people who are doing stuff, not just giving PowerPoint presentations about it.
I know that when we used to organise the Scottish Rural Services Conferences, I was always a wee bit jealous of the delegates and staff who came back after the first day’s field trips (or study tours, or knowledge exchanges – they are a many-named activity) excited and animated about what they’d seen and heard, while I and other colleagues had been back at the ranch finalising arrangements for the next day’s full conference session.
So, I was near the beginning of the queue to sign up, and chose the trip to see some of the work being done by Seva Mandir, the organisation who co-hosted the IRN Forum. Seva Mandir is an NGO (non-governmental organisation – or does everyone know that?) working with the rural and tribal communities in South Rajasthan, where Udaipur is located. What they’re about is helping communities to get organised and take control of their own lives – the familiar idea of community empowerment, though in a very different context from the Scottish version.
Around 15 of us set off in three four wheel drive vehicles, heading out through the outskirts of Udaipur beyond the busy urban splurge of colour, noise and smell to the truly rural landscape beyond. We travelled across uneven terrain that turned mountainous, giving spectacular views over the green and brown wooded hillsides. (more…)
Tuesday afternoon saw one of the highlights for me of the conference so far. Although not strictly rural, it was a stunning demonstration by the Samvad Community Video Unit of how community members can take control of particular aspects of their lives and combat those who are cheating them. Best of all, it made inspirational use of video technology, which we in the Rural Team are just taking our first steps with. And frankly, if we can produce – or help any other group to produce – anything with half the power of this video, I’ll be a very happy man.
Through a scheme called Video Volunteers, the Unit produce content focusing on the marginalised poor people whose concerns are rarely covered by the national media. Their expressed aim is to tackle the lack of awareness among slum dwellers and to create an inclusive space for publicity about initiatives and dialogue about social issues.
They do this by working with producers (currently seven of them) recruited from the slums and all poorly educated, who are trained to use video equipment. Each video takes around two months to produce and is then shown publicly at night screenings, which are publicised door to door and attended by dozens, even hundreds, of local people, and day showings for smaller numbers, hosted in voluntary community group members’ homes. (more…)
With apologies to our adoring fans for the delay, due to challenging or non-existent broadband connestions – this is the first SNRN at the IRN blog from SCVO’s rural team. Sorry for the lack of pictures, but that seems to be an upload too far at the moment.
Anyway, he said, clearing his throat . . .
After a 30 hour journey with no useful sleep, the drive from Udaipur Airport to our hotel was like a hyperactive fever dream, overloading the brain with sights that simply couldn’t be processed immediately. India – or at least this part of it – is busier, more colourful and more apparently chaotic than you can imagine. And yet, within this visual cacophony, there are clearly orders and structures and patterns that would take an age to fully understand.
The approach to traffic – which we experienced at much closer quarters after an auto rickshaw tour of the city on Sunday – appears utterly gung-ho. No-one ever seems to give way, drivers blast away with their horns, helmetless scooter riders dodge in and out of cars, rickshaws, buses, dogs, pedestrians and the most relaxed looking cows you’ve ever met in your life.
Except, they do give way, at the last possible moment. In a flash, an inevitable collision becomes a hairsbreadth near miss, and you are bearing down on the next car or cow or child in your way, who again weaves unhurriedly out of your way – and so on and on. And no-one seems to be angry or stressed. The horns are used not as an act of aggression but a signal to other road users that you are there and, because no-one seems to obey the rules, there is certainly no speeding problem – no-one gets the chance to accelerate for long. (more…)
Perth Racecourse or Udaipur?
It’s a fair old distance from Perth Racecourse to Udaipur in India, but that’s the journey I’m going to take you on in this rundown of some forthcoming events of interest to rural people in rural Scotland.
First up is The Rural Gathering, a major conference about and for rural Scotland that takes place at Perth Racecourse on 25th September. Some of you may recall that efforts were made to run an event under this banner in November last year but it was forestalled by unforeseen events, not least of which was the sharpness of the economic crisis which was just beginning to bite. The event was intended to form one part of the Scottish National Rural Network, along with the website and the Regional Co-ordination service. (more…)
