Events
Updated July 28, 2011:
Join us at our annual fundraiser on Sept 15th!
We would also like to invite you to our annual charity event for “Empowering Rural Women in South Asia” on Thursday, September 15, 2011 per the invitation above. The event this year will be hosted by architects Rashmi and Robin Sen at their apartment in the Flat Iron District, with a beautiful view of the New York Skyline. Come and enjoy poetry reading by Aftab Seth, a poet and former Ambassador of India to Japan, Vietnam and Greece. This will be followed by South Asian cuisine, fashion show of exquisite Indian garments, and live and silent auctions. 100% of the proceeds will go towards establishing a Community Learning Centers in rural India under the auspices of M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, headed by Prof. M.S. Swaminathan, who has been called “a Modern Gandhi”, and inspired the founding of Asia Initiatives ten years ago. You can get further information and purchase tickets at our website www.asiainitiatives.org, email info@asiainitiatives.org, or telephone 646-360-4459.
Students Form a Chapter of Asia Initiatives at Columbia University:
Undergraduate students Kiran Prasad and Rahul Sharma founded Asia Initiatives’ first chapter at Columbia University to connect college students to grass roots community empowerment and poverty alleviation work in South Asia. The chapter runs on the philosophy that empowering self-help groups and individuals through education or financial loans makes them more productive. The will power and strength thus generated spreads to others in a community and makes real development possible. Such partnership with communities has allowed for success of microfinance and related projects run by Asia Initiative partners, along with the inspiration from the visionary Prof. M.S. Swaminathan. This chapter seeks to enable students to invest their time, skills, and energy in contributing to international projects that empower both men and women.
Dinner Dialogue with Steve Killelea:
On April 9th, Asia Initiatives hosted a dialogue with Steve Killelea, the founder of the Institute for Economics and Peace, the Global Peace Index, and The Charitable Foundation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Killelea)
Steve is an Australian venture capitalist and developer of a performance monitoring software called Prognosis which is used by 35% of Global 1000 companies. Steve has received various awards of excellence, and has been Australia's exporter of the year on more than one occasion.
The Dialogue was followed by a discussion with the 23 people who attended.
Asia Initiatives featured on the Women's Day webinar:
• Asia Initiatives was featured on a webinar celebrating International Women's Day entitled Accelerating Opportunities for Women and Girls on Tuesday, March 8. The archived webcast is available on MCI's YouTube account, which is accessible here: http://www.youtube.com/user/MCInitiative?feature=mhum#p/a/u/0/gtRC4eStZD...
The issues discussed included girls' lower literacy and school completion rates; high maternal mortality rates; the too-common dearth of information regarding sexual and reproductive rights; limited access to water and basic sanitation and the impact on women's and girls' time burdens; persistent gender-based salary differences for the same work; excessive domestic and gender-based violence; and under-representation in the public and political sectors.
The panelists included Pam Allyn, Elikem Tomety Archer, Dr. Patricia Culligan,Dr. Geeta Mehta, Dr. Sonia Ehrlich Sachs, and Dr. Susan M. Blaustein, Co-Director, Millennium Cities Initiative, Earth Institute, Columbia University.
Dinner dialogue in support of for Tibetan children's projects:
A big thank you from us and John Ullman to all who came for the dinner fundraiser hosted for "Architecture for Tibet" for Jamtse Gatsal orphanage in Arunachal Pradesh on February 17, 2011.
Dinner dialogue with Pierre Fallavier:
Asia Initiatives NY hosted a dinner dialogue with Pierre Fallavier on November 4 from 7.30 PM. Pierre is the Director of the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit, based in Kabul, Afghanistan. The goal of this Unit (AREU) is to inform and influence policy through conducting high-quality research on conditions on the ground in Afghanistan, and to acively disseminate the results to civil society and to policy makers. AREU is one of the foremost research institutes based in Afghaistan and is characterized by its independence. AREU publications an be accessed at www:areu.org.For details and to attend please email mehta@gol.com
Dinner dialogue with Citizen Effect for SEWA:
Asia Initiatives New York co-hosted a dinner- discussion with Citizen Effect featuring Rima Nanavaty on September 20, 2010. The event was attended by over 60 guests. A lively question and answer session followed Reema's thoughtful presentation.
Dilshad Radio Show:
Asia Initiatives featured on the Dilshad FM radio show on August 9, 2010. A recording of the 55 minute show of AI is at www.dilshadshow.com
Poetry Dinner fundraiser with Ambassador Aftab Seth in New York:
Thank you to all those who attended the Poetry Dinner fundraiser with Ambassador Aftab Seth in New York on July 13. Ambassador Seth dazzled every one with his poetry. A friend of Asia initiatives kindly matched the $4020 raised, so $8040 is being sent to MSSRF for Community Learning Centers. Students and interns who have been associated with Asia Initiatives for the past years came from around New York and Philadelphia to help a the event. Photos of the event are at http://picasaweb.google.com/harish.asia.initiatives/PoetryWithProfessorS...
Projects Supported in 2010:
AI Tokyo thanked its supporters on April 17th at an event organized on the occasion of the Holi festival. Combining proceeds from this event with funds raised at the Festival of Lights 2009, the board voted to fund the following important projects that support and strengthen MSSRF bio-villages:
- Down payment on an eco-friendly Kannivadi Farmers' Federation Building
- Three Village Knowledge Centers which provide critical weather, crop and marketing information to rural areas
- Uniforms for the conservation movement staff in Kolli Hills
- Driers for processing millet grains and storage drums for seed banks in Kolli Hills.
Thank you to all of our supporters for helping us to fund these capacity building projects!
Dr. Swaminathan in the news:
Professor Swaminathan visited Friends of Swaminathan in Australia (www.fosa.org.au), our sister organization, earlier this month (top centre photo). A video of his speech at the Asia Society is at http://asiasociety.org/policy-politics/news-asia/looking-another-green-r...
M.S. Swaminathan is also the Co-chair of an Asia Society/International Rice Research Institute high-level Task Force on Food Security and Sustainability. The Task Force will release its report in New York in September to coincide with the opening of the 65th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Community Learning Centers (CLCs) with MSSRF in South India:
Asia Initiatives is excited about this initiative with MSSRF. Three Board members of Asia Initiatives Japan visited the pilot CLC in Dindigul two years ago, and inaugurated another one. These centers provide 'functional literacy' in a locale specific manner, so the teaching materials are prepared by MSSRF staff to suit each village, with a goal of brining literacy, and livelihood related information to adults and computer skills to children and young adults (photo top left). Literacy and confidence about using the local post office, bus stop, banks and government field offices empowers people. Based upon the success of these two centers, MSSRF is looking to scale up the program to 15 centers. US$ 100 can educate two students for a period of six months, the length of time needed to make the training meaningful. Our goal is to supoprt 5000 students. We invite our members to provide scholarships for these centers, as well as visit them on your next trip to India.
Asia Initiatives launch in USA held at the Consulate of India:
Asia Initiatives' launch in USA was held at the Consulate of India in New York on Saturday April 18, 2009. An exhibition of paintings by Jaya Thyagaraja and a performance of classical Indian dance by Rimli Roy will be followed by a cocktail reception kindly hosted by the Consul General of India to the USA. Please RSVP to Asia Initiatives here. Please click here for the invite.
Tokyo American Club Women's Group grant:
We are thankful to the Tokyo Amercian Club Women's Group for choosing Asia Initiatives as one of the five charities it supported via its Gala in 2009.
Festival of Lights:
A BIG thank you to all who made the Festival of Lights held on October 8 at the home of the Indian Ambassador such a success. Photos may be seen at Keyshots.org.
Festival of Lights 2008
Festival of Colours 2007
Visits to Project Sites:
Pondicherry, Pune and Delhi in August 2011
Poombuhar and Pondicherry in 2010
Kolli Hills in 2010 with Mayuri
Pune in 2010 with Mayuri
Kolli Hills in 2009 with Mayuri
Dindigul in April 2008
Dindigul in April 2007
