Economic and Environmental Justice Fellowship

The Economic and Environmental Justice Fellowship was launched in the context of COVID-19; a public health crisis that has also debilitated communities economically and socially. Several studies have confirmed that the pandemic has a disproportionate impact on girls, women and transgender people. Livelihoods of communities dependent on natural resources have been rendered increasingly vulnerable. These communities have historically been affected by worsening economic situations compounded by ecologically unsustainable practices; the pandemic has only worsened those conditions. Women in agriculture and allied activities, daily wage earners, running petty businesses etc. have suffered serious economic losses. Transgender people, already living a life of stigma and exploitation, have been rendered far more vulnerable with fewer livelihood opportunities, and limited access to social protection and rights.

Policies and practices implemented without inculcating indigenous knowledge have continued to have an adverse effect; sometimes in the form of natural disasters which affect these marginalised communities the most. Therefore, while developing economic revival it is essential to incorporate these voices and draw on their tacit knowledge of ecologically viable alternatives.

The Fellowship Programme -

Through the fellowship programme, SAWF IN aims to support women and trans* led interventions in communities, working on building economic resilience and justice but in a manner that is also ecologically sustainable.

Economic and environmental justice are being defined for the purposes of the fellowship to cover actions and practices that enable women and trans* to claim their entitlement over economic and environmental resources. It includes reinstating practices that nurture their natural habitats, culture and livelihoods.

The fellowship provides the participants with the opportunity to have access to the necessary knowledge, resources, network and mentorship support to help them to successfully take their interventions forward.

SAWF IN seeks applications annually from individual women and trans* working independently or as part of collectives,who are working in the area of economic justice and improved environmental outcomes, to help take their actions forward. Our effort would be to give preference to applications impacting regions which are ecologically fragile and in need of supportive intervention. If you are interested to apply write to us at fellowship.sawfin@gmail.com

Our Current Areas of Operations -

Krishna District, Andhra Pradesh | Darbhanga, West Bengal | Palghar District, Maharashtra | Joynagar district, Sundarbans, West Bengal |

Panna Forest Areas, Sagar District, Madhya Pradesh | Kangra District, Himachal Pradesh

In 2021, six fellowships were awarded as part of this fellowship:

Current Fellows

Rehena Molla

Rehana is working towards adoption of organic farming and animal rearing practices by women’s collectives in ten villages of Joynagar district of Sundarbans area, West Bengal

Rehena Molla

Life in the Sundarbans is very harsh. One has to cope with adverse environmental conditions. Monsoons are devastating each year, and with climate change and sea levels rising many islands are facing a rise in shoreline. Monirtat Panchayat, where Rehana lives is among the most backward areas of the Sundarbans. Most of its 18,000 inhabitants earn their living as farmers, daily wage earners. Many people have migrated to towns for better opportunities but had no work during the pandemic and cyclone Amphan (in May 2021) dealt the final blow. Almost all houses in the area were damaged in the cyclone. Many people took shelter in the village school as their houses were completely washed away. For Rehana, life has been a constant struggle since her childhood. Born in a remote place like the Sundarbans, a Muslim girl, she had no to little opportunities to be independent or dream of a career. After her secondary examination, her father and brother wanted to discontinue her education. But she carried on her studies, despite their protests. She managed to get a bicycle with her grandfather’s help and started going to college. Even then there were stiff oppositions from neighbours, as they were opposed to girls riding a bicycle. She constantly negotiated with her family members, so that she could pursue her dreams. It has been a lonely struggle for Rehana with no one to help or support her but she continues to believe that her battles were not only for herself but for the numerous other young girls and women too, who she wants to help. Working with a local organisation, Rupantaran, Rehena has slowly taken another step forward towards her dream. Through the fellowship she wants to assist 80 women in her panchayat area who are economically weak and socially marginalised to become financially independent. She also wants to create awareness among marginalised women about their rights and help them organise their lives to access those rights. She plans to engage with local SHGs to identify marginalised women and then work with them to plan a sustainable income generation activity like vegetable cultivation or poultry farming. She will work on each of their individual plans, assess their capabilities and land availability. This will include training on vegetable cultivation, poultry farming, different types of cropping techniques etc. The vegetables and eggs can sustain them and their families and they can also earn by selling surplus vegetables, eggs and meat in the market. Through the fellowship she also plans to facilitate a support group with these women, so that they can help each other, discuss various issues that concern them. Rehana feels that supporting each other is the biggest strength that women have. She recalls an incident where she had met a young bride in a village and even though she was educated and wanted to pursue her career in teaching, she could not do so due to opposition from her family. Rehana constantly engaged with the girl, her family and her husband. She asked women from the SHG to engage with them, and after a few months, they could convince the family to let her work in a local school. Today, she takes pride that she could support the girl and help her in her journey to become financially independent.

Kirti Vartha

Kirti is working to promote Worli women’s social and economic leadership within their communities by reviving women led traditional livelihood practices in Palghar and Dahanu blocks in Maharashtra.

Kirti Vartha

Kirti is a tribal woman belonging to the Worli tribe of Maharashtra, in the district of Palghar. She is one among the first tribal women of the state who works for the rights of tribal women at the grassroots level. She began her work by organising tribal women of her locality into a women’s collective. Her first women’s collective meeting saw 45 women come together and this gave Kirti a lot of hope and courage. This collective started working for the development of the village and soon they got sanctions from the gram panchayat for household level toilet construction way back in 2010, where the district administration built toilets for each household. She also overcame a lot of opposition from the men in the community. Many husbands of the women who are a part of the collective started opposing the membership of their wives to the collective. She has also worked in various tribal ashram schools in Palghar and identified different cases of violence against the girls living in these residential schools. It also came to light that these cases of violence were more in schools where the wardens were men. She worked with the collectorate and got a resolution passed to appoint only women officers as wardens for these schools. Kirti has also been protesting against the DMIC (Delhi, Mumbai Industrial Corridor) located in Palghar district, the Bullet Train, Mumbai Vadodara Express Way, as these projects infringe on the tribal people’s rights to use their land for livelihood and a displacement would be an impediment to their rights. Through the fellowship, Kirti will be working to change the economic status of tribal women as it has been drastically affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, which has only added to the difficulties these women have been facing in being able to sell their local produce from the forests. Kirti wants to continue working with these women’s union so as to encourage women to continue their traditional methods of livelihood. She wants more women to join the union and also provide them with training and skills to market their products and negotiate with middlepersons. Kirti also wants to formally register the union and provide for a proper marketplace for tribal women to sell fruits and vegetables. She also wants to document the traditional knowledge of tribal women, and work on their revival. On the basis of this traditional knowledge, she wants the government mechanisms to recognise their value and thus enable economic empowerment for them. She also wants to motivate younger women to join the traditional practices. Kirti says she derives her strength, courage and passion from the tribal women, who she has seen struggle for years together. They are the true image of resilience for her, she says and wants to bring about some positive impact in the lives of these tribal women.

Raina (Dhiman) Roy,

Raina is working with Trans Waste Collectors in Dhapa garbage dumping grounds near Kolkata city to develop viable and sustainable livelihood opportunities.

Raina (Dhiman) Roy,

Raina (Dhiman) Roy comes from a middle-class Bengali household from Kolkata and identifies herself as a trans*person. The journey with her identity began from adolescence, in the midst of immense struggle and discrimination. She is a fashion designer by profession, but was unable to get suitable work, due to her non-conformist stand. She started her work as a transgender activist over 20 years ago. Raina (Dhiman) Roy has also been part of a collective – Manas Bangla, a collective of community-based groups under West Bengal State Aids Control Society (WBSACS) working with mainstream media and transgender women. The platform gave her an opportunity to highlight the issues faced by the transgender community. The collective had also been instrumental in bringing issues of the transgender community into mainstream conversations. Raina (Dhiman Roy) started realising the importance of economic independence and privilege, how a lot of things in society revolve around it. This elitism in activism led Raina (Dhiman Roy) to form an organisation called Somobhabona, which means possibilities. Here trans* people from Dalit communities, lower income groups, rural areas, artists, etc. were given opportunities and the space to work and grow. Her inclination to environmental justice began when she attended a workshop on the same at Sri Lanka organised by Women’s Fund Asia. The workshop helped her relate environmental justice with the trans* community, located within the intersection of women from minority communities. Through the fellowship, Raina (Dhiman Roy) wants to work with groups of transgender rag pickers surviving close to the city’s solid waste dumping ground – called ‘Dhapa’ in Kolkata. Her main focus through the fellowship is to work on livelihood support for transgender waste collector community in all the rural sectors where the people are adept at weaving and in handicrafts. This would be done through a training process on how to create art out of nonbiodegradable waste. Trans* farmers will also be trained on how to process and cultivate organic farming, she says. Raina (Dhiman) Roy also aims to sensitize people on the health issues that arise for the transgender community from working at the solid waste dump site. This will include sensitisation of the police with the objective to reduce verbal and physical harassment aimed at their community and also connect with different environmental justice groups to create a secure environment for the trans* community and generate knowledge based on their lived experiences.

Bujji Pallepogu

Bijji is working to develop a self-sustainable ecological - economic model around solid waste management in two villages in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh.

Bujji Pallepogu

“I accidentally entered the development sector. But slowly through hard work I have learnt. Over the last few years I have gained considerable understanding about my own village and people know me for what I have achieved and are willing to cooperate. I feel that working on waste management will bring a change in the way of life in my village”. Bujji Pallepogu, born in a Schedule Caste family in Andhra Pradesh, she is the youngest of 5 siblings. Bujji means ‘little’ in Telugu. She dropped out of school after the 7th grade in order to babysit her nieces and nephews and was married off at sixteen. She was often subjected to violence at her marital home; and was taunted for giving birth to girls. Her in-laws irrationally targeted and blamed her for mishaps and deaths in the family. Her husband had a problem of substance abuse and after a prolonged illness died due to pneumonia and gastroenteritis. But Bujji was resourceful, and she persevered. After her husband’s death, she connected with the lady sarpanch (elected head) of her village and asked for a recommendation for work to support her young daughters. She was given an opportunity to work with the Centre for People’s Forestry and the Tata Trust. She began her work as a community mobiliser going door to door and village to village collecting surveys. A year later, Bujji had an opportunity to work as an Internet Saathi, attend training workshops, learn to use a tablet and work through an App. Bujji went ahead, took the training, excelled in her training and landed a managerial job. For a long time, members of the dominant caste in her village would not welcome Bujji in their homes as she belonged to the Schedule Caste and was a widow. But after Bujji was selected as the best Internet Saathi by Google, people saw her in a different light. Today Bujji has completed her college education up to her second year and is aiming to clear the finals. With the fellowship she aims to go through the Gram Panchayat and get involved in the village development plan for Solid Waste Management. The Government of Andhra Pradesh has issued orders for collecting service charges for waste collection at the household level, and Bujji hopes to leverage that idea. She plans to motivate people to contribute towards effective solid waste management practices to ensure better health of individuals and the village. She wants to put effort into using this dump yard and make it viable by converting the waste as vermicompost and selling it to the farmers. Her idea is to make the venture an income generating model while making the villages clean and healthy. She also firmly believes that focusing on behavioural change practices at household level is crucial for the success of this plan. By the end of the fellowship, Bujji wants to move the waste to designated landfills and aims to achieve a functional solid waste management yard in the village.

Past Fellows

Manisha Chaudhary

Manisha is working with the women’s collective to establish and run a handicrafts enterprise using local resources and produce at the same time building ecological awareness in the communities in Kangra, Himachal Pradesh.

Manisha Chaudhary

“I want to make women of my community financially independent by doing something that is locally and culturally relevant; and can be made from available natural resources. So that it can be sustainable and will help reduce the effect on climate change to the ecology of the hills.” Manisha is from Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh, a hill state in Northern India in the foothills of the Himalayas. It also has dense forest cover filled with cedar, barge, and rainforest trees. Pine forests in Himachal were introduced by the British with the intention of making profits from pine resin and wood. Nowadays, due to pine leaves, forests catch fire quicker in the summer season and a lot of birds and animals get burnt. The pine tree also needs a lot of water which is one of the reasons for the dwindling water table. Most families in her village work as farmers or farm labour or are road construction workers.. Over time incomes generated by farming are also dwindling due to climate irregularities and other problems. She has worked with an organization called Jagori Grameen for 4 years with local women against violence, promoting economic independence and self-worth. She has observed that due to financial issues women often keep their needs last. In continuation to that, a question that she always grapples with is why rural women of Himachal who are surrounded by natural resources, and extensive knowledge about indigenous ways of sustenance, are not able to make any financial sustenance out of their expertise. In her quest to find an answer to the question, Manisha also did some research about women and work in their villages with an informal collective of women - the Dhaarichi group. Her line of enquiry was to find out if the women in the community had financial independence, had decision making power and control over the money that was earned by them. She found that since women stayed at home to do house work, their work was not valued and thus the men of their household, and community did not think about or value their choice. Through the fellowship Manisha wants to bring together young women from the area, and help them build a viable livelihood out of local resources and produce. In that process, Manisha hopes that they will become more confident and forge a new path for themselves. Her main objective through this fellowship is to also find a market for this work and also spread awareness about the local ecology. Manisha also looks forward to documenting the entire process: the stories, experiences, dreams, and fears of women associated with this work. This documentation will also include a study of the history and stories related to the environment and the infamous pine trees.

Arpitha Bai MS

Arpitha is developing an entrepreneurship model to promote indigenous practices and products made of local forest produce with the tribal villages in the Panna Tiger Reserve area, Madhya Pradesh.

Arpitha Bai MS

Arpitha, belongs to the Lambada tribe of Karnataka and began her work by volunteering with different organisations during her college days. After graduating with a degree in Engineering, she never felt any inclination to join the corporate sector, but wanted to work for people. In Visakhapatnam she worked with single women and women whose spouses had passed away enabling them to access government schemes. She has also worked with tribal women in Tamil Nadu, speaking to them about eco-tourism and making them aware of their land rights. She then travelled to Madhya Pradesh to work in villages by facilitating the process of installing solar panels for villages' access to clean and sustainable energy. She is currently working in 6 villages of Panna district, Madhya Pradesh. The villagers here belong to the Gond, Soni Gond and Raj Gond tribes and depend on the forest for their livelihood in the form of forest produce and agriculture. Arpitha has been working with these tribal communities to reduce the challenges they face with government officials and the forest departments, to live and make a livelihood from within the forest. Through the fellowship she now wants to concentrate on working with the villagers to generate awareness on ownership and usage of community land known as a ‘patta’ under the Forest Regulation Act (FRA) 2006. She also will be working with women silicosis victims. “I want to encourage tribal women to produce and market their forest produce like amla, mahua oil and soap, amla candy etc. and encourage them to continue their traditional practices in agriculture and food.” Arpitha wants to train villagers on the FRA processes, guiding them in marking and documenting their land by using GPS and also enable formation of forest rights committees (FRCs) who can then individually or collectively claim their FRA patta (land) from the government. She has previously worked with a local women’s collective called the ‘Adivasi Mahila Samooh’ to build their capacity by providing them with training/guidance and technical support to dialogue with government authorities about their basic livelihood rights in protected areas. Illegal mining in the area has also resulted in an exponential rise of silicosis among labourers of the mines, therefore Arpitha also wants to work with women who have lost their partners due to silicosis and help them receive funds for their rehabilitation, for diagnosis and treatment of any affected women. She believes that the forest produce unit will be a boost for the local economy, and could also be a way to rehabilitate women silicosis victims. Arpitha is part of the Economic and Environmental Fellowship (2021-22) of South Asia Women Foundation India (SAWF IN). The Programme supports women and trans* led interventions on building economic resilience but in a manner that is also ecologically sustainable. It seeks to nurture practices and actions that will achieve economic justice outcomes using environmentally robust strategies. Fellows are mostly from regions which are ecologically fragile and in need of supportive interventions and inputs leading to economic justice.

Economic and Environmental Justice Fellowship