India

ASK has worked extensively with grassroot communities and organisations across the country over a wide array of socio-economic focus areas. In a country as diverse as India, issues are often contextualized based on geography, demography and the several cultures and communities of people that reside together. The nature of issues of those residing in hilly terrains often differs from challenges faced by those residing along coastal areas. At ASK, we respect and appreciate these differences, and strive to work with flexibility, customization, and strong background knowledge of the regions where our work takes us. 

While our team members hail from different parts of India and are hence well equipped with multi-lingual skills, our competency in conducting community consultations is strong enough to overcome any language barrier. Our connection is with the people-thereby enabling us to communicate effectively with the help of translators in case the language of communication is not known to us.

Urban Areas: The gaps in the status of theRICH and the poor are most stark in urban settings. What works for the poor is their aspiration and hope and opportunities in cities of better education, health, jobs and a freedom form disadvantaged social identity; but what hampers them is the struggle to make ends meet, difficulty in making collectives due to exigencies of life, and lack of familiarity with each other. An urban poor feels but a faceless entity in the vast metropolis.

Rural Areas: Lack of opportunity typifies the rural landscapes. Agriculture is the mainstay, and the marginalized, particularly the Dalits, Tribals, Backward classes, Women, and Persons with Disability forever suffer at the hands of feudal lords and mindsets. The corruption is suffocating and there seems to be no hope. Yet the hope lies in the relative ease in mobilizing communities into claim holders and mutual help groups. This happens due to relatively higher homogeneity of the communities in rural settings. Subsistence living also is easier than in urban settings.

Coastal Areas: Fishing communities depend on the sea and are hardpressed with dwindling fish catch due to unfair competition with the commercial fishing enterprises and trawlers. Add to it, the increasing incidents of hazards such as cyclones and floods (those living in delta areas) and now clearly, perhaps due to climate change effects, a fast receding shoreline, such as in parts of Odisha with increasing salinity in air and soil that further is curtailing production.Hilly Areas: The terrains are tough. Basic necessities of daily living - water, fodder for animals and firewood collection can consume large parts of the day. And with increasing physical development and decreasing natural covers, hazards such as landslides, flashfloods, and pest attacks are on the rise. What helps is the resilient nature of the people who have survived in these tough terrains for long times.