Future Generations IV

Posted 27th September 2008 by David McGuinness

We drove to another village and I had dinner with the Future Generations staff. We talked of the various other projects they had running in the area over a few rice beers. It seems they have managed to create 60% self-sufficiency in vegetables through garden projects involving the local farmers, and in the village we were eating in (called Siro), 30 of 134 households had switched to cow dung fuelled bio-gas. They were also encouraging villagers to switch the central fireplace to a wood stove, which conserved wood, prevented fires and reduced eye problems due to smoke. They had also been instrumental in the creation of a wildlife sanctuary 30km away where a lot of hunting used to take place, again by getting the locals to take charge of the project. Similarly they had managed to stop some very dubious fishing practices, such as the use of electricity, explosives and chemicals, instead introducing a permit system for fishing, the proceeds of which were used by the community for projects they themselves decided upon.

We talked about the ways in which tourism could help, and I suggested they organise some homestays in the villages, as well as try to get these and the craft shop mentioned in the main guidebooks. I offered to try to help them out on this side of things and to bring all our tour groups that pass through Ziro to the craft stall, and to offer the homestays to our guests when this had been set up.

Leaving Ziro the next morning I was fully determined that we should do all we could to help Future Generations having been immensely impressed with the work they do. On the drive back we saw a car stopped by the side of the road. We pulled over to see if they needed any help but they were ok. As we drove off Dr. Kanno explained that the wife of the man he spoke to was a Village Womens Worker, the main one in her village. Then he proceeded to tell me their story. She was married to him at the age of six or seven (she wasn’t sure but she knows she was losing her teeth!). At thirteen or fourteen she miscarried but fell pregnant again. She was working long days in the jungle doing manual work and one day on her way through the jungle she saw some women sat around listening to a talk given by some Future Generations staff. The topic was how to care for your baby during pregnancy and given her state she stopped at a distance to listen.

Later, after meeting the staff she decided she wanted to go on one of their training programmes in Itanagar. Her husband, who drank a lot and got into a lot of fights at this time was against the idea but she persuaded him to let her go for three days. The course lasted more than three days and when she did not return when she had promised he was furious. To make matters worse someone told him (completely falsely) that she was running around with some other guy in Itanagar which only infuriated him further and he vowed he would cut her in two. Hearing of his anger she stayed with a friend on returning to her village and went with a group of women to see him the next day. Unable to cut her because of the group, he went into the yard and cut a pig up with his knife, telling her this is what he would do to her. They eventually calmed him down.

Working with the group she learned about the problems of alcoholism and persuaded him to stop drinking. After this he cleaned up his act in a lot of ways and became involved in the community. Now they give talks together on the dangers of alcoholism and she campaigns against child marriage, together telling this very story, and he has recently become a village leader.

I was astounded by this, and wondered how many other similar stories there were due to this organisation’s help. Sometimes little things, it seems, can really make a huge difference to people’s lives.

For more information on Future Generations Arunachal, visit www.future.org/global-impact/india.

This blog is part of an Off-The-Beaten-Track Travel Diary. Click on the links below to navigate through this journey.