Work for LIFE : Love in Full Expression

Spiritually fulfilling, socially just  

The Context:

Today large populations on the planet are Disengaged , Displaced , Disenfranchised or Destitute. They are without means of  livelihood.  

The Problem

All the knowledge, skills, people, money, technology and natural resources that we need to manifest work for life exists on the planet.

The problem lies in the absence of a value creating connection between these resources. 

 The Solution

The systemic solution is to catalyze connection, conversation and co-creation through creative use of social architecture and technology.

The solution will have   6  components:

1. GAIA (Global Appreciative Inquiry for Action) of the most innovative  practices on livelihoods creation  in different agro climatic zones.   The output of this phase will be a Library of innovative Solutions and data for step 2  ;
2. Creation of a Meta Model of success  in livelihood creation >> What works ; what is the most effective and proven process for success (based on the most innovative and effective practices gleaned in step 1);
3. Develop a cadre of I Catalysts (Catalysts  of inspiration, initiative, integration and innovation)  who will be well equipped with the tools   of Collaborative Design and  Facilitation, and will also be deeply anchored in an inner space of generative presence;
4. Take up Wards in Cities / or a cluster of Villages as Design Units for Value creating workshops (3 days each). These will be attended by local leaders and designed asnd facilitated by the I Catalysts. The population of each design unit would range from 25,000 people to 60,000 people;
5. Cover the targetted population with the Attitudinal change workshop "Awakening to Abundance" ; and 
6. Support the above steps using Technology Enabled Platforms .Technology will be used for the following: Communication and dissemination through a website and Social Media; and Creating Online Spaces for:

• Lists (Teachers, Developers of Skills, Volunteers, I Catalysts etc.);
• Resources (Awakening to Abundance; I Catalyst Development);
• Connection, Conversation and Co-creation using Open Space Technology online;
• Crowd Sourcing data for Global Appreciative Inquiry for Action (GAIA)  to identify  and curate  the most innovative success stories and Business Modelsor livlihood creation; and 
• Using tools like ZOOM for developing and maintaining a Comunity  of Practice for the I Catalysts.

How will the solution change the world? 

The solution will enable 3.5 Billion people (the size of the workforce by 2030) to find what they love doing, and also give them a simple process to work with others in local communities.

The solution would benefit people in disenfranchised and low-income communities especially those who  are unemployed or underemployed. It would also benefit the many people who are currently caught up in soulless and toxic jobs. Many people who have the time and money to share/volunteer would also benefit through opportunities to give back as Teachers, Mentors, Connectors, and  I Catalysts .

See the larger Vision for One Wholesome World on pages 97 and 98 here:  https://lightspira.com/book/one-wholesome-world/

The creative components as I see them:

                 1) The social architecture of connecting all the pieces together (See Bill Veltrops review of our book One Wholesome World);

                  2)  Awakening to Abundance   >> A radical new attitudinal change programme  based on awakening to generative presence; and 

                  3) The cadre of I Catalysts   >>> A New approach to Catalyzing Social Change through collaborative design and facilitation anchored in generative presence.

 Technology will be integral to our solution  at each step:

 1) Communication and dissemination through multilingual websites and Social Media;

2) Online Spaces for:

• Lists (Teachers, Developers of Skills, Volunteers, I Catalysts etc.);
• Knowledge Resources (Awakening to Abundance; I Catalyst Development);

3) Connection, Conversation and Co-creation using Open Space Technology online;

4) Crowd Sourcing data for Global Appreciative Inquiry for Action (GAIA) to identify  and curate  the most innovative success stories and Business Models for livelihood creation; and 

5) The use of  tools like ZOOM for building a Community  of Practice for the I Catalysts.

The solution will be fully proven and tested (ready for scale up) within the Metropolitan Region  of Pune  India   and all villages/hamlets within a radius of 100  Kms around  the city by the 1st of July 2019.

Year 1   (1st July 2018  to 1st July 2019)  : Fully proven in Pune  Metroploitan Region India   and surrounding Villages in a 100 km Radius ( Population of  Urban Pune MR is  6.2 Million )  is 

Years 2 and 3 : The solution will be scaled up in India , Pakistan , Nepal and Bangladesh   

Years 4-5   : Focus on Africa and China.

The Communities we will reach will be targeted through trained I Catalysts.

I Catalysts  are facilitators  who will   mobilise people on the ground and share the whole process with them. We would also get past beneficiaries to share their stories and testimonials. These stories will also be uploaded online.

The I Catalysts  will be supported by Volunteers  and Other facilitators.

We intend our Beneficiaries to thrive with our service. They will then be self -sustaining  and also work with us in spreading the  practices leading to  Work for LIFE  through advocacy and conversations with people their networks . 

In the past  5 years we have touched the lives of around 10,000 women and youth   in Urban Pune, India. 

We are currently serving  a population of around 2000 urban women in Pune  and 100  Rural/Suburban Farmers  (through Annadata : Peoples Safe Food Movement).

We  serve them through  the Awaken I   process which is a combination of :

Awarenss Building, Aptitude Testing, Counselling, Skill Development, Entreprenuership Development, Self Help Groups(SHGs), Facilitataing the getting of  Jobs, Awakening to Abundance Training, Mentoring and Business Development.

The population we are  currently serving  will be thriving in the next 12 months. New  opportunities  for livelihoods  will also be created. (e.g safe food supply,  supporting urban farming, training  farmers etc.)

We will  be working with Blind People to develop new livelihood opportunities for them. This will be based on a GAIA   (Global Appreciative Inquiry for Action) using technology and crowd sourcing of best practices  on Livelihoods for the blind.

In the next 3 years we, should be touching another 10,000 lives.

1.  30 years of successfully running   profitable corporate organisations;

2.    25,000  hours of Facilitation and Coaching experience with Leading Organisations worldwide;

3. Multi cultural exposure   >>> 22 countries,  5 languages

4. Polymath Leader  >>   IIT Delhi, Electrical Engineering;   IIM Ahmedabad  Business Mangement;  Writer, Poet, Dancer, Pianter; Meditator since 1974; Swami Amano Gaurav  (Spiritual  Coach)

5. Ashoka Fellows on Team >>  Social  Entreprenuers

6. Strong Connections to 6oo  Top Corporations;

7. Have trained 400  Officers of the Indian Administrative Services(IAS), and so good connections with the Government of India

8. Very qualified and expereinced Team.

We will be working on the principles of the Gift Economy.  All that the beneficiaries receive  (guidance, service, training , use of the internet etc.) will be a Gift from someone else. They are not expected to return anything to the donor, but Pay the Gift  Forward. See the TED Talk by Nipun Mehta on Designing for Generosity

If each beneficiary  who thrives from the services provided by this solution  pays it forward to  two more people and so on,  we would be covering an exponentailly large number of people in a few steps.

The main expanding logic will be advocacy by the beneficiaries themselves.  We expect each beneficiary to become a Prosumer in the system>> they will produce and consume within the same local eco-system. They will buy and sell in the local economy. They will teach and learn locally, and share their stories globally.  There will be many ways to earn money in the system.

The foundation for financial thriving will be strong and trusting relationships in the loacl community. Also, there will be far less waste compared to what we find in  the paradigms of work that exist today. 

1) People with the finest minds will work  as One with humility and Openness and Creativity and Logic to co-create solutions; and 

2) The above process will be  supported by Technology and Graphic Facilitation to catalyse connections, conversations and co-creation.

I believe MIT Solve will give me the right minds/co-creators to solve the problem.

I also believe that the Technological components of the Solution can be guided by the minds in your eco-system.

And finally, funding from the Prize Money will help to accelerate the development and spread of the idea.

Key Barriers:   

1) Creating the right Business Model >> Solve can help me refine my thinking

2) Getting stuck with Technology >>>   I believe the conversations with MIT Solve will help me get the Architecture of the solution right, and THEN find the plug and play  technological apps to manifest the whole solution. 

3) Finding Time and Focus to work on this >>   SOLVE will galvanise the process by providing Focus and Structure to the Problem Solving process.