idea|syncrasy

More thoughts on MOMI

2009-09-01T12:45:00.000-07:00

About 100,000 Indian women die every year due to lack of skilled care during pregnancy.

http://www.acumenfund.org/investment/lifespring.html

A project on Water

2009-08-31T12:23:00.000-07:00

I wanted to do a project on Women and Water and so I spent this summer trying to figure out what would be the best thing to do. When I first googled the topic, I was swamped with information. But not all this information was relevant. And there were many things that I needed to know that I could not find (or took very long to find). One thing I realized was that a lot of research has been done on safe clean drinking water. There are a lot of products and systems out there tackling the issue, but there is no one place to get all this information. And thus I took it upon myself to create a portal where one could find a way to implement projects related to water, sanitation, and hygiene specific to a certain geographic area. Below, is my final presentation for the same.

Water Presentation

After visiting the different villages in Africa over the summer, and now Chhattisgarh over the last few days, I found that most villages had access to a borewell and clean drinking water. But this water got contaminated in its journey from this source to the individual household. The jerrycans or pots that were used to fill water were pretty dirty, the women and children collecting the water did not wash their hands, and the same hand went into the pot while carrying the water, transporting this heavy load from Point A to B was a nightmare. And these were just stored out in the open with nothing to cover and protect this valuable source from insects and other contaminants. I see an opportunity for a well designed storage-cum-transportation device. And while many people have tried to address this issue (Q-drum, hippo roller, etc.) I did not really see anyone is the villages using these products. For some reason, they seem to unfamiliar in the current landscape of things. I believe here lies a great design opportunity.

momi

2009-08-31T11:24:00.001-07:00

A project I did this summer before leaving for Ghana, momi stands for MIDWIFERY AND OBSTETRICS FOR MOTHERS AND INFANTS.

Rural areas lacks access to public healthcare and the distribution channels for medicines and services is limited, leading to increased mortality and many diseases going untreated. The decision to acquire treatment is based on the cost to travel to the clinic or hospital: if it results in more money spent in transportation or wages lost due to the time taken to reach the facility, people will defer treatment until the condition is relatively serious. This ineffective system results in self-medication techniques, making pharmacies or other sources of medicines the most important part of the healthcare system. This shows a huge need not only for the distribution of medicines to remote areas, but also a requirement for health education so that rural households know the best way to treat their symptoms.

When it comes to women, more than 50% of the death rate is dur to childbirth. At the same time, the biggest cause of high Infant Mortality Rates in the developing world is due to lack of neonatal care. The goal of this project is to ensure that midwife's in rural India have the education and the

infrastructure required for childbirth. India's Infant Mortality Rate is one of the highest in the world, and the IMR in rural areas is much greater than urban areas. This project wants to address the challenges of childbirth and maternal health education in rural India.

The solution is a system where traditional midwives are trained for a month at nearby Primary Health Centers on how to use basic instruments during childbirth. At the end of this training module, they are given a child delivery bag that contains a stethoscope, sphygmomanometer, surgical handle + blades, surgical gloves, cotton yarn, and ivory soap.

Along with these, they are given two subkits - one for the mother and one for the infant. The mother's kit consists of a towel for her to lay down on, a muslin sheet to cover her at the time of delivery, and a washcloth to keep her clean. The infant's kit contains a cotton shirt and a cap for the newborn to wear, and a receiving blanket to wrap him/her in.

Below are some pictures of the Mother's kit and Infant's kit.

This was my first time working with packaging and branding and some of the graphics turned out to be too (sexy???) But after visiting the Primary Health Center in a village (Kenochi) in Chhattisgarh and speaking to a midwife in a nearby village (Amadov), I am ready to go back and redesign some of the graphic elements, as well as build the system further based on their input!

Presentation Ideas - My Thoughts So Far!

2009-03-27T17:59:00.001-07:00

I created this email as an update for my Independent Study instructors. It's more like my thoughts on how I'm going to present all the research I've been doing this term to help me pick out options for my final thesis project. Take a look and I want all your questions/comments.

1. THESIS STATEMENT
I still need to come up with one specific design challenge which should be framed in human terms. It should be broad enough to allow me to discover areas of unexpected value while narrow enough to make the topic manageable. I am thinking something that combines the biggest problem that rural India faces and that is "how to increase their income" along with empowering women by making them an integral part of the solution. SO maybe something like "How can one change the role of women in the rural society to help increase the family's income?"

2. BACKGROUND
A little background on India, rural India, agrarian economy and women. A lot of this would be statistics and graphs.

3. TRENDS - What relevant trends are creating new needs?
I have identified 5 major trends that I would like to elaborate on:
(a) Population Growth and Migration
(b) People's Increasing Expectations
(c) Internet/Mobile Penetration
(d) Emerging Technologies
(e) Economic Instability and Upheaval

4. THEMES - What needs should do the project address?
While there are many paths that one can take, there are five themes that I would like to explore:
(a) Sustaining Resources
(b) Managing/Providing Information
(c) Empowering Community/Women
(d) Integrating Functions and Services
(e) Maximizing Efficiency and Self-sufficiency

5. ISSUES - What are some of the key issues involved?
The key components of the rural society are:
(a) Food
(b) Energy
(c) Health
(d) Transportation
(e) Agricultural Inputs
(f) Household Goods
(g) Education
(h) Information and Communication Technologies
(i) Water
(j) Housing

6. CHALLENGES - What insights can be gained about why things go right or wrong?
For each of the above areas, understanding how things are right now, what are the challenges, and how can they be improved.

7. OPPORTUNITIES - What ideas can be generated to take advantage of these insights?
For each of the above areas, the solutions that have worked and how they can be adapted to the rural Indian scenario.

8. STRATEGIES - What position should the project take on the issues?
Based on the themes, what are the main components of the solution:
(a) Involve the rural community in the design process
(b) Create a solution that is customizable to different needs
(c) Women - teach them to start and maintain the solution
(d) Use emerging technologies as a facilitator for local manufacturing
(e) Opportunities for empowerment instead of dependence to create a sustainable solution

9. FEATURES - What functions make the solution work?
What are the different features for each of the strategies above?

10. SOLUTIONS - What functions are related to create potential solutions?
Based on the strategies, refine the different opportunities to create comprehensive solutions.

11. SYSTEM - What functions should we look at together to create a more systemic solution?
How many of these solutions can be paired together to create a valuable ecosystem?

12. FINAL PROJECT
Present atleast three potential options for a final project!

Featured on KCET

2009-03-03T15:49:00.000-08:00

Samarth Presentation at the Sustainability Summit

2009-02-18T23:35:00.001-08:00

Radhika Bhalla Samarth

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Presentations & Slid media list

Eikon - digital camera for the illiterate

2009-01-22T19:53:00.000-08:00

Eikon

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Presentations Academic Work

Eikon Flowboard - a digital camera for the illiterate

2009-01-22T19:52:00.000-08:00

Eikon Flowboard

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Presentations Academic Work

Day in the Life of a Rural Indian Woman

2009-01-22T19:49:00.002-08:00

Day in the Life of a Rural Indian Woman

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Presentations Academic Work

"Samarth" - Empowering Women through Increased Mobility

2009-01-22T19:33:00.001-08:00

"Samarth" - Empowering Women through Increased Mobility

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Presentations Academic Work

Lifecycle Analysis of a Bicycle

2009-01-22T19:31:00.001-08:00

Lifecycle Analysis of a Bicycle

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Presentations Academic Work

"Samarth" goes into the Gallery

2009-01-22T19:21:00.002-08:00

Samarth goes to the gallery

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Presentations Academic Work

Design's Potential Role in Transforming Public Services in Rural India

2009-01-22T19:14:00.001-08:00

Transforming Rural India

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Reports Academic Work

Design's Potential Role in Transforming Public Services in Rural India

2009-01-22T19:10:00.003-08:00

Transforming Rural India

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Presentations Academic Work

We Cannot NOT Change The World

2009-01-13T15:37:00.001-08:00

Radhika Bhalla -- Social Design

Publish at Scribd or explore others:

Catching up on M4

2008-10-16T13:41:00.003-07:00

I'm really excited about my "Design for Sustainability" class and I started out by saying I want to use this to further develop my research from last term. I looked at all the areas for "products" (we do enough services and intangible things at GradID) that I could design. And then thought... who is it that I want to design for first? I had always thought of making educational games and toys for the kids, but after spending time with research, I knew I wanted to target the women first. So here I am, after carefully mapping out a rural Indian woman's day/week/life, I am ready to start designing a load-carrying bicycle that she can retrofit on her own. Something that will ease her chores, and give her more time to start something entrepreneurial, provide a means to get to sell her work, and make her more economically independent. But how will it change the dynamics of the village? That's one answer I need to find out!

I'm also trying to write an article for my entrepreneurship class - on how to make social design a part of your business portfolio. I met some interesting people in the process. I got back in touch with Marianna from DesignMatters and met her and Erica Clark to see how that became a part of education at Art Center. I also met Jocelyn Wyatt who is a part of the "Design for Social Impact" group at Ideo. An Acumen Fellow of 2008, she asked me if I was applying for the 2010 fellowship. I think I need more work experience - another year or two - before I go; but I decided to apply anyways. And for that, I need to answer my essay questions this weekend.

Thats's the update for now. Let's see how long it is before I come back here and write again. Till then...

"Design cannot not change the world!" -- SocialDesignSite

A new beginning

2008-09-14T01:25:00.002-07:00

There have been many times over the past year when I have wanted to add to this blog, but something or the other always came in the way and it took the backseat. But now that my schedule has kind of cleared up, I would like to try and write something atleast once a week.

So, for starters, this is going to be catch up from the last post!

Now that I am at Art Center, I further believe that design can be used to change the world. What I wrote in my application essays became the basis of my research paper last term - "Design's Potential Role in Transforming Public Services in Rural India". In it I identified seven areas that we need to look at - (1) Energy (2) Healthcare (3) Transportation (4) Education (5) Information and Communication Technologies (6) Water and Sanitation (7) Financial Services. I looked at interesting things happening in the areas already, like SELCO, Aravind Eye Care, etc. And compared it to solutions developed elsewhere in the world like Lifestraw, Wizzit, etc.

In conclusion, I developed my own principles that I believe I need to address while designing for rural India.
1. The value of research and co-creation
2. Entrepreneurial nature of rural India
3. Role of women in the rural society
4. Appropriate technology for local development
5. Sustainability and Community development
I'll write more on these later as separate posts. These are by no means the only ones and there will be additions as I continue my research and interest in the area.

This term I'm hoping to develop atleast two ideas based on these - a product for my "design for sustainability" class and a service/system business plan for my "entrepreneurship methodologies" class.

More for later.

"The Soul of India lies in its Villages." - M.K.Gandhi

idea|syncrasy

2007-07-29T12:09:00.000-07:00

"My vision is to bring design to the people. I believe that design is a reflection of the users’ soul. Design is not only a medium used to express ones character but also a medium which creates experiences that defines ones character."

This thought came to me at a point when I was trying to figure out what I wanted out of my life. And more came to me when I started writing my SOP for Art Center. I thought I'd copy them here to start this blog so that everyone knew how I think and what I want to achieve in the next few years.

"In an emerging economy like

India

I would like to contribute to the development of the country through design thinking. I believe that design can help public services become more efficient. Whether it is schools, communities or hospitals, design can help mobilize people and change lives. Most people who use public transport, health facilities and other public services have a fair idea how they could be improved but no forum to put forward their ideas. By seeking input from the users of the products and services we are designing, designers can improve lives as well as strengthen the economy. One can already see the shift in design’s influence on business organizations. From mere branding and marketing, designers are now working closely with employees to come up with strategies to transform the environment within the organization. The challenge now is to acknowledge design’s potential role in transforming public services and to use design and creativity to change the direction of government organizations."

"The challenge would be to improve the existing environment not architecturally, but by designing new products and interactions for the same space; to create a dynamic experience that would be unique to each user."

Education in India

2007-07-09T11:36:00.000-07:00

Over the last one year, CKS has taken me to numerous villages around the country. Whether it was the outskirts or Bangalore or a remote Bhuj village or something closer to the capital, certain environments remained constant. And the one thing which made an impression on me the most was the state of primary schools in rural India.

According to the Government of India, by the end of 2000, 94% of India's rural population had primary schools within one km and 84% had upper primary schools within 3 km. But are there enough teachers? How about infrastructure?

This is one of the best classrooms in this school I visited recently -- no desks and chairs, no electricity, not enough place to fit in almost a 100 students!

Is this the future of our future? How can design be used to improve the education system in India?

idea|syncrasy

More thoughts on MOMI

A project on Water

momi

More Post_Its!

Presentation Ideas - My Thoughts So Far!

Featured on KCET

Samarth Presentation at the Sustainability Summit

Eikon - digital camera for the illiterate

Eikon Flowboard - a digital camera for the illiterate

Day in the Life of a Rural Indian Woman

"Samarth" - Empowering Women through Increased Mobility

Lifecycle Analysis of a Bicycle

"Samarth" goes into the Gallery

Design's Potential Role in Transforming Public Services in Rural India

Design's Potential Role in Transforming Public Services in Rural India

We Cannot NOT Change The World

Catching up on M4

A new beginning

idea|syncrasy

Education in India