World Humanitarian Day Special: In August 2018, a catastrophe struck the Indian state of Kerala, casting a shadow of devastation. The Kerala floods claimed over 483 lives and displaced more than a million people, causing a loss of Rs 310 billion (31,000 crore). Amidst this backdrop, a remarkable group of women from various corners of India joined hands to coordinate a rescue campaign enabled by digital tools. This campaign resulted in safeguarding more than 9605 lives. But how did they manage this incredible feat? Who are these women?

In this episode, we delve into the stories of Namita, Jincy, and Pranay, who were integral members of this awe-inspiring citizens' group. They prove that anybody can be a humanitarian! These women were brought together by the first She Creates Change training program in 2017, previously organized by Change.org. The She Creates Change program is now a part of Nguvu Collective, and Namita, Jincy, and Pranay are Change Leaders of this collective.

Conflict zones present numerous hardships, but the issue of menstruation often remains hidden in the shadows. Without access to clean water, sanitation facilities, and proper hygiene products, women's health is at risk. They must find ways to manage their periods with limited resources, resorting to unhygienic practices and using whatever materials they can find. But amidst these challenges, there are organizations working tirelessly to address the issue and provide much-needed support. Today, we have a special guest joining us, Melissa Robel. She is the Founder and President of Pads 4 Refugees, a US-based non-profit that provides period products to women and girls in refugee camps. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Studio Art, a Juris Doctorate, and a Master of Laws in International Human Rights. When she’s not working, you can find her working on art, making jewellery, and working at her friend’s antique shop.

As the world becomes increasingly urbanized, it is important that we build cities that are resilient to the challenges. To understand urban resilience better we had invited two guests for this episode of Dignity in Disasters which was recorded last year. The first guest is Mridula Garg an urban researcher who is interested in feminist and anti-caste ways of being and city making. She trained as an architect from Delhi and studied urbanism in Stuttgart and Cairo. She has worked on urban resilience projects at SEEDS, a non-profit organisation from India working to build the resilience of people exposed to disasters and climate change impacts. Our second guest is Bianca from Civic Data Lab where she is working across initiatives to explore more open, accessible and equitable ways in which technology can play a role in improving citizen engagement in everyday civic issues.

Rya is a young innovator and an advocate for refugee integration from Ghana. He has been home schooled in his entire life. But that did not mean he stopped learning. He speaks ten languages, including English, German, French, conversational Mandarin, and several local languages. Rya is the CEO of The RIO Corporation and the Director of Social Impact and ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) at Maxwell Investments Group. He has leveraged cryptocurrency for humanitarian efforts. In this episode we speak to Rya about refugee integration, how the RIO Corporation has been using cryptocurrency to support various humanitarian programs and most importantly we want to learn how does this new kind of “cash” work.

More about our guest: Rya was the former Global Head for Equity and Inclusion for Refugees and Migrants for the Global Shapers Community of the World Economic Forum. He has spoken at the International Dialogue on Migration, the International Organization for Migration's (IOM) principal forum for migration policy dialogue and at events organised by the World Economic Forum and the African Union. He is a TEDx Speaker and a Fellow of the Amani Institute. His articles on economic development and refugee integration have been published by the World Economic Forum, Apolitical Academy, ThePrint, etc

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Disclaimer: The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.

Before you hear this, do check out our full conversation with Udit Mittal here: https://anchor.fm/dignityindisasters/episodes/Udit-Mittal-Co-creating-resilient-structures-in-the-Sunderbans-e1bkbfs/a-a731b2s

I wanted to know from Udit what would be some 'words of wisdom' he would like to share with young architects who are just out of college. "Not everything is solved on the design table."

Shweta Sundar is an architect and urban planner. In this episode we dig in to her experience of working with a team which worked with the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on drafting National Guidelines on Temporary Shelters for families affected and Training Masons for Hazard Resistant Construction in Jammu & Kashmir.

Shweta is currently pursuing her Masters in Urban and Regional Planning from UCLA. Trained as an architect in at School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi, she has four years of practical, research and policy experience working in the field of post-disaster housing reconstruction, affordable housing, informal settlements and environmentally sustainable architecture designs, materials, and construction techniques. She is the cofounder of Lokal Habitat Labs, an architecture + urban research do-tank based in India. She is interested in understanding how the myriad lived-realities of communities inhabit rural and urban areas, and ways to empower them with the knowledge, opportunity and agency to inform and shape the built spaces that they inhabit. 

Udit Mittal (B.Arch, SPA Delhi 2015, Diploma in Fine Arts) is the Principal Architect of QX Design and guest faculty at NIFT Bhubaneswar. He is committed to explore material sensitive construction methods to design emotional and social spaces. His projects focus on experimentations with bamboo, ferrocement, debri wall, mud lime etc. largely in rural context involving community participation in the design process. In this episode we speak at length about his experience of building multi-hazard resilient structures in the Sunderbans after super cyclone Amphan and exploring new building techniques with the people. Udit and team learnt how to introduce a set of innovative practices which would fit in with traditional knowledge in the community. In Udit’s words, “We gave them new words which they can use in their current language.” I hope you feel inspired by the work that Udit’s team pulled off and the impact this co-created project has started creating in the community.  I can’t wait to visit the project at Purba Sridharpur, Sunderbans and I am sure you would also feel the same after listening to Udit. More about the project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXAYO-Pe8FA&t=680s

Kanij Fateema is an architect based in Dhaka, a city which I love because of my family's roots there. Kanij has previously worked for IOM-UN’s Migration Agency under Rohingya Response Project which is responding to the biggest humanitarian crisis in South Asia in the past decade. Soon after graduation, she founded Deshoj, a startup to address different urban issues that are affecting our quality of life. One of her notable projects is, CARE (Children’s Amusing Ride Environment), focused on making public buses of Dhaka friendly for children and women. What stands out in this episode is Kanij's dedication towards the people she has served through her craft and the sheer grit that an a person requires to work as a responder.

References:

1) Rohingya Crisis explained: https://www.unrefugees.org/news/rohingya-refugee-crisis-explained/

Kankana Narayan Dev is a Bamboo Architect and Researcher presently a Doctorante at Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati. Born in Tezpur, India, Kankana completed her Bachelor of Architecture degree and Masters of Architecture in Urban Design, Manipal University. Kankana worked as  Project Architect for Assam State Disaster Management  Training Program, at Tata Institute of Social Sciences from 2012 till 2014  then she shifted to academic research while also initiating her social enterprise DARRANG ECO WORKS, designing and constructing sustainable houses and furniture using the Green Wood Bamboo. Currently she is researching on  Post Disaster Shelter and Settlement for the flood affected people of the Brahmaputra Valley. Kankana’s work is inspired by intrinsic personal transcultural heritage and identity. She is passionate about socially responsive architecture and has led teaching and learning in inclusive and inter-professional design that is concerned with creating accessible environments and widening community participation. In 2011, she was awarded Young Architect Scholarship by Ethos followed by Innovator title from Assam Science and Technology Environment Council for her Bamboo Disaster Relief Shelter. Currently she is supported by DST to explore the design and construction of Pucca Houses for Rural Assam a project of DEW. A nature enthusiast Kankana loves birding and hosting friends and guest for Farm Lunch over weekends at her D Eco Organic Farm, Darrang, Assam.

This episode is close to my heart for it is related to a campaign that I have been running to secure Menstrual Health and Hygiene of women in flood relief camps in Assam. Women on their period are at greater risk during floods because being displaced from homes means no access to clean cloth or sanitary napkins. Besides, stuffed in a crowded flood relief camp can be a nightmare for any woman on her period.  Nelson Deb is a close collaborator who has been working on disaster relief response during Assam Floods for many years, let's hear more about this silent need which we both are trying to address through our work.  

About our Guest:  Nelson Deb is a social entrepreneur and founder of The Eco Hub and the Founder President of Bodhana based in Assam. A Fuel Fellow and a partner with The Pad Project, Oscar Winner for the short film Period. End of sentence. His work was recognised amongst India's top three entrepreneurs by the U.S embassy, EDII and the Oklahoma University for a American Fellows Exchange Program for the year 2020. Nelson has been working in the social and development sector for the last 9 years. His work mainly focuses on livelihood generation through his social enterprise and WASH, Menstrual Hygiene Management and Gender through the NGO. His work has received accolades nationally and internationally by several Governmental, Non-governmental organisations and media houses.

May 20, 2020 was another day in quarantine for rest of the world, but not so for the state of West Bengal. West Bengal government estimated total loss caused due to Cyclone Amphan at Rs 1,02,442 crores. 

While the state tried to recover, we came across stories of ordinary people stepping up and coming to the aid of people whose lives were destroyed by the super cyclone.

Fact: The warmer the water temperatures, the more heat energy is available and the higher the potential for tropical cyclones to develop. So it’s reasonable to assume that as humans continue to release planet-warming greenhouse gases, the likelihood of tropical cyclone activity increases.