Economics and Technologies

Community-based alternatives for production, consumption, and exchange

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This section features stories of initiatives that help to create an alternative to the dominant neo-liberal or state-dominated economy. These include: localisation of economic activity with democratic control, producer and consumer collectives, local currencies and trade, non-monetised exchage and the gift economy, ecologically sensitive products and processes, macro-economic concepts that respect ecological limits, and approaches to human well-being that go beyond growth, GDP and other narrow measures and indicators.

What we do not feature are superficial and false solutions, such as market and technological fixes for problems that are deeply social and political, or more generally, ‘green growth’ kind of approaches that only tinker around with the existing system.

Removing forest dwellers from areas to protect biodiversity costs more than involving them: report

"... Such examples of realising economic benefits have a direct positive impact on forest growth,”

Vikalp Varta – Farmers Market and other Vartas from other locations

Online dialogue series on alternatives for India during the covid times and beyond.

Solar power to give 150 city schools Rs 17 crore per year

The best part is that none of the schools had to invest any money. The entire project cost was borne by the developers.

Reviving the Thar Desert’s Camel Culture

Protecting the camel is synonymous to protecting its habitat—large, open, desert areas used by villages as commons

Goonj Initiative Helps Bihar Villagers Build Bamboo Bridge Amid Floods

With 250 pieces of bamboo sticks, the determined locals toiled for five days to build a 400-metre-long and 1.5-metre-wide bridge.

Handmade collective goes online

... to help farmers, weavers, spinners and dyers, who are all part of the cotton value chain and were affected by the pandemic

Nagaland Students Setup Mini Hydropower Plant, Power Highway Street Lights

“Project Brighter Khuzama is wholly funded by like-minded locals and not by any governmental organisations."

SIRI to set up integrated millets processing units in Telangana

(Also) setting up a back-end integration network, involving Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies

Gujarat Man Helps Tribal Women Make Solar Cookers That Cost Just Rs 100!

Travelling across over 100 villages in Gujarat, the duo has trained people to make the best use of sun’s energy.