Snake Importing
OK, I have a quick entry after an exciting day in the field......and I need some feedback too....
1. On the way to work today I was stopped in the road by two village men. I was unsure what was going on as I approached the men with their arms outstretched. When I was within 3 feet of them they began frantically pointing to the side of the road. Low and behold......there was a gigantic cobra slithering around. After seeing a cobra in the wild, I can say that I don't want to have a close interaction with one.
2. I met a man named Riaz who practices Siddha medicine (and also owns/runs/cooks/hosts an amazing restaurant called "Riaz"), an ancient form of traditional medicine and the father/mother form of Ayurvedic medicine. I learned something very interesting from him: If you take someone who you think might be dying out in the sunlight and make them stand there for a few minutes, the person will remain still while their shadow will move around. Riaz, said that he has seen it happen and that the person died three hours later. He also mentioned that this experience had changed his life. Lastly, Riaz said that next time I come in to the restaurant he is going to give me a powder that I must consume twice a day which will put the three humors of my body in harmony and synchrony. Any takers?
3. I need some advice.....I am seriously thinking about buying a ton of stuff here ("here" being the villages) and seeing if I can sell it back home....maybe set up a shop at the Farmer's Market or renting a space?(or have Ellyn do it...thanks Ellyn! Ha!) and have the benefits go toward public health projects in the villages that the items come from....I would basically be setting up a public health/handicraft exchange/non-profit or something of that nature. Items would include the following.....hand made wall hangings, handbags, hammocks, stone carvings, jewelry (silver and beaded), ceramics, clothes, textiles (towels, blankets, etc.), handmade soaps, handmade incense, leather purses, watchbands, coasters, and wallets, and other handmade handicrafts.......I have someone here who is willing to help in this process....so..........?
My mind is having a party right now, and everyone at the party is really psyched and you're all invited! Maybe I am just being over ambitious and overly excited about how cheap and how high in quality the things are and how a business like this could have such a positive impact on the people that live in these villages.....it's just hard seeing that the people in these villages work so hard yet have so little and live under such poor conditions (poor from my (the westerners) perspective).....AND I don't want to leave here knowing that I did nothing to help these people besides purchasing their goods (stupid tourists) and telling them to boil their water......
Any advice? Would anyone even buy this stuff? Or, is this another one of Jon's stupid ideas...it's fine if it is, just tell me before I go too far into this endeavor...that would be great...thanks.
PS- Does anyone even know/understand what I am getting at here? Or......
PPS- For the sake of anonymity, don't post advice on my blog, just send me an e-mail to jonathan_d_black@yahoo.com, or just put it on the blog if you don't care. AND, don't tell me that my plate is already full with medical school, that's not cool to say that.
1. On the way to work today I was stopped in the road by two village men. I was unsure what was going on as I approached the men with their arms outstretched. When I was within 3 feet of them they began frantically pointing to the side of the road. Low and behold......there was a gigantic cobra slithering around. After seeing a cobra in the wild, I can say that I don't want to have a close interaction with one.
2. I met a man named Riaz who practices Siddha medicine (and also owns/runs/cooks/hosts an amazing restaurant called "Riaz"), an ancient form of traditional medicine and the father/mother form of Ayurvedic medicine. I learned something very interesting from him: If you take someone who you think might be dying out in the sunlight and make them stand there for a few minutes, the person will remain still while their shadow will move around. Riaz, said that he has seen it happen and that the person died three hours later. He also mentioned that this experience had changed his life. Lastly, Riaz said that next time I come in to the restaurant he is going to give me a powder that I must consume twice a day which will put the three humors of my body in harmony and synchrony. Any takers?
3. I need some advice.....I am seriously thinking about buying a ton of stuff here ("here" being the villages) and seeing if I can sell it back home....maybe set up a shop at the Farmer's Market or renting a space?(or have Ellyn do it...thanks Ellyn! Ha!) and have the benefits go toward public health projects in the villages that the items come from....I would basically be setting up a public health/handicraft exchange/non-profit or something of that nature. Items would include the following.....hand made wall hangings, handbags, hammocks, stone carvings, jewelry (silver and beaded), ceramics, clothes, textiles (towels, blankets, etc.), handmade soaps, handmade incense, leather purses, watchbands, coasters, and wallets, and other handmade handicrafts.......I have someone here who is willing to help in this process....so..........?
My mind is having a party right now, and everyone at the party is really psyched and you're all invited! Maybe I am just being over ambitious and overly excited about how cheap and how high in quality the things are and how a business like this could have such a positive impact on the people that live in these villages.....it's just hard seeing that the people in these villages work so hard yet have so little and live under such poor conditions (poor from my (the westerners) perspective).....AND I don't want to leave here knowing that I did nothing to help these people besides purchasing their goods (stupid tourists) and telling them to boil their water......
Any advice? Would anyone even buy this stuff? Or, is this another one of Jon's stupid ideas...it's fine if it is, just tell me before I go too far into this endeavor...that would be great...thanks.
PS- Does anyone even know/understand what I am getting at here? Or......
PPS- For the sake of anonymity, don't post advice on my blog, just send me an e-mail to jonathan_d_black@yahoo.com, or just put it on the blog if you don't care. AND, don't tell me that my plate is already full with medical school, that's not cool to say that.
posted by Jon at 06:06
6 Comments:
Jon--and anyone else interested in perhaps helping Jon in this endeavor (mom and dad???)--Check out this article from Newsweek that describes exactly what you're proposing. You might even want to get in touch with the women in the article and see how they did it: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13530551/site/newsweek/
BTW, this is a link to the foundation that gave the women in the article a grant: http://www.echoinggreen.org/
You might want to contact them (or another company like them) when you get back as well, if you're really serious in this.
Or, this group: http://www.ashoka.org/home/index.cfm
or this one: http://www.echoinggreen.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Page.viewPage&pageId=41
or this one: http://www.schwabfound.org/
Or this one: http://www.newprofit.com/about.asp
Or this one: http://www.iie.org/Template.cfm?section=Fulbright1
Or this one: http://www.draperrichards.org/
ANd, check out these resources: http://www.communitywealth.org/resources_links.htm
And, here are web sites with resources and info. for social entrepreneurs: http://www.changemakers.net/journal/300606/
http://www.socialedge.org/
Taht's all for now;)
I think it sounds like a very worthy idea. Resources from Niki are excellent; I read that same newsweek article. It shows that its an idea that can be successful. And Ellyn has such GREAT organizational skills. This could be her next life! (Smile Ellyn, :-)) Who is th eperson there that is willing to help? Wonder if you could somehow hook it up to the medical school?
I concur. I think it is a wonderful idea, but learn from others first who are involved in the process and find out the mistakes they made, so that your project will be fruitful. If you really want to help these people, it is best to speak (email) to those who have already done similar projects so that you can effectively help them.
ins't that what that store in rochester called a thousand villages does?
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