India has one of the youngest populations in the world and as its working-age population grows, it has been a victim of jobless growth, high migration rates, and low female labour force participation rate, among other factors. This month’s issue is on social and solidarity economy (SSE), a unifying theme.

We explain why SSE can be an excellent opportunity to recognise social enterprises that are more rooted in India’s cultural ethos. Know how SSE and its three critical pillars of inclusive economic growth, job creation, and social cohesion and empowerment prioritises social well-being over profit maximisation. Learn about Mithun’s diligence to achieve economic independence and the role played by the Work4Progress programme to fulfil this. Get a glimpse of the Soligas’ journey of becoming empowered and self-reliant and preserving their ancestral livelihood by employing modern technologies. This month’s editorial dwells on the many ways India can benefit from the UN resolution on ‘Promoting the Social and Solidarity Economy for Sustainable Development’.

Plastic waste management is a critical issue in the modern world as plastic has become an indispensable part of human life. Read our May newsletter to understand the impact behavioural change can bring in resolving the environmental issues caused by plastic waste management and encouraging sustainable consumption.

This newsletter presents the various programmes and initiatives being implemented at the ground level in Hardiwar and Bundelkhand to bring changes in the ecology and people’s perspective. We also discuss how behavioural change in stakeholders can address the challenges faced by society in managing plastic waste effectively. Read about adaptive pathways that can adequately respond to evolving external environments. This month’s editorial discusses the concentrated effort required to adopt circular economy principles for plastic waste management.

In 1982, a small group of concerned individuals came together to form this organisation called Development Alternatives. In this April issue, read about Development Alternatives’ long journey and various initiatives it has implemented in the last 40 years to make a sustainable impact on the people and the ecosystem. Know about the organisation’s engagement in Bundelkhand and why it calls the region its karmabhoomi. The issue also tells how it is different from other CSOs and the way it has succeeded in creating thoughtful, active leaders who have reoriented the development pathways needed for a better future.

India is still a long way from enabling access to ‘choice’ to women in some pockets of the country. Empowering women is a key factor to achieve Sustainable Development. In this March issue of our newsletter on 'Empowering Rural Women', read an article on STEP programme that is helping adolescent girls to develop soft skills. Development Alternatives has started initiatives that are building an entrepreneurial culture in the hinterlands of the country. Know about Brave Space, a tool created to build solidarity among women to enable them to overcome socio-economic barriers. Women have been always closely associated with sustainable livelihoods. The editorial discusses the role of gender balance and the need to equip women everywhere to fight the harmful effects of climate change.

As the world suffers from the detrimental effects of climate change, we realise that communication has a very important role to play in provoking a response to climate change. Communication is used to demystify climate change at various levels, create awareness among people in their language and urge them to act upon. The recent Development Alternatives Newsletter issue on 'Communication for Climate Action' discusses this in detail. Read the issue, wherein various communication tools, training programmes, and a community-owned radio station, among others that have become more important than ever in sensitising people about their resources and helping them develop solutions to their problems are discussed.

Across India, people are showing more inclination towards entrepreneurial instincts. In rural India too, aspirations are changing and many young women and men now look to entrepreneurship as an alternative to employment. Read this newsletter on building an enabling environment for youth, where we discuss various programmes to champion local enterprises to drive economic growth. Know more about our interventions that are helping people to pursue their dreams and create job opportunities for others as well.