This blog presents insights from a research study that seeks to understand how social interactions between women entrepreneurs and their business ecosystem intersect with their social and economic backgrounds, and in turn shape their business decisions and outcomes. “Women are … Read More
Postcards from the Village Square
Our research and field teams occasionally run into curious and amusing situations on their data-collection missions into the hinterland. These experiences also offer insights into people’s lived experiences and the various dimensions of the problems central to our research. Here … Read More
Delving Into the History of Pulicat, Its Inhabitants and Its Ecosystem
This post on the history and socio-economic context of Pulicat was produced in collaboration with students from Ashoka University to observe World Environment Day. Pulicat or Pazhaverkadu is home to over 56 fishing communities which depend on this endangered ecosystem … Read More
Postcards from the Field
In this new series, we bring forth anecdotes and lessons from our field interactions in Bhagalpur, Bihar and Tondiarpet, Tamil Nadu.
Moving the Clean Cookstoves Sector Forward: Six Principles for Investors
Around 3 billion people across the world rely on solid fuels for their daily cooking needs. The adverse effects of traditional cooking methods on health, socio-economic and environmental conditions, especially among women, are well documented. Clean cookstoves promise a solution to these … Read More
Social Welfare Delivery in the Age of Platforms: Comparing Private Models
Globally, 1.3 billion people (22 per cent) live in multidimensional poverty – with millions of households in 107 countries living with undernourished members, out-of-school children, and lacking access to electricity and clean cooking fuel. The Covid-19 pandemic is estimated to … Read More
Re-imagining Entrepreneurship Models for Rural Women
Building on the evidence highlighted in the first part of this two-part blog, the discussion in this second piece is anchored in a normative framework that shapes individual and household-level decision-making processes governing “appropriate” jobs for rural women. These norms do … Read More
COVID-19 and Adaptation to Mental Health Services
COVID-19 caused disruptions in services to those with mental illness in several countries across the globe. While these disruptions have been well-documented, few studies have looked at the service provider perspective. A recent study by LEAD at Krea University and the Schizophrenia … Read More
Landscaping the Sexual and Reproductive Rights of Adolescents
Seeta* is a teenager in rural Uttar Pradesh. Harassment by boys from the village had become an ordinary spectacle that relentlessly continued every day as she traced her steps to school. Despite her fears, a wary Seeta chose to not confide … Read More
COVID-19 Vaccinations: A Double Whammy for Rural Women in India
As the second wave of COVID-19 hit India and countries across the world, severe oxygen shortages, overloaded hospital beds, and acute shortage of critical medicines resulted in a severe public health crisis. The economic and social fallouts of the pandemic have also affected … Read More