The Laureates of the Change the World—Best Practice Award 2002—2004

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FUNDAEC, Colombia: Gustavo Correa (2002)

Development Schools are Teaching Self Reliance

Gustavo Correa with eulogist Dietmar Schönherr

Education is widely seen as the key to the skills which are the slumbering potential inside every human being. But education systems all over the world on the whole show two major faults: they neglect the development of the rural areas and are therefore the root for a dramatic tendency towards sprawling cities and city slums in many parts of the world. Secondly, they neglect to teach about learning, which is why so many people are not able to adapt to the changes of our time in an appropriate pace.

The founders of the so called SAT education programme in Columbia used modern knowledge and adapted it consistently to the needs of rural life. They connected it further with the traditional knowledge of the indigenous population, and the result is a radiacally novel approach to education. More than 50,0000 natives in 12 countries up to now have turned into highly effective development workers. At the same time, a future orientated culture of learning about learning has emerged, a sovereignty in lifelong learning from which Western industrial societes could yet learn one thing or another.

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Instituto Reciclar-T3, Brazil: Aguida Zanol (2002)

Intelligent Recycling: Waste turned into Art

Agiuda Zanol (left) with eulogist Helga Breuninger (right), Director of the Breuninger Stiftung
The project, initiated by the well known Brazilian artist Aguida Zanol combines three sectors which so far rarely have been connected in an equally fruitful way: art, ecology and social development.

The Reciclar-Institut educates people who up to that point have been living on and near refuse. Paper collectors or children living off waste, they learn to see the junk as a resource which can be used to produce practical goods for the daily use with nearly no financial input. On top of that, Aguida Zanol shows them how to turn refuse into fashion design, craft, and even recognized art. The increase in value and the psychological increase of self confidence with this project supersedes that of other social projects of this kind. And not at last, the Reciclar-Institute has proven to be a discovery place for creative waste recycling.

 

 

 

Women’s Empowerment Program, Nepal: Marcia Odell (2002)

Large steps leading out of the Poverty Circle

Marcia Odell with eulogist Dr. Karan Singh, Gouverneur of Kashmir and Minister under Indira Gandhi, member of the Club of Rome and of the Club of Budapest.

The outstanding innovation of the Women’s Empowerment Programme lies with the success of making women of the lowest rank in society into successful owners of a business and self confident designers of the community’s life – and that within a short time by way of targeted training measures, resulting in shaping people who are able to take on the challenge of life into their own hands.

In a pilot project for 30,000 women in Nepal, native citizens were educated to carry out projects to teach how to read and write, how to found small businesses and village banks and how to manage small health or social projects – and with their knowledge and skill go on to teach others in a snow ball system. After three years, the results with the 130,000 women are thus:

• the level of literary has increased from 39,000 to 122,000
• the number of small businesses has risen from 19,000 to 86,000
• income has gone up by 1,2 to more than 10 million Dollars
• 1,000 village banks have been founded
• and 50,000 social projects have been planned and carried out on self initiative

Due to this outstanding success and due to the compatibility of the project with other areas of the world, this project in recent years has been much acclaimed.

POEMA, Brazil: Matthias Kleinert & G. Rathgeb (2003)

This institution found a very successful way of protecting the rainforests by promoting rapidly growing raw materials in the international production industry, such as coconuts and sisal. Founder was Willi Hoss (phto: middle) who died in the beginning of the year 2003.

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International Network for Environmental Management: Georg Winter (2003)

B.A.U.M. and INEM, both founded by Georg Winter a businessman from Hamburg, are unusual because their members are 3.000 enterprises from all over the world, that direct their efforts at environmentally conscious management. They developed approaches that benefit both the environment and the companies, for example, through a reduction of production costs.

Maximilian Gege (left), President of B.A.U.M., and Georg Winter (right), President of INEM, visiting German President of State Johannes Rau

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Menschen für Menschen, Ethiopia: Almaz & Karlheinz Böhm (2003)

Founded by Karlheinz Böhm this relief organization is characterized by the outstanding dedication on part of its founder and through exemplary capacity of learning and adaptation concerning the needs of the people in Ethiopia.

Hope is coming back to the villages of Ethiopia

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Fashion for Development, Bangladesh: Bibi Russell (2003)

Bibi Russell, the first world famous model coming from a developing country, uses her popularity to open the doors for poor but very skilled women to enter the world fashion design and production market.

Spinning for haute couture

Haute couture made in Bangladesh

Fashion for development

Working in the consciousness of dignity is the best basis for a successful development

Mariposa, Tenerife: Helga & Hans-Jürgen Müller (2003)

The gallery owners Helga und Hans-Jürgen Müller created in Tenerife a place, where creative leaders of thought, as well as decision makers from economy and politics can work together on holistic approaches for global, eco-social problem solution in a beautiful and inspiring environment.

With a new kind of cultural environment a new kind of conferences is possible

Inspiration by a surrounding created by artists

Each detail is created by artists

 

o Gemeinsam für Afrika (2004)

o Pan y Arte, Nicaragua: Dietmar Schönherr (2004)

o Andheri-Hilfe, Bangladesh: Rosi Gollmann (2004)

o Solidarity in Partnership, Haiti: Peter Hesse (2004)