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Members' Voices: Suhas Ramegowda, The Good Gift

21.07.2023

The Mountain Partnership - the United Nations alliance dedicated to mountains - is all about working together for sustainable mountain development around the world. Our vast and diverse membership counts over 500 members to date, across governments, intergovernmental organizations and civil society.

In this latest Members' Voices feature, the Mountain Partnership Secretariat interviews Suhas Ramegowda, the Director of The Good Gift in India.

1. What is The Good Gift? What is your mission, and how is it connected to mountains/highlands?

The Good Gift (TGG) is the marketing arm of the Indian Yards Foundation (IYF), a nonprofit organization up-skilling women from rural and Indigenous communities in the Nilgiris with craft forms. These women are then integrated into craft clusters, which are informal groups focused on practicing and producing contemporary and practical craft products within their own hamlets for urban communities. TGG, as a for-profit entity, facilitates the marketing of these products. The main objective of this initiative is to instill an entrepreneurial mindset among women from mountain communities, enabling them and their communities towards self-sufficiency. To preserve their traditional way of life and build resilient communities, we have implemented a decentralized backward linking model with craft and commerce as the driving forces.

We recognize the vital role of Indigenous Peoples as custodians of mountain ecosystems, and we prioritize the economic well-being of these communities to ensure environmental protection. By empowering women, we uplift the entire community, striving for greater equity in areas that have historically been neglected in terms of policy and development.

TGG offers a range of contemporary and conscious gifts with a focus on children and living products such as baby teethers, dolls, napkin rings and coaster sets. These gifts are designed based on three core principles: they are good for the consumer, the artisans and the planet.

Each product is handmade using 100 percent natural materials, with one-third of the materials sourced from upcycled pre-consumer textile waste. They are not only practical and modern but also come in eco-packaging made entirely from biodegradable materials. Every box includes a maker card featuring a picture of the artisan and her story, fostering a connection between the consumer and the creator.

2. What would you like the rest of the Mountain Partnership to know about the Nilgiri Mountains and the communities living there?

The Nilgiri Mountains, located at the junction of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala in Southern India, are an integral part of the Western Ghats. They connect the Western Ghats with the Eastern Ghats and have at least 24 peaks exceeding 2 000 metres in height. The word "Nilgiri" originates from the Sanskrit words "Neelam" (blue) and "Giri" (mountain), dating back to at least 1117 CE. The name's origin is associated with theories such as the bluish flowers of the kurinji shrubs that bloom every 12 years and the bluish smoky appearance of the mountains when viewed from afar.

The Nilgiris Mountains are part of the Nilgiris Biosphere Reserve, India's foremost biosphere. Spanning across three states, it compromises nine national parks and stands as the largest protected forest area in the country.

These mountains have an ancient history, having been inhabited solely by Indigenous tribes until their discovery by the British in the early 1800s. The five main indigenous communities - Todas, Kotas, Badagas, Irulas and Kurumbas - had distinct occupations and, prior to colonial rule, maintained a symbiotic relationship with one another.

3. Why do mountains matter to you personally?

Mountains have always intrigued us with their mysticism. It was this very fascination that led us to leave behind our urban corporate lives and embrace the mountains six years ago. Since then, we have gained a better understanding of their significance in our lives. Beyond the well-known statistics of mountains serving as the world's "water towers", providers of food and guardians of forests, we have discovered their inherent generosity and the culturally rich heritage of mountain communities.

Mountains host half of the world's biodiversity hotspots, supporting approximately 25 percent of terrestrial biological diversity. In the Nilgiris alone, more than 2 800 species of flowering plants, 160 species of fern and fern allies, along with countless types of flowerless plants, mosses, fungi, algae and land lichens can be found. The region is also home to exquisite reptiles, birds and mammals, boasting the highest number of tigers in the world within the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. The list is endless.

Despite their richness, mountains are often overlooked. Yet, their generosity continues unabated. While it was the mysticism that initially drew us to these mountains, it is their magnanimity that has kept us firmly rooted. We wish to dedicate the rest of our lives promoting sustainable development in these mountains, working alongside the mountain communities.

4. Please share some specific examples of projects The Good Gift is working on to promote sustainable mountain development.

The main goal of this initiative is to empower women in mountain communities, promoting their economic well-being and fostering self-sufficiency within their households and communities. This is crucial for achieving sustainable development.

For example, Ramya comes from a small farming household and had been facing financial difficulties with no source of income and young children to care for. Ramya underwent crochet skill training and joined a crochet craft cluster facilitated by IYF. Now, she produces crochet products for TGG and earns enough to not only cover her household expenses but also contribute to her farming needs. Remarkably, she accomplishes all this while working from home and taking care of her child.

These communities have long struggled with waste management and conservation challenges. We have been working with them to reintroduce sustainable waste generation and management practices. In line with this, TGG products use a zero-waste production process, promoting the principles of circularity and responsible consumption.

Our capacity building efforts for women in these communities have been multi-pronged. In addition to instilling craft and entrepreneurial skills, we prioritize leadership development to create relatable role models from within the communities.

5. What tangible impact has The Good Gift had on communities / how many people do you work with?

IYF has upskilled over 100 women from these communities, equipping them with artisanal skills as first-generation artisans. The Good Gift actively supports 53 women from seven different villages to consistently generate an income of approximately 8 000 INR per month (equivalent to around 98 USD). This has further impacted over 200 individuals within these communities.

This initiative's approach has prioritized depth of impact rather than scale of impact. Our effort has been towards supporting a focused group of women, providing them with market linkages that enable them to surpass poverty and thrive, rather than merely survive.

By consistently working to increase income generation for this focused group, we aim to ensure that the next generation from these families will not have to migrate from the mountains due to economic insecurity. It enables mountain people to remain in their homes and continue protecting the biodiversity of the region.

6. What does The Good Gift hope to gain by being part of the Mountain Partnership?

We have actively engaged with the Mountain Partnership (MP) for some time now, and this collaboration has provided us with valuable insights and knowledge. As MP members, we have gained further access to a platform that, when leveraged effectively, holds the potential to showcase the cultural and craft heritage of the Nilgiris Mountains to a global audience. The spirit of mountain people is reflected amply in their craftsmanship, and we aim to provide this expression with a world stage. Through our involvement in this Partnership, we also look to align ourselves with the collective efforts and movements towards sustainable development in mountains worldwide. It is a space for us to learn, inspire and take action.

Watch the documentary about the mountain communities in the Nilgiris

Read the full Exposure Story