Vidnyanvahini and its MSL
In February 2015, IDS board members Nilesh Kothari and Nila Vora, along with Jerome McDonnell and Steve Bynum of WBEZ, visited Vidnyanvahini during their trip to India. IDS supported this project, which was the brainchild of former IDS board member Dr. Madhukar...
International Yoga Day
Celebrate International Yoga Day (June 21, 2015) with the students of our tribal hostel in Vizianagaram District, Andhra Pradesh! Meanwhile, in New Delhi, nearly 36,000 people set a record for the world’s biggest yoga session in a single venue. Indian...
IDS Featured on WBEZ’s Global Activism Podcasts
Listen to World View with Jerome McDonnell in anticipation of IDS’s 40th celebration last fall. https://soundcloud.com/wbez-worldview/decades-of-development-in-india If you missed listening to the first episode of WBEZ visit to IDS project that aired April...
Government Recognizes Innovative Preschool Model
With additional funding from a private donor, Sodhana Charitable Trust was able to construct a pucca building for Balabadi children in S.C. colony Vedullavalasa in the month of September 2014. The building was completed in November and an inaugural ceremony took place...
Family Supports IDS Project Close to its Roots
In recognition of the 40th anniversary of IDS, the funds raised from an event held in Pittsburgh in November were donated to IDS. The Joshi family established The Dr. Manohar Joshi Film Series in 2012, in remembrance of Dr. Joshi, a cardiologist and long-time resident...
CinePlay “Between the Lines”
IDS has a long history of bringing new and unique events to Chicago that have social relevance beyond entertainment. In continuation of our 40th anniversary celebration, IDS hosted the screening of Between the Lines, a film that examines gender equality in...
The HEF Story
IDS support helped the Himalayan Education Foundation (HEF) with a solar installation project in a school operating in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand. The solar installation provides uninterrupted lighting to the classrooms, library, dormitories, dining hall,...
Kolhapur’s Female Rag Pickers Tackle Poverty
In July 2014, IDS approved a grant supporting AVANI’s efforts to empower the rag picking community in Kolhapur, Maharastra, for the next three years. The grant will enable AVANI, a new member of IDS’ charitable network, to help female rag pickers in Kolhapur tackle...
Cylcone Hudhud Destroys Tribal Schools and Homes
Last week, Cyclone Hudhud (category 4) bore down on Eastern Andhra Pradesh with 120 mph sustained winds. Unfortunately, IDS’s network of tribal schools and hostel was in the direct line of the storm. The cyclone damaged our hostel, destroyed at least three of...
Child Rag Pickers Attend School in Growing Numbers
In a year’s time, we have been able to convince rag-picker parents to send their children to our schools, and enrollment has boomed (https://idsusa.orgblog/2014/09/05/booming-enrollment-network-rag-picker-schools/). We have been working to not only improve...