How have we done this?

Global Grassroots’s model for women-led enterprises was our two-year Academy for Conscious Change that includes a unique blend of training, high-engagement support, and seed funding. The Academy’s Conscious Social Change curriculum includes mind-body trauma healing for those impacted by chronic stress, violence, or other traumatic experiences, to support wellbeing, confidence and agency, and to increase the capacity for planning beyond day-to-day survival. It incorporates mindfulness-based leadership and a mindful design process, which involves examining change from the inside out. Personal transformation from one’s own process of self-growth builds human understanding and compassion for creating systems change among others. Our Academy also served as an incubator, using social entrepreneurship skills to help teams of women design every aspect of a non-profit organization that would construct and operate a community water enterprise. When problems arose, rather than solving for the women, staff leveraged their own mindful leadership skills to facilitate discussion. This included honoring women’s wisdom and leadership instincts and using “inquiry without imposition” to help teams generate solutions of their own. If a situation persisted, staff would provide additional training, co-facilitate problem-solving sessions, or support team leaders as they worked with key stakeholders. We then funded 100% of the start-up costs (usually $8,000 - $15,000) with a grant, so that ventures did not have to be saddled with debt repayment. 

The water infrastructure usually involves extending a pipeline of water to a water access point in the middle of a village, which then sells water at or below market rates (some even reduced per liter prices by 90%). The water sales revenue covers all operating expenses, maintenance and future repairs. The venture is operated by the women’s team as a non-profit organization, and incorporates other related trainings, services, and advocacy programs, funded by profits above municipal water supply rates. In addition to delivering clean drinking water to an average 3000 people, each non-profit solution radically improves community health, women’s safety and gender relations; eliminates violence and exploitation associated with collection; ensures girls attend school on time; fosters women’s leadership and economic opportunities; and generates an ongoing source of revenue for the women to reinvest in their community - all at an average cost of just $8 per beneficiary.  Over years, these water ventures continue to serve as sustainable, social innovation hubs for women's rights. Our experience has shown that one successful experience as a change agent is quickly followed by expansion and/or an iterative problem-solving process where women take on other challenges facing women in their communities. Women not only will have more courage, but they will also have greater access to resources to do so.  In every case, ventures become catalysts for women’s empowerment, community health, education, economic opportunity, and children's wellbeing.

Click here to learn more about the Academy for Conscious Social Change and our four phases, 24-months program.

Download our Catalyzing Women & Girls as Leaders of Conscious Social Change, PDF.