Anjali Desai is a volunteer at Manav Sadhna, an NGO
based at Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, whose mission is to serve the
underprivileged. Seva Cafe is one of its many projects in Ahmedabad.
Seva, or service, is the selfless giving of oneself for the betterment of others and the world around us. At Seva Cafe, the concept of service takes the form of a "pay it forward" restaurant, where every meal is cooked and served with love, and all customers are treated like family.
(4 min)
"We all move when one person has a realization, one person has an idea, when one person works, and it's just so interconnected that it's sort of adding to universal goodness around the world."
Jayesh Patel is the co-founder and director of Manav
Sadhna, an NGO based in the Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, India. Formed
in 1990 with the mission to serve the underprivileged, Manav Sadhna now
provides health and hygiene, education, and employment services to over
4,500 women and children through over 38 projects.
In "Living Service", Jayesh Patel, founder of the Indian NGO Manav Sadhna, walks us through the vast slums of Ahmedabad, showing us how Gandhian principles inspire the organization to help women and children living in poverty. Jayesh explains that the world has enough good ideas and what's really needed is for all of us to commit to one another through humble service.
(16 min 43 sec)
"Be like a ladder, not like a leader. If you become a ladder, then everyone develops themselves. And try to love all, serve all."
Emmanuel is the project
manager of the Niligris-Wynaad Tribal Welfare Society, a small NGO
based on the borders of Kerala and Tamil Nadu in Southern India.
Emmanuel and his small and dedicated staff provide basic health care,
education and support to four different tribal groups in the region.
Emmanuel Gnanamanickam, a community leader and manager of an NGO providing services to tribal areas in South India, says the most important thing he's learned from his patients is that life cannot go on without trust. Working in a way that respects each person's individuality creates bonds of trust, which allows larger-scale transformation to take place.
Emmanuel Sumithran Gnanamanickam, a community leader and manager of an NGO providing services to tribal areas in South India, questions what is really meant by the term "global village." Until every person on the planet feels concern, appreciation, and accountability to every other person on the planet, Emmanuel asks, have we really earned the name Global Village?
(2 min 48 sec)
"My will to make a change could be to respect every individual whom I meet, whom I work with, whom I interact with, for the person that he or she is."
