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It began with a simple $27 loan. After witnessing the cycle of poverty that kept many poor women enslaved to high-interest loan sharks in Bangladesh, Dr. Muhammad Yunus lent money to 42 women so they could purchase bamboo to make and sell stools. In a short time, the women were able to repay the loans while continuing to support themselves and their families. With that initial eye-opening success, the seeds of the Grameen Bank, and the concept of microcredit, were planted.
After earning a Ph.D. in economics at Vanderbilt University, Dr. Yunus returned to Bangladesh to settle into a life as a professor. But a famine in 1974 ravaged the country, leading Dr. Yunus to alter his thinking and his life profoundly: "What good were all my complex theories when people were dying of starvation on the sidewalks and porches across from my lecture hall?.... Nothing in the economic theories I taught reflected the life around me." Armed with little more than a lofty dream to end the suffering around him, he started an experimental microcredit enterprise in 1977; by 1983 the Grameen Bank was officially formed.
The idea behind the Grameen Bank is ingeniously simple: extend credit to poor people and they will help themselves. This concept strikes at the root of poverty by specifically targeting the poorest of the poor, providing small loans (usually less than $300) to those unable to obtain credit from traditional banks. At Grameen, loans are administered to groups of five people, with only two receiving their money up front. As soon as these two make a few regular payments, loans are gradually extended to the rest of the group. In this way, the program builds a sense of community as well as individual self-reliance. Most of the Grameen Bank's loans are to women, and since its inception, there has been an astonishing loan repayment rate of over 98 percent.
Banker to the Poor is an inspiring memoir of the birth of microcredit, written in a conversational tone that makes it both moving and enjoyable to read. The Grameen Bank is now a $2.5 billion banking enterprise in Bangladesh, while the microcredit model has spread to over 50 countries worldwide, from the U.S. to Papua New Guinea, Norway to Nepal. Ever optimistic, Yunus travels the globe spreading the belief that poverty can be eliminated: "...the poor, once economically empowered, are the most determined fighters in the battle to solve the population problem; end illiteracy; and live healthier, better lives. When policy makers finally realize that the poor are their partners, rather than bystanders or enemies, we will progress much faster that we do today." Dr. Yunus's efforts prove that hope is a global currency. --Shawn Carkonen
Book Description
This autobiography of the world-renowned, visionary economist who came up with a simple but revolutionary solution to end world poverty--micro-credit--has become the classic text for a growing movement.
In 1983 Muhammad Yunus established Grameen, a bank devoted to providing the poorest of Bangladesh with miniscule loans. He aimed to help the poor by supporting the spark of personal initiative and enterprise by which they could lift themselves out of poverty forever. It was an idea born on a day in 1976 when he loaned $27 from his own pocket to forty-two people living in a tiny village. They were stool makers who only needed enough credit to purchase the raw materials for their trade. Yunus's loan helped them break the cycle of poverty and changed their lives forever. His solution to world poverty, founded on the belief that credit is a fundamental human right, is brilliantly simple: loan poor people money on terms that are suitable to them, teach them a few sound financial principles, and they will help themselves.
Yunus's theories work. Grameen Bank has provided 3.8 billion dollars to 2.4 million families in rural Bangladesh. Today, more than 250 institutions in nearly 100 countries operate micro-credit programs based on the Grameen methodology, placing Grameen at the forefront of a burgeoning world movement toward eradicating poverty through micro-lending.
Customer Reviews:
Turning Inspiration into Action.......2007-10-05
Not wanting to repeat the accolades mentioned in the reviews posted I would like to instead share how reading this book and meeting Yunus was a catalyst to some actions I took both on a personal and professional level. The intent is not self promotion or to showcase my efforts. Instead, I am providing ideas and addressing those of you who may find, as I did, that after finishing the last page you are left with a desire to do something. The dilemma was what could I do ......I am not a bank or live in a developing country. I did give copies of the book to friends, colleagues and family but I wanted to do something more concrete. Well, with micro finance "on my radar" I took some actions both on a personal and professional level that I hope are making a difference and are in some ways increasing the visibility and awareness of micro financing.
First a little background and comments on the book.....I had the great honor of meeting Muhammad Yunus shortly after he received the Nobel Peace prize in 2006 at an event in Paris sponsored by Planet Finance. Yunus is truly an inspirational person, charismatic in a subtle way, who has touched the lives of many. His enthusiasm is contagious. The book Banker to the Poor is a fascinating read.... humorous, touching and informational as it traces the evolution of the micro finance model from concept (starting with Yunus lending the equivalent of $27 to stool makers) to what it is today with over 7.2 million clients. What resonates with me is the idea of lending versus aid dumps from the World Bank, UN, NGO's and charity organizations. I don't want to discount the millions given as direct charity to the needy but the concept of micro finance creates a sense of pride and responsibility not to mention innovation and creativity. Micro finance can also generate incremental improvement versus charity or outright donations which, in many cases dries up, is short term and results in dependence instead of empowerment.
Some actions I took:
* I became aware of KIVA (www.kiva.org) an organization that facilitates micro loans (as little as $25) from individuals like you and I to a specific entrepreneur in a developing world empowering them to lift themselves out of poverty. These individuals are in fact showcased on the site where you can see a picture and read about the entrepreneur you have chosen. KIVA is founded by an impressive team of "Social Entrepreneurs". Using technology, KIVA brings the lenders and borrowers together and provides an online community for lenders who are also showcased on the site. Involving my daughter (10) in the decision process we are lending to an entrepreneur in Samoa, so she can buy timber to improve her greenhouse for her flower business.
* As President of my alumni association (Thunderbird) I organized an event around Micro Financing with the Managing Director of Planet Rating, a microfinance rating agency, as a guest speaker.
* At a university in Paris I run a project based course involving teams of MBA students. Proposing a project related to micro finance the students were enthusiastic and completed a study on micro finance in Europe.
* Professionally, I work with individuals in career transition and entrepreneurs in helping them to identify their unique strengths and values and message their brand appropriately both online and offline. Fundamentally, I find that people have a social conscious and want to do something concrete. To this end I suggest lending to a KIVA entrepreneur as a way to concretely incorporate a social conscious into their brand.
* As part of my involvement in a Global Telesummit entitled a Brand You World www.personalbrandingsummit.com I am involved in raising $100,000 in loans for KIVA entrepreneurs in the developing world. Incidentally, Kiva was featured on Oprah and is mentioned in Clinton's book "Giving".
Having shared how I was inspired by reading this book I would be more then interested in hearing how it inspired you and what actions you took.
Bernadette
Bernadette Martin
www.visibilitybranding.com
Enlightening work.......2007-08-12
Muhammad Yunus believed that every human being had a basic right to credit. He believed in the human spirit and peoples' hard work and honesty when given a chance to sustain themselves above poverty. His accomplishments have proven his theory over and over in several countries to millions of people. Micro-lending will surely be a part of the future success in Africa, Asia, and South America. A modified form of Mr. Yunus' model has worked in the USA, unfortunately, we as Americans aren't schooled nor molded to be basic entrepreneurs. We must change our school systems from teaching how to become good employees to how to become entrepreneurs as well. Mr. Yunus' model includes 5 person groups to help each other and support each other when one gets behind in loan repayments and/or family crisis. This is a very important requirement to micro-lending and must not be excluded when trying to duplicate the success of the Grameen Bank.
Thank goodness we have people in our world like Muhammad Yunus to teach us how to treat other human beings.
Poverty should be extinct!.......2007-08-09
This book is a testament to the good one can do to millions of people!
Poverty belongs in museums! One day, thanks to humanitarians like Muhammad Yunus, poverty will be something of the past and totally extinct, and the next generation will wonder how poverty was ever allowed to exist within our midst. Indeed that will be a glorious day!
Professor Yunus recounts his early life living in India, Bangladesh, and then in the United States. He was born in 1940 in British-ruled India. He was one of fourteen children born to devout Muslim parents. His mother was often ill, but despite this, his father never left her. Yunus later obtained a scholarship to study in the States, earned a Ph.D. in economics at Vanderbilt University, and later became a professor. He once commented to his students, "What good were all my complex theories when people were dying of starvation on the sidewalks and porches across from my lecture hall? Nothing in the economic theories I taught reflected the life around me."
As a young man he was very involved in the independence of Bangladesh when hundreds of thousands died, and many more after Bangladesh declared itself independent. The country was devastated, and stripped of its natural resources. Professor Yunus quickly left the US and headed to Bangladesh in order to help create a government, and thus get international help and support.
He was very concerned about the poor, and decided to help them. He was surprised why banks did not lend them money. Also the majority of the poor couldn't write or read, so they couldn't even fill out the forms required by banks in order to obtain a loan.
Grameen Bank (The name means the "bank of the village") was thus started in 1976 as an experimental project to combat rural poverty by providing credit to the very poor. Professor Yunus loaned $27 from his own pocket to forty-two stool makers living in a tiny village. These women only needed enough credit to purchase the raw materials for their trade. Yunus's small loan helped them break the cycle of poverty for good. Throughout the book you'll read of many such success stories.
Professor Yunus faced a lot of obstacles in creating his bank. He was accused by the Muslim clergy (Mullahs) of wanting to destroy Islamic traditions, and of promoting Christian values in Bangladesh. Some of his staff were even threatened. This was due to the fact that the bank encourages women to take loans and work, something of a taboo and highly unacceptable to Muslim women living in Bangladesh. In fact, many women were beaten by their husbands for the mere mention of money, let alone taking a loan. Women were also not encouraged to receive an education or work. Professor Yunus says, "All her life she has been told that she is no good, that she brings only misery to her family, and that they cannot afford to pay her dowry. Many times she hears her mother or her father tell her she should have been killed at birth, aborted, or starved. But today, for the first time in her life, an institution has trusted her with a great sum of money. She promises that she will never let down the institution or herself. She will struggle to make sure that every penny is paid back (65)."
In 1983 Grameen Bank (GB) was officially established. It is unique in that it has reversed conventional banking practices by removing the need for collateral and created a banking system based on mutual trust. It promotes credit as a human right. Its mission is to help the poor families to help themselves to overcome poverty by issuing them with microcredits (very small amounts, like $7, something a conventional bank would never do). It is offered for creating self-employment for income-generating activities and housing, as opposed to consumption. It is particularly targeted towards poor women. It provides service at the door-step of the poor based on the principle that the people should not go to the bank; the bank should go to the people. This principal is helpful in a Muslim society where women are not allowed to leave their homes without the approval of their husband, and are not allowed to speak with men.
In order to obtain loans a borrower must join a group of borrowers, with each borrower recommending another. If one member of the group defaults on payment of his loan, then the whole group is denied further loans! However, to encourage destitute members to join, he/she does not have to belong to a group, no saving is necessary, no weekly repayment is necessary, his/her loan terms are decided by him/her, in consultation with his/her mentor.
A member is considered to have moved out of poverty if her family fulfills the following criteria:
1. The family lives in a house worth at least Tk. 25,000 (twenty five thousand) or a house with a tin roof, and each member of the family is able to sleep on bed instead of on the floor.
2. Family members drink pure water.
3. All children in the family over six years of age go to school or have finished primary school.
4. Minimum weekly loan installment of the borrower is Tk. 200 or more.
5. Family uses sanitary latrine.
6. Family has adequate clothing for everyday use and for winter, and mosquito-nets.
7. Family has sources of additional income, such as a vegetable garden, so that they are able to fall back on these sources of income when they need additional money.
8. The borrower maintains an average annual balance of Tk. 5,000 in his/her savings accounts.
9. Family has three square meals a day throughout the year. No member of the family goes hungry any time of the year.
10. If any member of the family falls ill, family can afford to take all necessary steps to seek adequate healthcare.
Professor Yunus distrusted dealing with the World Bank. According to professor Yunus, the world bank, with its headquarters away from Bangladesh, does not see poverty, but relies on theories. He also was wary of how they took full control of a country's financial needs.
There were a number of major natural disasters in Bangladesh. The 1998 flood was the worst of all. Half of the country was under flood-water for ten long weeks. Grameen borrowers lost most of their possessions including their houses because of the flood. Soon borrowers started to feel the burden of accumulated loans. They found the new installment sizes exceeded their capacity to repay. Grameen Bank repayment started to show quick decline. This was a good opportunity to design a new Grameen methodology, incorporating all the lessons learnt. As a result, Grameen Bank II was created.
The bank believes that the poor always pay back their loans, unlike the very rich. On some occasions they may take longer time to pay back than it was originally stipulated. Many things can go wrong for a poor person during the loan period. According to professor Yunus, since the borrower is paying additional interest for the extra time, where is the problem?
Grameen Bank has introduced higher education loans for all students who can enter into the higher educational institutions (medical, engineering, etc). Students are made responsible to repay the loans when they start earning. Half the scholarships are reserved for girl students. The remaining 50 per cent is open for both boys and girls. Each year Grameen Bank gives out 3,704 scholarships.
Grameen believes that poverty is not created by the poor; it is created by the institutions and policies which surround them. In order to eliminate poverty, all we need to do is to make appropriate changes in the institutions and policies, and/or create new ones.
Muhammad Yunus and his Grameen Bank of Bangladesh won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize.
As of May, 2007, Grameen Bank had 7.21 million borrowers, 97 percent of whom are women. With 2431 branches, it provides services in 78,659 villages, covering more than 94 percent of the total villages in Bangladesh.
About 3 billion people live on less than $1 per day. Professor Yunus' vision is of eliminating poverty by 2050.
This is really a fascinating book and I highly recommend it.
Great for those interested in poverty relief/development.......2007-08-07
After reading, we bought multiple copies to give away to colleagues working in various capacities in poor areas of the world. Yunus' ideas and experience need to be examined and considered. This is no World Bank/UN/WMF big program aid-dump, but a reasonable, realistic, measured path from poverty to empowerment for the world's poor.
Lateral Banking.......2007-07-03
Learn how limiting entrenched Eurocentric thinking can be. Be inspired by the lateral thinking of Muhammad Yunus! A heartwarming read with just a touch too much description of the complexities of beaurocracy, but a must read nevertheless.
Customer Reviews:
Difficult to get through, but worth the effort.......2005-06-24
I have used Ong's book in a number of classes (I am an anthropologist). I use it as an example of the impact of globalization and industrialization on women. I like it because Ong specifically addresses this issue in the book: she gives an overview of the historical processes that have shaped Malaysia (i.e., industrialization didn't just happen in a vacuum: there were historical precedents), and she clearly outlines how industrialization has reshaped gender relations in rural Malaysian society.
However, her prose can be very difficult to wade through at times. Her theoretical approach is postmodernist, relying heavily on Foucault. There's a lot of jargon here, and undergraduates can be put off by that. In class, I have to help them with a bit of an overview of postmodernism and Foucault more specifically. For the general reader, a book like Postmodernism for Beginners (which uses comics to explain theory) might be useful!
I'd like to add that I disagree with Palanisamy Ramasamy's review: she writes that Ong argues that returning to the past (the "old tranquil kampung life") is the solution for women. I don't think that that is what Ong argues at all. I don't think she sees "traditional" kampung life as being all that positive a thing for women; but she also argues that industrialization ("modernity") -- while providing kampung women with some escape from rigid gender roles -- has produced a whole new set of problems for kampung women as they challenge those roles. My impression is that kampung women can be "stuck between a rock and a hard place" as Malaysia attempts to transition from what is basically a subsistence/horticultural society into an industrialized society (for better or worse).
However, I do think she's right to say that Ong's discussion of resistance is pretty thin: one wonders if women don't resist in other ways, and/or if they even consider spirit possession a form of resistance. There is no evidence presented that they do. Ong doesn't even seem sure of that. Thus, the book ends on an ambiguous note.
A Postmodernist Approach.......2000-02-29
Ong has come out with an interesting and well-researched piece on the subject of female resistance. But unfortunately, she only focusses on mass hysteria as the most commonly articulated resistance among young Malay women. But what about other forms of resistances such as overt and collective. What is the solution for women? Ong is under the impression that the old tranquil kampung life is the best remedy. Can these workers go back to the past? Is there a time-tunnel?
a clear explanation of malaysian factory women's resistence.......1999-04-16
Aihwa Ong takes an anthropological perspective in defining the occurences of spirit posessions and mass hysteria among the female factory workers in malaysia. By illustrating the evolution of the malaysian economy from agrarian to industrial, disintegration of the traditional family norms and reifying the responsibility of kin, the stage is set to portray the culture shock. the author uses case studies to show the diverse changes that affect the family and the distribution of economic responsibility. further, the conflict between the factory operators and the control imposed on them by upper levels of management adds to the tension that these factory workers must cope with. as these women use religious responses instead of more pragmatic methods to confront the issues of corporate and social control that are enacted upon them, they maginify the cultural perceptions that women are the spiritually susceptible, therefore, enabling a break and a vent for the archived anger and frustration that this economic system has smelted. I found the book informative and a better resource for sociological studies than anthropological endeavors, easy to read, and a worthy text for an Anthropology 101 or Sociology 111 course.
Ong's work is necessary in any discussion of globalization........1998-10-12
The American Dream. An ideal, the golden land, something to strive for, capitalism. For most immigrants of the early twentieth century, the "American" way of life was sought after as a better way than that found in the old country. Imagine the dilemma posed to you if that same type of capitalistic market was forced onto you, the villager of rural Malaysia, never having wanted a change in lifestyle. In her book, Spirits of Resistance and Capitalist Discipline, Aihwa Ong aims to show how the experiences of Malay women working in neoteric factories and capitalistic life culminate in spirit attacks on the factory floor. Ong succeeds in this endeavor and allows for the intellectual discussion of the possible ramifications of the development of capitalistic ventures on a global scale. Ong addresses her work to a unique group of scholars familiar with the affairs of Southeast Asia, supplementing the anthropological studies of others such as Michael Taussig. She notes, "Spirit possession episodes, in which women become violent and scream abuses, are to be deciphered not so much as a noncapitalist critique of abstract exchange values (Taussig 1980) but as a protest against the loss of autonomy/humanity in work (7-8)." Ong proves this thesis by examining the different aspects of Malay life that have been effected since British colonization: "In the specified spheres of social welfare, sexuality, and education, to name only a few, the everyday lives of village Malays are being reconstituted according to new concepts, language, and procedures (55)." Before the British introduced capitalism to Malaysia, the peasant household strove to be self-sufficient and adapted to easy relocation. While the village (kampung) still exists today, life within it has changed. Children learning English integrate words and phrases into the native Malay tongue as a symbol of their knowledge of the outside world. Marriage and dating practices have changed drastically. Ong notes of her experience in Malaysia in this arena: "Almost all factory women chose their potential spouses either directly, through correspondence, or by accepting a suitor's overtures. This autonomy was directly based on their earning power, since increasingly, village women were expected to save and contribute towards their own wedding expenses and bridal furnishings (199)." Even time spent during the day has changed with schoolgirls still being expected to contribute to household work while "boys spend most of their free time in ball games, scouting, and other extracurricular activities (94)." Given the field specific language of the above observations, the work is dominated by strong cultural text often unfamiliar to the reader. Ong is presenting the conclusions of an anthropological study, and such technical terms and references dominate the diction of the work. Nevertheless, she allows for lay readers to experience the lives of otherwise distant cultures and people. In this pursuit, Ong succeeds in opening a view of globalization that would have otherwise would have been kept shut. The specialized language does not prohibit a meaningful read that has effects on a larger scale. Ong relates her study of the change of the Malay culture to the world as a whole, sparking the reader's interest in the global village. Using the oil crisis of the 1970s as another example of the influx of transnational corporations, Ong explains the connection between the Malaysian situation and the possibility of the same occurrence in another nation. "To escape mounting labor costs at home and gain market access abroad, transnational corporations headquartered in Japan, the United States, and Western Europe began to scatter labor-intensive production processes throughout the third world." The introduction of these TNCs into rural Malay life "facilitated the large-scale entry of kampung women into industrial employment," and thus changed Malay traditions and practices (145). At the same time, however, Malay women did not wish to question the overall male-dominated systems that governed over all areas of life. "They wished for an improvement in their economic position but not a social emancipation in which they would share power with men in general (193)." Ong constructs a model from her case study of Malaysia that can be applied to other nations that are faced with the introduction of TNCs. Each example drawn from Malaysia discloses pertinent information about this model, unfolding an intriguing perspective in which to evaluate world affairs. As the Malay society changed, ordinary men and women refashioned their own culture, incorporating capitalistic ideals while struggling to maintain their cultural heritage. One example is the paradox that seems to exist as women gain more independence in certain areas of their lives (e.g. dating and marriage practices), but at the same time have no wish for total social emancipation. Ong acknowledges that hantu symbolism speaks of the right for factory women to be treated as human beings and not simply as the toys of capitalism. On the global level, this calls into question whether certain cultural practices are safe to foreign intervention and whether others are susceptible to change. Ong sets out "to demonstrate how spirit attacks speak to the contemporary experiences of Malay women and their families as they make the transition from peasant society to industrial production (Preface xiii)." Spirits of Resistance and Capitalist Discipline is an integral part of any discussion of globalization due to its stress on the loss of autonomy within those effected directly by capitalism (i.e. neophyte factory women). It calls into question the basic assumptions of culture, beliefs, practices, and tradition. It forces the reader to evaluate the good of transnational corporations, and then to look at the negative effects caused by those same organizations. It pushes intellectual thought past conventional lines into an arena of intercultural sensitivity where readers can do nothing but empathize with those who must encounter spirits of resistance in the contemptuous face of capitalist discipline.
Customer Reviews:
Missionary student, have used this book. .......2007-08-15
Excellent for use in third world countries. Every missionary should own a copy of this book. The only reason I do not give 5 stars to this book is because of the philosophies of David Werner on community development, which contradict biblical community development ideas. For instance, he promotes some non-conservative ideas about birth control. So Christians, just be careful whose hands this book gets into. I would give the same warning about the "where there is no women doctor" book. That one is definitely not worth buying, you're better off with a good basic handbook on childbirth and prenatal care.
common sense.......2007-08-05
or lack thereof, c'mon people give me a break! If there is no doctor around and you are in need of medical attention then MOVE! stop whining because you have not lifted your feet for the entire existence of the planet! This kind of thing just nauseates me. I wish them well but c'mon, move away from despair and get closer to somewhere that a doctor can help you! Progression is hard I suppose.
A village health care handbook for Africa, not an EMT manual........2007-05-30
Judging this book by its intended purpose it looks very good. Many things are basic like cleanliness, diet, don't smoke ciggarettes, etc. But I thought some were not so basic (and I couldn't find them in my boy scout manual). For example:
Page 67: the possible medicines needed for injection (Appendicitis - ampicillin or penicillin with streptomycin, syphilis - benzathine penicillin, gonorrhea - kanamycin, etc).
Page 154: six different vaccinations and the reccomended ages.
Page 169: a flowchart to care for a person with acute diarrhea (when would you give them metonidazole, or co-trimoxazole, or ampicillin?).
Page 180: treatment for pneumonia.
Page 208-210 chart: 38 different types of skin problems which include onthocerciasis, vitiligo, and kwashiorkor.
ETC.
Also the basic stuff is so well laid out that I could see it helping a worker organize their thoughts along the lines of "What do I need to check?" or "What do I need to teach those who don't know the basics?". If you were in a remote situation, people were sick wanting you to help them NOW, and THERE WAS NO DOCTOR this manual would be very reassuring to have. Stress can make you forget basics. Or maybe if you were in the States and couldn't afford health insurance and wanted to be sure you were in true need before you went to the doctor who will bill you for walking in the door?
Very VERY basic.......2007-04-26
Unless you have no experience with basic medical care you will likely find this book very elementary and you would be better off buying a boy scout's handbook, although it wouldn't cover some of the female items, it would give you more information on dealing with the day to day.
The numerous references about 'seeing a doctor' defy the title and purpose implied by the book.
Very useful material.......2007-02-24
David Werner has assembled a wonderful primer for anyone rendering care in the third world. There is useful information for everyone from lay people to MDs, well worth the time it takes to read the book. I especially like the succinct treatment plans with common and inexpensive medications. Treating patients in the third world without a laboratory, X-ray, or other modern tools takes a different mindset that WHERE THERE IS NO DOCTOR puts into perspective.
Strongly recommended. I'm taking a copy back to the mountains of Panama with me next week.
Book Description
The eastern savannas of war-ravaged Colombia, known as the llanos, are among the most brutal environments on Earth, an unlikely setting for one of the most hopeful environmental stories ever told. Here, more than twenty-five years ago, an intrepid visionary named Paolo Lugari set out to create a village that could sustain itself agriculturally, economically, and artistically. He reasoned that if a community could survive in the Colombian llanos, it would be possible to live anywhere. The new village was named after the graceful river terns common in the area, los gaviotas.
The early inhabitants of Gaviotas soon realized that if they wanted even basic necessities, they would need to be very resourceful. So they invented wind turbines that convert mild breezes into energy, super-efficient pumps that tap previously inaccessible sources of water, and solar kettles that sterilize drinking water using the furious heat of the tropical sun.
They even invented a rain forest! Two million pine trees planted as a renewable crop have unexpectedly allowed the rain forest to re-establish itself. Paolo Lugari and the Gaviotans, in their quest to create a model human habitat, serendipitously renewed an entire ecosystem. This is why Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez has called Lugari as “The Inventor of the World."
Customer Reviews:
Must Read.......2007-03-15
This is an amazing story about an amazing REAL place... It is an obligated reading for all of those who care about sustainability and renewable energy and wonder whether there is an alternative for our society.
Read this and you will be full of hope and energy for action.
Engaging Style.......2006-04-04
This book shows people solving ecological problems as a community. Weisman engages the reader by showing the people involved, not only the ones with training in certain disciplines, but also natives with practical solutions for living in a Columbian village. Even the children got involved in problem solving in Gaviotos.
They have learned to live in a place where there are many dangers due to drug wars, yet their survival skills are exceptional.
I highly recommend this eye-opening book
Barbara Spring
Not DIY.......2005-03-14
The vision described in the book is inspiring and very hopeful. The idea is to use our ingenuity in ways directly adapted to our environment so that small towns can be self-sufficient. Along the way, very clever uses of wind and water are discovered and described. If the reader is looking for great general ideas or approaches, this book would be hard to beat. On the other hand, if you are a garage-tinkerer and would delight in building the clever devices described, this book is close but no cigar. The drawings offered in the book purposely omit the most important details required to fabricate the devices in a proper working form. If you are a tinkerer and want to build these "goodies," you have three options. In the U.S., you can e-mail with the "Sustainable Village" web site and get the plans (eventually---they are not quick in responding). You can contact the Gaviotas offices in Bogota, Colombia. You can, of course, also take the basic idea and think through the details for yourself. That could take longer and be a little more expensive---perhaps. If you primarily want the ideas and the inspiration, then buy the book, by all means. If you primarily want to tinker and build, go straight for the plans.
interesting.......2004-12-17
In 1998, journalist Alan Weisman collected and presented information about a little known, yet quite monumental, village known as Gaviotas. To get there, one must travel 16 hours by car from the nearest major Columbian city, Bogotá. Even then the path there is not a smooth one; rough, muddy roads and severe political unrest serve as some major barriers in getting to Gaviotas. So why then is such an arduous trip worth it; in essence, Gaviotas is yet another tiny village located in a generally uninhabitable region and possesses none of the modern modes of transportation or communication that we are accustomed to. While in a sense these aspects may be true of Gaviotas, it is also undeniable that this community holds as one of the most efficient, supportive, and thoughtful communities on the planet.
Started in 1971 by a group of Bogotá scientists, Gaviotas originally was created as a sort of scientific experiment, a reaction to the way things were - which clearly wasn't working. A Gaviotas saying goes "the real maturity in life is to realize your dreams" and the founders of Gaviotas did just that when they decided to create their own society. The harsh life and extreme poverty that had been rampant in developing urban areas paired with the blatant depletion of natural resources was enough to spark the idea that maybe there should be a change. Yet instead of trying to make changes in the system already in place, this group of determined individuals took on the radical notion of creating an entirely new, segregated, yet completely self-sufficient, place to live. And that is just what happened.
Wonderful, Inspiring, Hopeful!.......2003-05-06
It was one of the best books I've ever read.
Go get it right now!
Book Description
A prize-winning investigative expose of the poverty and injustice experienced by China's 900 million peasants, told through a series of dramatic personal narratives
The Chinese economic miracle is happening despite, not because of, China's 900 million peasants. They are missing from the portraits of booming Shanghai, or Beijing. Many of China's underclass live under a feudalistic system unchanged since the fifteenth century. They are truly the voiceless in modern China. They are also, perhaps, the reason that China will not be able to make the great social and economic leap forward, because if it is to leap it must carry the 900 million with it.
Chinese journalists Wu Chuntao and Chen Guidi returned to Wu's home province of Anhui, one of China's poorest, to undertake a three-year survey of what had happened to the peasants there, asking the question: Have the peasants been betrayed by the revolution undertaken in their name by Mao and his successors? The result is a brilliant narrative of life among the 900 million, and a vivid portrait of the petty dictators that run China's villages and counties and the consequences of their bullying despotism on the people they administer.
Told principally through four dramatic narratives of paricular Anhui people, Will the Boat Sink the Water? gives voice to the unheard masses and looks beneath the gloss of the new China to find the truth of daily life for its vast population of rural poor.
Customer Reviews:
Sad, Heartbreaking Stories. .......2007-05-11
This is not a fun book to read, it is bloody, sad, lawless, power vs non power, poor is poor. most of people think China is developing so fast in recent years, but people don't realize that they are still about 800 million people live in rural area in China, they are still struggle with their daily life, and voiceless.
China's peasants are still suffering........2007-04-09
Forget the title, this is an interesting expose on the Chinese peasant. These 900 million people toil in the backwaters of rural China, and were instrumental in getting their country industrialized. They also helped the country sustain itself following the Great Leap Forward (or backward in reality) and the Cultural Revolution. These people spend countless hours in backbreaking labor only to have party cadres unfairly tax them beyond their means. This book by a husband and wife team examines stories about their home province and show the corruption of village and party administration. China may be a coming superpower, but it better solve these problems before the people throw the rascals out.
I found this a very informative read. It starts out slow, but this is an intensely interesting book about the unfair lives led by millions of Chinese peasants and the people that are supposed to protect them-the party and village government hacks.
"The Revolution is a Dinner Party".......2007-04-04
John Pomfret writes in his introduction to this book that when he was in college in the late 1970s, professors taught that the Chinese Communist Party "truly represented the wishes of China's dispossessed" and one quoted Mao's saying that "A revolution is not a dinner party." Chinese reporters Chen Guidi and Wu Chuntao document the plight of the peasants in their country, showing Pomfret and anyone else who dares to read their expose how corruption, excessive taxation, miscarriages of justice, too many layers of bureaucracy, and unchecked industrial pollution oppress and threaten the very existence of China's poorest.
China is no worker's paradise. The rural population is basically an unprivileged underclass -- a class of serfs -- that the government squeezes mercilessly. Despite declarations from the top Chinese Communist rulers that peasants should not be pay more than 5% of their annual income in taxes, 19% is closer to the truth. For a subsistence population, such heavy taxation (often in the form of ill-defined, sometimes illegal, fees and fines) is more than they can bear. Yet, their appeals for relief to various levels of their government generally result only in the status quo retained.
A sizable portion of the book relates journalistic investigations into specific several cases of murder of peasants by village or township officials. The petty officials became enraged to the point of doing or ordering bodily violence against peasants because the fed-up farmers were taking public steps to expose their (the officials') corruption.
Then, the authors cite some of the recent policies of the Chinese central government that have increased the sufferings of the peasants. Examples include increasing the layers of local governance, commanding villages to invest in industrial enterprises that are not sustainable and that force them into mountains of debt, and permitting giant gobs of industrial pollutants to turn black rivers peasants must use for bathing and drinking water.
"Will the Boat Sink the Water? The Life of China's Peasants" does feature portraits of good, conscientious officials who put the welfare of their villages or regions ahead of their own advancement. But the Chinese Communist system does not ordinarily promote such people. The Party is more interested in keeping the peasants in their place, and it promotes those officials who inflate the agricultural yields and other economic "successes" of their locality and who deliver their assessed taxes in full.
This revealing look at China at the grassroots level should be read by everyone who has read glowing reports of the progressive, sweeping economic and social strides allegedly remaking the most populous nation on earth. There *is* a dinner party going on: the Chinese peasants are being feasted upon by their cadres, village heads, and Party watchdogs.
This English translation of the book now banned in China is very highly recommended.
A Voice for the Chinese Farmers and Peasants.......2007-03-08
Chen and Wu are a voice for millions of farmers throughout China. Great insights into what life is like for the peasants and farmers in the countryside of China. It is hard to find many stories and reports about the hardships and persecutions which the farmers in China face and the political and economic system that they have to deal with. These are the people who make up the majority of China's population and yet you normally only hear about the urban areas and economic progress in China. As an American many of these incidents were hard for me to imagine happening within the last ten to fifteen years. I read this book while studying in China and when traveling in the countryside it gave me a better understanding of the places and people I encountered.
Startling examination of life in rural China.......2007-02-08
This short book should be an excellent antidote to the hype about China's economic resurgence and strength. We recommend Chen Guidi and Wu Chuntao's frank, unvarnished account of peasant oppression and misery. Since peasants are the majority of the Chinese population, the system described here is China's true governance. The accounts of peasants suffering under local officials' tyranny are unsparing and quite moving, but the book is particularly valuable for its insights into how weak and ineffective Chinese laws and regulations really are. At the local level, laws clearly mean little against political connections and power. The danger is that this disparity could provoke another revolution in China.
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- new Reformation
- A methodology for durable social change in poor communities
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Just and Lasting Change: When Communities Own Their Futures
Daniel Taylor , and
Carl E. Taylor
Manufacturer: The Johns Hopkins University Press
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Book Description
Just and Lasting Change presents how to transform communities rapidly and inlocally appropriate ways. Daniel Taylor-Ide and Carl Taylor have been present at key events and worked with key thinkers in dealing with the large forces of inequity, environmental change, and globalization. The approach they have synthesized builds on what has worked over the last century--and can now be implemented rapidly and cost-effectively in many parts of the world. It relies on a three-way partnership of "bottom-up" initiatives from the community level, "top-down" support from government agencies, and "outside-in" ingenuity and objectivity from experts. Based on both a diverse range of case studies--from the earliest attempts to promote social development in India a century ago to current efforts in Tibet, the Peruvian Andes, China, and the American Southwest--and engaging personal experiences, this book describes, step-by-step, how SEED-SCALE can be effectively implemented.
With contributions from leading international experts in community-based development and public health, Just and Lasting Change offers a hopeful description of how people have made a difference in diverse communities around the world and a practical, accessible handbook for those trying to improve the quality of life in underdeveloped communities everywhere.
Customer Reviews:
new Reformation.......2004-06-25
As we watch news reports of the world in chaos and trouble this Book offers not just salve to ease the pain of some of these small communties but also real solution as they being to restore their dignity with justice for all involved.
The Model SEED/Scale is one that I believe should be studied and applied in some of the rural areas, small towns in this part of Southwest Oklahoma. This method is about a reformation of attitude, self-awareness , and possibilites for growth and change bringing the best healthiest new life possible.
I think that Churches could apply the model as well as a way to restoring justice and change withn themselves and within the communities they serve. Revitalization is something that churches in rural arears everywhere talk about I believe this model could be applied with success.
This book should have a broad readership. It could help change the world.
Rev. Bobbie G. McGarey, Southwest Oklahoma Presbyerian Parish Pastor, Frederick, Temple, Walters, Chattanooga, and Grandfield. Oklahoma.
A methodology for durable social change in poor communities.......2003-10-01
The poor communities of the world are, unfortunately, a laboratory for many thousands of mostly failed experiments in how to improve their situation. This important and valuable book builds on decades of practical experience by the authors in the successful, durable transformation of poor communities. The authors' key insights are (1) the necessity for change to be driven by the collaboration of the community, outside experts, and local government; (this may seem obvious, but many projects fail because they treat one of these three groups as an enemy or obstacle rather than a vital element), (2) to have measurable results, (3) to use the power of the community to modify behavior that is an obstacle to success. This book should be read by donors as well as those directly involved in development activities such as community leaders, government officials, and NGO workers.
Customer Reviews:
Great!.......2007-02-17
The book is in excellent condition and the delivery time was quite brief. Great service and great product!
A deep insight into the politics of foreign aid and economic.......1999-11-16
I was referred to this book by my lecturer in applied athropology. Reading it caused me to rethink and rewrite my assignment. Fergusson can be a bit irritating but he certainly has researched his field well and shows a great insight into the politics of foreign aid and economic development in the 3rd World.
A dose of realism.......1999-09-09
Ferguson's study of development projects in Lesotho brings a much needed dose of reality to the subject of modernization and aid. While others might stress the need for appropriate technology or bog the reader down in economic formulae, Ferguson examines the ways in which local and global politics influence the success of even the most carefully planned and well-meaning of projects. A must-read for anyone interested in the development business.
Book Description
The Price of a Dream tells the remarkable story of the Grameen Bank, the groundbreaking "village bank" that has revolutionized the way people around the world fight poverty. The Bank's model--providing collateral-free "micro-loans" for self-employment to millions of women villagers in Bangladesh--has inspired and shaped the thinking of economists, policy makers, business people, development workers and a generation of social entrepreneurs. Both liberal and conservative policy circles have championed the Bank's ability to transform the lives of its clients and help them escape the vicious cycle of deep economic hardship. Drawing upon interviews with villagers, development workers, economists, and the Bank's founder Muhammad Yunus--a recipient of numerous humanitarian awards--the book shows how the Grameen Bank grew from an experiment in one village to an organization that lends billions of dollars in small individual loans.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent seller.......2007-08-23
Book received was just as described, received very quickly. Excellent. Would use this seller again.
Fighting Poverty in the Trenches, One Borrower at a Time.......2001-08-18
More than just a casual pass through Bangladesh to investigate Grameen Bank, the micro-credit phenomenon started a quarter century ago by Muhammad Yunus, The Price of a Dream fills in gaps left by other writings. It puts a human face on the poor of this impoverished Asian country, formerly known as East Pakistan. It brings poverty-stricken Bangladeshis into your livingroom as factual, not fictional, folks.
"Aren't all Bangladeshis poor?" you ask. No. There is wealth. But there are also tens of millions of families so impoverished that one cannot begin to understand the depth and breadth of their deprivation without actually visiting this tropical nation or coming to know some of these people through a book such as this.
Bornstein writes in a painterly way. His stories, both sad and glad, weave a mesmerizing pattern of the richness of Bangladeshi life amid trying circumstances. How people cope, how they react to successes and disasters, how they work to pull themselves up economically and socially: every thread is pulled through the loom in due course to render a true and clear representation of lives on the ragged edge. Thanks to loans from Grameen, millions of families have been able to hem that edge, one stitch at a time, to finish off their piece of cloth.
For his part, Yunus, speaking as the economics professor he once was, declares, "Credit is a powerful weapon, and anyone possessing this weapon is certainly better equipped to maneuver the forces around him to his advantage." (p. 228)
Micro-credit empowers the unempowered. No one describes that process better than David Bornstein. The Price of a Dream will open your eyes to the possibility of minimizing the indignity of poverty in our lifetime, if not eliminate it altogether. Every beautiful tapestry starts with a single thread. Even if that first thread is mere hope, it's a worthy place to begin.
Capitalism for the Landless Poor.......2001-01-12
I am a junior in highschool. I chose this book from an AP Economics reading list I received this year. When I started reading this book, I expecting a monotonous mass of numbers, terms, and theories. However, I was soon captivated by the story. Bornstein beautifully integrated the story of the Grameen Bank, the lives of its members, and the economic principles behind it.
Book Description
When Jim Stiles moved west from Kentucky in the 1970s to make Moab, Utah, his home, that corner of the rural West had already endured decades of obscurity, a uranium boom and then a bust, and was facing an identity crisis. What kind of economy would prevent Moab from becoming yet another ghost town? For more than two decades, environmentalists in southeast Utah have had a simple answer to this question: replace extractive industries-mining, timber, and cattle-with an economy catering to "green" tourists with hotels, restaurants, and bars. They feel that if these lands can be spared further degradation by huge industries, the West could begin to thrive on something cleaner and more lucrative. But Stiles sees a downside to this seemingly idyllic vision. Bringing insight based on decades of residence in Moab, he makes a provocative and compelling argument that the economy most environmentalists hail as the solution to the woes of the rural West is in fact creating an unprecedented impact of its own. In recent years, Moab and other rural towns across the West have seen a massive influx of urbanites fleeing crowded cities in search of a simpler life. Yet Stiles also observes that these transplants are often unwilling to accept the isolation and lack of services that characterize genuine rural life. Believing themselves to be liberal, sensitive, enlightened environmentalists, they nevertheless bring with them exactly the type of lifestyle and ecological impact that they sought to leave behind and, in the process, create a community that no longer serves the native inhabitants. With a blend of travelogue, local color, and geography, Stiles engages readers with folksy humor while defending the lifestyle.
Customer Reviews:
Ed Abbey Lives - thanks Jim!.......2007-04-30
I met Jim Stiles years ago, when he was still rangering at Arches. I was one of those Abbey-seekers who had made a pilgrimage to Moab and Arches after reading Desert Solitaire ( this was September 1980, just before Reagan was elected and Everything changed ). I had found the site of Abbey's trailer, and his rusted septic tank and drainfield pipe. I had taken off my clothes and stood atop a rock to salute, as I recall, the spirit of everything Ed had written about. Ranger Jim came across this scene and said, understandably, "What the hell are you doing?". Well he was very civil and decent about it all. He confirmed I had found the sacred trailer site - heck, he even gave me a t-shirt with his infamous "Glen Canyon Damn" picture ( I still have it!).
Over the years I have enjoyed Jim's writings, and it is great to finally see him put it all in a book. Stiles definitely has the burr under his saddle that Abbey had, and it powers his prose better than most other "nature" writers in the 18 years we've been without Ed. I wish he'd write a novel, because I think he could bring the Monkey Wrench Gang into the 21st century, something we badly need.
I was in Moab, like I said, in 1980, and then again in 2003. Both times I ventured there in a VW Squareback ( Tradition!). I will admit that Moab was a LOT different 23 years later, though my teenage son and I still had a great visit. Christ it was hot! ( It was July, after all, with daytime temperatures as high as 116 degrees.) We explored Arches in the early-morning hours, swam and rafted in the hot afternoon ( and if that wasn't Pure Bliss I don't know what is ) and enjoyed good food and drink and an air-conditioned motel room in the evening. Moab is still a great place to visit, even if you are a low-impact non-biking non-jeeping old Abbey fan like me. Even on this second visit in 2003 I visited Ed's trailer site and easily found the septic tank and rusted pipe again, pretty much exactly as I had found it 23 years earlier. This time, however, I didn't take off my clothes, but instead read aloud the first chapter from Desert Solitaire to the land, to the place that inspired Ed to write his great book so long ago. No one was there ( in body at least ) but me. The timeless beauty and power of that place was - and, thankfully, still is - a real presence in the absolute quiet of that early morning.
Thanks for the great book, Jim. I hope it does well. Write on, brother. Write on.
The Future Of The West Is At Stake.......2007-04-20
Anyone who lives in a small, rural Western town, or anyone contemplating moving to, or, worse yet, just buying property in a small, rural Western town, definitely needs to read this book.
Stiles paints an unflinchingly accurate picture of how the tiny town of Moab became a crowded tourist town filled with fast-food joints and chain hotels. Longtime small business owners were forced out by the giant chain stores and T-shirt shops catering to out-of-town mountain bikers, Jeepers and ATVers. Alfalfa fields and orchards were sold to developers, who slapped up condos and luxury homes for mostly absentee owners, and conservative locals swamped by lycra-clad city dwellers. It's a sad and harsh reality, but Stiles manages quite a few laugh-out-loud moments: comedy is usually funny because it is so true.
The reason the book is important is that this phenomenon is repeating itself throughout the Western United States. Often local residents who may only make about $20,000 a year can no longer afford to live in the towns occupied by their families for generations. City dwellers take the equity from their city properties and invest it in rural land, driving prices out of sight, then bring their sharply different lifestyles to rural towns.
Most environmental groups have been completely silent on these issues, even as millions of new hikers trample the scenery into oblivion. Why? Perhaps because those same hikers and even some developers contribute hefty dollars to enviro groups. So while oil and gas companies contribute to the Bush administration, which then allows drilling on sensitive lands, environmental groups are running afoul of the same money trap--an ironic twist.
Of course the agent driving these ever-growing problems is our ever-expanding population, and Stiles is one of the few to tackle this problem publicly. Why can't our leaders even talk about this?
If you live in a small Western town, read this book, discuss it with your neighbors, and work with your local government to try and prevent this from happening to you.
If you are a city dweller contemplating a relocation or second-home purchase in a rural town, read this book and rethink your move. If you must move there, then stay there, work there, live there, don't build a giant mansion, be sensitive to the locals, try to get to know them. If you want their way of life, then LIVE IT, don't push your lifestyle onto them.
The West Under Seige.......2007-03-23
This is a GREAT book.
Tracing the growth of Moab, Jim Stiles has the huevos to take a long, cold look at what is happening in the Great American West. He has watched Moab (and, by extension, many other small Western towns) sucumb to carpet baggers, dirt pimps, speculators and, the cruelest irony of all, hoardes of nature-loving tourists encouraged by the "amenities economy".
Stiles takes on his friends as well as his enemies, and accuses enviromental groups of rolling over and playing dead while thousands of mountain bikers ride over their limp, unprotesting bodies on the way to Adventure Paradise. Stiles is neither a whiner nor a lamenter, and he shakes his fist at what he calls "enviropreneurs" out to make big bucks off public land. Commercialized nature theme parks are the future of the West, Stiles claims, reminding us of the debt we owe Edward Abbey when he coined the phrase "industrial tourism". Abbey was Stiles' mentor and friend.
Jim Stiles is a lively, accomplished writer, so this bitter pill is not too hard to swallow. Just be careful you don't choke while laughing out loud. Stiles is a very funny man and that's a good thing in these circumstances.
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The Geography of Rural Change
Brian Ilbery
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
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