The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : “A single person’s work too can kindle change in society”

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Thursday, Mar 19, 2009
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

“A single person’s work too can kindle change in society”

Staff Reporter

“Each one, reach one,” has always been CSIM founder P.N. Devarajan’s motto

CHENNAI: All it takes is one of us to reach out to another to bridge the gap, according to P.N. Devarajan, founder and managing trustee of the Centre for Social Initiative and Management (CSIM). “Each one, reach one,” has always been his motto.

Delivering the Sister Christine Endowment lecture on Wednesday, hosted by the Department of Sociology, Stella Maris College, he said even the work of one person can kindle change in society.

“Like an epidemic, it will begin to multiply, and everyone will begin thinking that is the thing to do,” he said.

He said the social divide arises from several factors separating the “haves” and “have-nots,” including remoteness from mainstream society, poverty, lack of education, disability, or lack of healthcare. But individuals can bridge these gaps when they equip the “have nots” with the skills to be productive.

“When we dismiss them as useless, we are reducing them to zero,” he said.

Through social entrepreneurship, which applies business models to social work, a person can identify which factor is causing the divide, recognise the use or talent of a “have not” group, and teach them the skills necessary to build upon that talent to make a living. But a person must take responsibility for the change rather than assigning the task to someone else. If people can spare time for social work regularly and also be emotionally committed, he said they can “get joy in a variety of ways.”

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