On the morning of the fourth day of the SAP Quest, Rachel Parikh and 21 senior leaders from SAP Labs India and SAP India met with grassroots leaders working to improve the lives of waste pickers from Asia’s second biggest dumps. In the afternoon, they visited one of India’s largest power companies where sustainability has become core to every company decision. Here are some of their takeaways…
At the Dump
Today we met with another inspirational leader, Jyoti Mhapsekar, who has organised a community of women waste pickers to improve their lives, increase their self-esteem and economic well-being, and make a positive impact on their communities.
These women were once waste pickers at the biggest dump in Mumbai and the second biggest dump in Asia. They would ravage through the mountain of waste to salvage anything that might be of value – metal, glass, paper. As we stood right next to the dump, we could see that this is a seriously unsafe, unhygienic, foul smelling environment. The women were exploited by middlemen and had no bargaining power.
Many of the women of Jyoti’s organisation, Street Mukti Sanghatana (Women’s Liberation Organization) live in the slum right next to the dump, are dalits (marginalised caste), widows or wives of alcoholics, illiterate and have no other skills. Under the leadership of Jyoti, they have been trained in micro-finance, learned alternate skills such as composting, bio-methanation, fine-sorting, negotiating with middlemen, health awareness, literacy. Through this effort, these women enable a significant reduction in waste handling, supply raw materials to recycle factories, reduce the amount of waste that goes to the dumping ground, help run biogas plants, and generate valuable compost.
So who is Jyoti? From just spending a few hours with her, it was clear that Jyoti is a woman driven by a strong sense of purpose, a desire to make a positive impact on her community, someone who rises above the structures imposed by her environment and who is willing to do the unthinkable, touch the untouchable and bring hope, opportunity and justice to people who don’t even have access to basic amenities. The impact? Transformed lives. As we talked to the women waste sorters at the biogas plant one of them looked at us with a huge smile on her face and told us that her son is a graduate in computer engineering.
How far are we really willing to go to help the world run better? What are we willing to risk? Where can we have the greatest impact? What do we want to be known for?
Solutions for Sustainability
This afternoon we were hosted by one of India’s largest power companies. Walking through the plant, I found sustainability everywhere. In every room, the company’s vision and mission are displayed on the wall and sustainability is factored into every company decision.
We met with a young entrepreneur who is working with the company on a carbon capture project. This technology, which is unique in India, removes 90% of CO2 from smokestack gases that can then be used for production of biomass and biofuels or even sold to soft drinks manufacturers!
This example of collaboration leads me to wonder: how can we integrate innovations in the field of sustainability within our core business?
What are my takeaways?
The Quest is an opportunity to take a step outside of the realm in which we usually operate and see the world from a number of different perspectives. We stepped into the shoes of people from different walks of life who, through their work, have a transformational effect on their environment. The power of this for me was in taking the time to process the experience by going inward and asking myself what does this all mean to me personally and to my role at SAP? The answer to this question will be different for each one of us. So here are my key learnings.
1. Going beyond self-interest
2. Being ahead of the curve
3. Sustainability must become part of our DNA
4. Leadership comes from within