Editorial article for “Young India” – an IYPN monthly newsletter
1) Going for the Gold or Goal: A Challenge worth playing for…by Swati Save
Young India, an IYPN monthly newsletter is a structure to highlight the work and celebrate the commitment of Indian Young Professionals who are making a difference in the frontiers of socio-economic, environmental, scientific, technological and international cooperation addressing millennium goals in one way or the other. These Young Professionals are successful, under the age of 40, and on the front line within different international, academic, not-for-profit, bilateral organizations or entrepreneurs.
This editorial article will highlight three successful persons, who had created strategic partnerships in the world to produce unprecedented, and extraordinary results. Within this context I am highlighting following people. They are 1) Thomas Edison known for “ inventing the twentieth century” with his 1093 lifetime inventions, 2) Bill Payne known for bringing summer Olympics to Atlanta in 1996 and 3) 27yr old Sabeer Bhatia for creating hotmail.
The first partnership I am highlighting is that of Thomas Edison’s - the world’s greatest inventor, “the man who invented twentieth century”- had an amazing team at his laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey. Edison’s partnership with Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone and other great American leaders allowed important ideas to flourish not only for their own businesses but for the advancement of American business overall. From 1876 to 1881, Edison and his team set the goal of cranking out one minor invention every 10 days and one major invention every six months. Many of Edison’s 1093 inventions came from a five-year spurt of genius originating in an upstairs room in his laboratory in New Jersey – 100 feet long & 30 feet wide with a long bench down the center and shelves along the walls. Edison had a 5 member inner circle and 10 junior scientists contributing towards his innovative inventions. The take home message I got after reading about Thomas Edison’s strategic partnership is “every great partnership divvies up its talent to multiply its effectiveness and not replicating efforts, thereby producing unprecedented breakthrough results”.
The second partnership I am highlighting is that of Bill Payne’s – the man who brought Olympics to Atlanta in 1996. Bill Payne says the following about partnership that helped him achieve this endeavor “the most important thing about establishing goals is to make sure they are important to other people in addition to you. In other words, there’s a great tendency to be self-serving –‘I want to have the biggest house’, ‘ I want to be the head of the company’, ‘I want to make the most money’. What is most important according to Mr. Payne is what in fact brings joy in life is a goal that while it benefits and motivates you it also benefits others.”
He further says the following around accomplishing his mission, “For an endeavor anywhere near this magnitude, your success depends on the capacity of other people to carry it successfully to the end. There are no LONE RANGERS. My individual effect on the outcome didn’t last for more than five years. As other individuals, through empowerment, took on significant responsibilities with zealous commitment, and at the end we all enjoyed success bringing Olympics home.” The take home message I received after reading about this partnership was “partnerships will sustain an effort long before rationality will support it.”
The third example I am highlighting, is of the creation of Hotmail by Sabeer Bhatia & his partner Jack Smith, that described themselves as “Two 27 year old guys who had no experience with consumer products, who never managed anybody, who had no experience in software – Jack & I were hardware engineers. All we had was the idea – we didn’t have a prototype or even a dummied graphics interface. I just sketched on whiteboard.” An idea according to them was outright dismissed, although they had an unquenchable sense of destiny and grew their company faster in the history of the world. They launched the company on July 4th 1996 with $300,000 borrowed money and sold it on December 31st 1997to Microsoft for $400 Million. This again is an example of partnership that caused unprecedented results.
Each partnership I have highlighted above has an element in it to learn from. Thomas Edison’s partnership caused breakthrough inventions, Bill Payne’s partnership was in the area of creating a historic moment, and Hotmail’s partnership was a breakthrough in generating unprecedented wealth in short span of time. Is there something for IYPN to educate itself from these examples to create history in unprecedented time in an area that is very important to India? I believe so…and culminate the article by saying we are a partnership initiative that will provide a platform for synergistic activities to leverage and streamline ongoing efforts to assist India achieve its millennium goals by 2015.
In this newsletter we have highlighted two young professionals 1) Nima Raghunathan, a Master’s Student at University of Maryland, interning at EcoVentures Initiative as well as a member of SustainUS, the only US youth initiative around sustainable development and 2) Milan Mantri, a Chartered Accountant by profession and Co-Chair of the San Fransisco Bay Area Chapter, of the Network of Indian Professionals.
IYPN will be having an upcoming event on 26th January around how to translate fieldwork/grassroots work into a number that matters to a nation. Know how Human Development Index works from an Indian perspective. For more information visit www.iypn.net
2) An Indian’s venture into the world of sustainability…by Nima Raghunathan, University of Maryland
I moved to the Maryland/D.C. area last year to pursue a master’s in Sustainable Development and Conservation Biology at the University of Maryland. As a part of our programme all students are required to do an internship – a meaningful internship – with an organisation or government agency that goes beyond simple photocopying and secretarial duties. Yours truly, Nima Raghunathan, was fortunate to discover EcoVentures International (EVI). Founded shortly after the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002, EVI is based in Washington D.C. This young, but effective non-profit NGO focuses on the “sustainable development” vein of conservation. Given the diverse, international background of the EVI team, we not only operate in Washington D.C., but also in several African countries. Our work addresses the UN Millennium Development Goals, particularly the 7th, “Ensure environmental sustainability”.
I spent the summer of 2005 in Lushoto, Tanzania, working with my colleagues from EVI and several local organizations and government departments to implement an Environmental Enterprise Development Initiative (EEDI). Our main role in this creative programme was to serve as facilitators and capacitate local NGOs and other stakeholders to help youth beginning environmental micro-enterprises, or converting existing enterprises into environmentally friendly businesses. Through several capacity-building training sessions we introduced our partners to the Value Chain Analysis and Training-of-Trainer tools, among others. We also introduced them to several environmental technologies (including drip irrigation, vermicomposting, natural dyes and many more), completing the first phase of the EEDI this past summer. Our next phases will focus on the actual implementation of an Environmental Enterprise Development Plan that was created during the first phase. This plan details the steps for starting environmental enterprises, using the tools that were gained during the training sessions. You can learn more about EVI’s programmes within Washington D.C. and in Africa at www.eco-ventures.org.
As a young woman concerned about the state of the world, I’m learning a lot from both my graduate courses and my “real-world” experiences with EVI about how I can play a role in this important, yet somewhat nebulous field of sustainable development. Much of what I learn has implications in a country like India – where a burgeoning population suffering the consequences of bad development can be empowered through simple, yet effective ways to minimize our ecological footprint. Apart from work with EVI, I became a member of the US Youth Network for Sustainable Development (the first and only in the US!) called SustainUS. This youth-run organisation represents US youth in the annual UN Commission on Social Development. Additionally, they have a programme called Citizen Science, which raises awareness on current and forthcoming technologies that improve economic, social and environmental conditions, and also works with youth to encourage the confluence of science and sustainable development. Check it out at www.sustainus.org.
Well, if you have more specific questions about EcoVentures International, or SustainUS or even my graduate programme, you’re welcome to drop me a line at nimaragh@umd.edu.
3) A Few Good Men (& Women)... by Milan Mantri, The (Net IP) San Francisco Bay Area Chapter
The Network of Indian Professionals is a non-profit that connects individuals of South Asian decent, organizing events in 23 chapters across the country. The largest chapter today is in the San Francisco Bay Area with close to 500 members, all the more remarkable when you consider that the SFBA chapter started 2005 with only 15 members. What happened over the course of twelve months that enabled this group to emerge as one of the most prominent in the community?
“We wanted to build a community that everyone could connect to and be proud of,” recalls Milan Mantri, the 2005 co chair. Born and raised in London, Milan qualified as a Chartered Accountant in the UK before moving to New York and now San Francisco.
In 2005 Net IP arranged close to 50 events in the Bay Area involving authors, artists, filmmakers and business leaders. The quality of events quickly attracted new members and caught the eye of corporate’s that sponsored events. Google, the Mountain View based search engine, sponsored one such event, a “wine and cheese” at an art gallery. Over 100 persons turned up one evening for an advanced screening of Gurindar Chadha’s “Bride and Prejudice”.
“Our aim was to highlight Indian culture as well as connect individuals professionally”, explained Milan. “This entailed arranging events to showcase literature, art and film as well as organizing dinners with CEOs and entrepreneurs”.
On August 15th Net IP and the World Affairs Council commemorated Indian Independence Day together inviting a multi-cultural crowd numbering close to 200 persons. On another note, the chapter arranged a conference in the fall, on career planning & realizing lifelong dreams entitled “Follow Your Passion”. Speakers & panelists comprised of dancers, journalists, business and social entrepreneurs each with inspirational stories to influence the audience to fulfill their ambitions.
Millennium Goals and Vision for India
Following the success of the local SFBA conference and the strong track record of helping charities, Net IP in general and the Bay Area chapter in particular seem well placed to partner with other non-profits. One such partnership is with AIF (America India Foundation) who recently organized a conference surrounding the UN millennium goals.
Milan firmly believes that changes in technology have enabled innovative individuals to initiate positive social impact given limited resources.
“We have established a talented and entrepreneurial network that is eager to contribute to the community locally and abroad. Many of our members are forming non-profits as well as businesses. Advances in communication technology have enabled individuals to start ventures with a view to better society. Through email, websites, and blogs, small groups have the ability to reach potentially anyone that has access to the internet & beyond. Huge audiences, globally dispersed, are now reachable with limited resources”.
This means, that together with the emergence of social entrepreneurs in recent years, it is possible for one individual working from home to effectively raise the visibility of projects and causes that they feel passionate about as never before. What then is the future for young Indians around the globe?
“India has made remarkable progress in a short number of years and increasingly Indians abroad are re-connecting with their land of origin to create further opportunities. While young professionals will continue to enjoy success in business and sciences, and make important breakthroughs in relatively new fields such as art and entertainment, a growing number of individuals, non profits and corporate’s will be inspired to tackle global causes; combating hunger, poverty, disease and supporting environmental issues.
“I am very optimistic and excited by what our generation and community can accomplish in India and elsewhere in the years ahead” concludes Milan. Judging by the talented individuals connecting on the west coast there is plenty of reason for optimism.
If you need more about NetIP and wish to contact Milan Mantri please email him at milanmantri2003@yahoo.com