Digital Green is a remarkable research project that was started by a good friend of mine, Rikin Gandhi, along with a number of co-workers from when he was working at Oracle in Seattle. They attempt to use scalable technology to help farmers in India that are essentially entrenched in a feudal system in which they owe a constant fee to the landowners and are finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet as the water levels precipitously drop. Directly from their website:
Digital Green (DG) is a research project that seeks to disseminate targeted agricultural information to small and marginal farmers in India through digital video. The Digital Green system sustains relevancy in a community by developing a framework for participatory learning. The system includes a digital video database, which is produced by farmers and experts. The content within this repository is of various types, and sequencing enables farmers to progressively become better farmers. Content is produced and distributed over a hub and spokes-based architecture in which farmers are motivated and trained by the recorded experiences of local peers and extension staff. In contrast to traditional extension systems, we follow two important principles: (1) cost realism, essential if we are to scale the system up to a significant number of villages and farmers; and (2) building systems that solve end-to-end agricultural issues with interactivity that develops relationships between people and content.
They are a particularly relevant group at this time in wake of one of the more horrifying stories I have seen in a long time:
a mass suicide of 1,500 farmers in India. These people committed suicide in the wake of facing an unpayable debt on this year's crop:
Bharatendu Prakash, from the Organic Farming Association of India, told the Press Association: "Farmers' suicides are increasing due to a vicious circle created by money lenders. They lure farmers to take money but when the crops fail, they are left with no option other than death."
1,500 is a death toll equivalent to the number of lives lost in Katrina in a situation where the government has been just as negligent in looking after their constituents. Yet, will anyone raise a red flag?
Digital Green is a remarkable research project that was started by a good friend of mine, Rikin Gandhi, along with a number of co-workers from when he was working at Oracle in Seattle. They attempt to use scalable technology to help farmers in India that are essentially entrenched in a feudal system in which they owe a constant fee to the landowners and are finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet as the water levels precipitously drop. Directly from their website:
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