Touching human lives on a significant scale

We have already touched more than 100,000 lives over the past decade. Between 2009 and 2010, our projects will make a positive difference to no less than 20,000 Indian villagers.

Our organisation constantly strives to measure the impact of its hard work. It is not enough to simply promise our supporters that their donations are making a vital difference in rural India. We must measure and share the exciting results that stem from the contributions we receive.

The question is how to measure the impact of our work. Can we count how many people have really had their lives changed for the better? In the past, charities have not always focused enough on this issue. But this is now thankfully changing.

Jeevika Trust measures its impact in terms of “touching lives”. When our efforts bring about a meaningful and sustainable improvement for an Indian villager, we consider this as a life that has been touched.

We calculate not only the individual who takes part in our livelihood projects, but their family and community members whose lives are also dramatically changed as a result. If we empower one woman to make money through beekeeping, then her husband, elderly parents and children will have more food on the table. Her children are more likely to go to school and be better clothed. She can also share her new income-generation skills with her neighbours.

The beekeeper woman herself is a ‘direct’ beneficiary – but we also include these ‘indirect’ beneficiaries in our carefully calculated figures.

From March 2009 to April 2010, Jeevika Trust plans to touch the lives of up to 7,500 people in India’s impoverished eastern state of Orissa. In the same period we aim to touch the lives of up to 11,300 villagers through our projects in the southern state of Tamil Nadu. Our aim in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand is to touch 700 lives, while in Uttar Pradesh our work in just one village will touch the lives of 840 villagers. See our ‘current projects’ section for more details.

Jeevika Trust also recognises the need to monitor what happens to those who benefit from our projects after they have ended. Follow-up monitoring is vital after the villagers themselves have been empowered to take over projects from our workers.

If you wish to receive a more detailed breakdown of how we calculate the numbers of those benefiting from Jeevika Trust’s projects, please email rosemary@jeevika.org.uk.