As the weeks dwindled down, the list of things to do is becoming daunting. We met with the web developers in Bangalore. Even though they made the development sounds simple, we fear that we would not be able to see the beta version of our web platform before we leave Hubli. There are also additional issues with the websites. Two important topics arose: a ranking system for the proposals and the Sangha's target audience. We struggled with the question of adopting a ranking system similar to the YouTube and Amazon. Since the proposals are not static reading material and changes will be incorporated through the wiki-platform, how can we develop a fair method of allowing the public to judge the proposals. Moreover, my team and the Deshpande Foundation have not clearly communicated the target audience of these challenges. Although the idea initially branched from the existing 9 innovator challenges, we have been aiming to include experts in the fields to contribute proposals and ideas but not necessary the execution of the proposed idea. We are now beginning to put together manuals to ensure the sustainability of our project.
In addition, we are currently in the process of wrapping up our
education video. We are struggling to frame our agriculture video. The information gathering period for agriculture was much shorter than the time we spent interviewing individuals in the education sector. But the information on agriculture sector has been more varied. No clear challenge has presented itself. Now the decision laid with our team. How should we frame the challenge? What are the implications of our video? The sandbox region has a high level of biodiversity which poses a challenge to any standardized way of thinking about the challenges faced in this region. There most viable option was to present water as a challenge since it is an issue faced by all farmers but to different extent. A collection of reasons guided us to the decision to create a video to present water as the most pressing issue. Although the farmers face a web of interrelated challenge that stemmed from the lack of awareness and education, our project aims to create video that allows for participation from a wide variety of individuals. We hope through this challenge we can engage in experts with technical backgrounds in agriculture as well as engineering and farm management.
On a more personal side, I have grown attached to Hubli -- the simplicity of a small town and the regular routine. After spending a weekend in Bangalore, I'd have to sadly admit that I am happy to return to Hubli in spite of the plethora of non-Indian restaurants and coffee shops readily available in the IT capital. There is a level of serenity (reminder: Indian scale) being in Hubli, which is a more of a town than 2nd tier city. The bus system is easy to navigate. There are only few places to go here: Koppikar Road, Dharwad (the next town over), the more store, the milk man, the thali man, and the Scholar House on B.V.B. College. To many, it is a very boring lifestyle but there is comfort in eating at the same little shack, saying hi to the thali man, and eating street food from the same corner. Bangalore, like any large city, was difficult to navigate and was a shock to my system after spending a month in Hubli. As much as I love being able to eat Western food and the availability of Western toilets in restaurants, I miss the familiar faces of Hubli. There is some sweet familiarity with the routine. It is a bittersweet feeling as the program comes to a close and we have 2 weeks left in Hubli.
However, I am sad to report that my stomach has not fully recovered from last week. I have been eating everything from street food to drinking water in unsavory restaurants and have been fine. Last Monday, I was hit with a fever probably due to the my meal at the Tibetan refugee colony I visited with Saru and our translator, Subhash. Being sick definitely put a
damper on being in India especially now I can't just eat whatever I like.
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