Sheela Patel
Sheela Patel (* 1952 in Mumbai ) is an Indian activist for human rights .
Life
From 1972 to 1974 she studied social sciences at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences at the University of Mumbai . After completing her studies, she first worked as a childcare worker at Nagpada Neighborhood House, a community in central Mumbai. Among other things, she is strongly committed to equality and social justice . In 1984 she founded the Society for the Promotion of Area Resources Centers (SPARC).
In 1999, she also founded a company that supports the residents of slums such as Dharavi in Mumbai with the construction of houses and infrastructure and represents their interests. Many people in India come from the countryside to the cities because they hope for a better life there. The first port of call are the slums.
Patel has worked for the World Health Organization (WHO) since 2006 . There she examines the social requirements of health. In the same year she chaired a campaign by the Indian Ministry of Urban Development Assistance to improve the sanitary situation in urban areas.
“We live […] in a strangely paradoxical world in which we are obsessed with growth but do not want the poor to participate. [...] The new global economic order has clearly led to dire inequality and demonstrative consumption. […] WE believe that in the current phase of Indian economic growth there are still numerous advocates of a just system, both in the state and in civil society. As long as this is the case, in the face of the aggressive market at the forefront of development, we can ask the state to create a political system that creates certain conditions for basic justice and the framework for the protection of human rights. "
SPARC is now one of the largest Indian non-governmental organizations . The main topics are housing and infrastructure for the poor urban population. Since 1984, SPARC has been cooperating with two community-based organizations, the National Slum Dwellers Federation (NSDF) and Mahila Milan. The NSDF was founded in 1974 by Jockim Arputham against the eviction of slum dwellers in Mumbai and in 2000 it represented the interests of slum dwellers in 21 Indian cities. Mahila Milan is a women's organization founded around 1985 that supports homeless women in Mumbai with small loans. Together they are active in around 70 Indian cities and have networks in 20 countries worldwide.
Publications
- From seed to tree: building community organizations in India's cities. In S. Walters and L. Manicom (eds.): Gender in popular education: Methods for empowerment. Zed Books, London 1996, pp. 89-98
- With Kalpana Sharma: One David and Three Goliaths. Mumbai transport case study. 1998 (PDF file; 70 kB)
- With Diana Mitlin: The work of SPARC, the National Slum Dwellers Federation and Mahila Milan. Human Settlements Program, IIED, London, December 2001 . ISBN 1-84369-021-7 (PDF file; 136 kB)
- How can poor people benefit from research results? In: Utilization of Research for Development Corporation. Netherlands Development Assistance Research Council, Publication 21, Den Haag 2001, pp. 45–50 (PDF file; 425 kB)
- With Joel Bolnick and Diana Mitlin: Squatting on the global highway. Conference on Globalization North / South Social Movements and New Social Communities: North / South Globalizations. The International Sociological Association (ISA), April 20, 2001 (DOC file; 95 kB)
- With Diana Mitlin: Reinterpreting the rights-based approach. A grassroots perspective on rights and development. Economic and Social Research Council, Global Poverty Research Group Working Paper Series, 2005 (PDF file; 305 kB)
- With Diana Mitlin: Re-interpreting the rights-based approach œ agrassroots perspective on rights and development. Global Poverty Research Group, June 2005 (PDF file; 390 kB)
- With Jockim Arputham: An offer of partnership or a promise of conflict in Dharavi, Mumbai? Environment and Urbanization, 2007 (PDF file; 99 kB)
- With Shaaban Sheuya and Philippa Howden-Chapman: The Design of Housing and Shelter Programs: The Social and Environmental Determinants of Inequalities. In: Journal of Urban Health, Springer, New York. Vol. 84, Suppl. 1, 2007, pp. 98-108
- Mit Jockim Arputham: Plans for Dharavi: negotiating a reconciliation between a state driven market redevelopment and resident's aspirations. Environment and Urbanization, 2008 (PDF file; 117 kB)
- With Shaaban Sheuya and Philippa Howden-Chapman: The design of housing and shelter programs. WHO Center For Health Development, Thematic Paper 11, 2008 (PDF file)
- Recasting the Vision of Megacities in the South. Emerging Challenges for the North-South Dialogue in Development , in: Robertson-von Trotha, Caroline Y. (Ed.): Europe: Insights from the Outside (= Kulturwissenschaft interdisciplinary / Interdisciplinary Studies on Culture and Society, Vol. 5), Baden -Baden 2011, pp. 133-142
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b In this city the slums are visible to everyone. The "slum expert" Sheela Patel on growth and justice in Mumbai. Interview with Sonja Ernst, Federal Agency for Civic Education
- ^ Sundar Burra, Sheela Patel and Thomas Kerr: Community-designed, built and managed toilet blocks in Indian Cities. International Institute for Environment and Development, 2003 ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ The Mahila Milan Credit Scheme. Improving Women's Access to Credit in Community Development Programs
literature
- David Levinson: Encyclopedia of Homelessness. Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks (CA) 2004, pp. 219 f
Web links
- Interview with Sheela Patel
- Biography of Sheela Patel and description of SPARC at the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship
- “SPARC” of Hope for India's Slum Dwellers. IDRC Reports, April 1991
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Patel, Sheela |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Indian human rights activist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1952 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Mumbai |