Karen Grizez watched as a mother, holding her hungry infant, received a cup of goat’s milk from a member of the local women’s group. This was in Tamil Nadu, India, where Karen was traveling as a member of the board of Right Sharing of World Resources (RSWR).
In 2005, a women’s group in Tamil Nadu developed a goat dairy project and applied to Right Sharing for grant funding. After receiving the funding, the women successfully launched their business and were able to produce enough milk for their families and for sale.
In reporting on her visit, Karen said, “[The] women in this self-help group, all very needy themselves, had agreed that they would all set aside a small share of each day’s milk production to feed those very young children in the village who were at greatest risk of starvation. These milk donations were collected and redistributed daily at a central feeding center, where the mothers brought their vulnerable children to get the one cup of milk they could count on each day.” Such an undertaking – women self-organizing, building successful businesses, then passing along the seeds of their success to others – exemplifies the impact of communities built on equity and trust.
Right Sharing of World Resources is a Quaker nonprofit that works to build global equity in two ways. The first is by encouraging those with abundance to consider sustainable and just life choices, often through workshops and programs offered to Quaker communities. This is the work of right relationship. The second approach is by partnering with women’s groups in four different countries to support members’ micro-enterprises. This is the work of right sharing. Key to the success of RSWR is the work of the country coordinators, who live in Guatemala, India, Kenya, and Sierra Leone. The country coordinators support the women’s groups in naming and defining their own goals, which often emphasize sharing and building a stronger community for all.
In Kenya, program coordinators Samson Ababu and Pauline Musinga explain micro-lending to the local women’s groups this way: “This is seed money. You are planting it, harvesting it, sharing it, and helping it grow.”
In another example, the women of the Kassai and Sengbe villages in Sierra Leone applied for and received a grant from Right Sharing in 2018. They used the funds to seed a rice field. They planted the rice and had an incredible harvest. From their overflow, they gifted seven bushels of rice seeds to a neighboring group of women, so their neighbors could plant rice and start farming. Once the second group successfully harvested their rice crop, they, in turn, gifted seeds to another group. At the end of the cycle of gifting, over 60 women had benefitted.
Jackie Stillwell, the General Secretary of Right Sharing, after visiting these women in Sierra Leone in early 2022, said this, “When we arrived at the villages, the women were all wearing matching outfits to show their pride and unity. They took us on a short hike to their rice fields to show us how they harvest. The gifts we’re given by God, either materially or spiritually, are not for holding onto. We’re all sharing our gifts and doing our part. Our gifts only become valuable when we pass them along.” ~~~
Caitlin Churchill is the Communications Director for Right Sharing of World Resources. She is not a member of a meeting in her home of Portland, Oregon, but she does consider herself a Friend. She hosts a rotating Quaker Coffee Clatch and considers her life’s work to be in service. She was introduced to Quakerism by her grandmother Nancy Thompson.