At TEDxBoston 2010:
In South Africa:
Ubuntu at Work is launching initiatives in South Africa. From Mpumalanga to the Western Cape, from Eastern Cape to the North West, we are launching a network of Baobab Workspaces.
At these Baobab Workspaces and with the help of a growing group of volunteers, we are looking forward to helping women micro entrepreneurs in South Africa gain capabilities, skills, accumulate assets, and of course escape poverty.
We would love your help. Join us! Share your wisdom with us, your energy and time too. Please join us for our South African initiatives.
Ubuntu Bazaar:
You can buy products made by our women micro entrepreneurs at the Ubuntu Bazaar. The Ubuntu Bazaar not only offers you the convenience of online shopping, but also recreates the sights and sounds of a bazaar you might find in many parts of the world. At the Ubuntu Bazaar you can connect with our women micro entrepreneurs, post pictures of the products you buy, and leave messages for our volunteers too. Like in any bazaar in a village or small town or large metropolis, personal connections make all the difference. The community atmosphere is what distinguishes these bazaars from a neon-lit mall.
So come by to buy our products, be Ubuntu Green, and share your stories, hear ours, and help our women micro entrepreneurs escape poverty all at the same time.
Become an Ubuntu at Work Volunteer:
Ubuntu at Work is almost entirely run by volunteers. Volunteers help women micro entrepreneurs explore new business opportunities via regular conversations conducted online with the help of local Ubuntu at Work staff. You can also volunteer by designing products that our women can make. Volunteers also help us market the products our women micro entrepreneurs make. We hope you will join our team of volunteers. If you are interested please check out the site for volunteers and do sign up or send us an email at info@ubuntuatwork.org. Look forward to having you join our community.
In the spirit of civic partipation, we would like to recommend you read Kumi Naidoo’s latest book: “Boiling Point: Can Citizen Action Save the World?”
The Spirit of Ubuntu:
We found this video clip of Nelson Mandela explaining the spirit of Ubuntu. Who better than him to help us explain our name!
Anuradha Awasthi connected us to an interview Archbishop Desmond Tutu gave to BBC’s Owen Bennett-Jones on July 25, 2008 in which he discussed the spirit of Ubuntu. The discussion about Ubuntu starts around 17 minutes into the recording. Thanks Anu!
What folks are saying about Ubuntu at Work:
Saritha Rai has just published an op-ed in Indian express about Ubuntu at Work.
“In three poor neighborhoods around Bangalore, groups of women micro-entrepreneurs have recently logged on to the power of global social networking through the internet despite being impoverished and illiterate. Helping them in this attempt to escape poverty is a start-up called Ubuntu At Work which is inspired by Nobel Prize-winning economist Amartya Sen’s argument that a person’s capability is not what he or she theoretically has, but hinges upon the person’s social arrangements.
Named after an ethical concept of African origin of the same name that emphasises community, generosity and sharing, Ubuntu at Work was set up last year by Vibha Pingle. ”
Continue reading on Indian Express
Clare Arni’s photograph of one of our women from Bomanahalli making plastic jewelry won honorable mention in the 2009 MIT Legatum photo contest.
The citation reads: “On behalf of the Legatum Center for Development and Entrepreneurship at MIT, it is my pleasure to inform you that our jury has selected your photo, Slum Woman Making Plastic Jewelry, as an honorable mention in the Legatum Center’s 2nd Annual Photo Contest. Though your photo was not chosen as a first place winner, we wanted to recognize your photo for its artistic merit and excellent portrayal of the theme of Women’s Entrepreneurship: Empowerment Through Innovation.”
Congratulations Clare! and thank you!
