Reflection on Alan Turing Placement at Partners for Urban Knowledge and Action Research (PUKAR)

General Overview

My placement at the Partners for Urban Knowledge and Action Research (PUKAR), India, courtesy of the Alan Turing Scheme, is one of the most exciting experiences as a postgraduate student at the University of Bradford. I learned from Dr Anita Pakil-Deshmukh, the staff at PUKAR famously referred to as the barefoot researchers, beneficiaries of the organisation's social impact program, and members of the different communities in which the organisation serves.

I learnt that participatory action research is engrained in PUKAR's DNA as it strongly encourages local rightsholders' inclusion and engagement in their communities decision-making. This approach is made possible through the Youth Fellowship Programme, which has existed for more than 16 years. The programme focuses on young people in slum communities to understand their perspectives regarding issues in their communities and provide them with the opportunity to share their opinion with members of their society. This approach is anchored on the Right to Research – providing opportunities for young people to document their everyday reality by asking questions and communicating their opinion to people within their circle of influence. Through the Youth Fellowship Programme, PUKAR encourages young people to use their knowledge of their immediate environment and the everyday issues people face to develop solutions that can meet their needs and a wider connected world. Most of the organisation's projects have been because of the Youth Fellowship Programme. It is estimated that more than 3,000 young people with over 250 projects have been developed through this programme which anchors on democratising research.?

As a sustainability practitioner, I understand the importance of research in understanding the challenges that individuals, especially in low-income communities, face and providing solutions to the challenges that they may face. The placement in PUKAR exposed me to participatory-based action research supported by primary data collection. I was introduced to the organisation's black book – a compendium of four essays which informs how they go about their research and data collection process. I was intrigued by the approach that everyone can conduct research irrespective of their educational background. The system challenged my assumption about qualitative and quantitative research as a task for people with higher education.

Meanwhile, most barefoot researchers had no university degree, with their work focused on improving the lived experiences of people living in improvised conditions in Mumbai. They spoke Marathi, which is the official language of Maharashtra. As we travelled across slum areas in Dharavi, Mandala, and Kaula Bhandra, I witnessed barefoot researchers conduct interviews with people in the community. The discussions focused on understanding how entrepreneurs in these slum areas are impacted by government policies and how they are doing business despite the precarious situation. One of the entrepreneurs runs a food business alongside her husband, serving working-class people living in the slum area. During the interview, she shared how she provides breakfast and lunch for about 30 people weekly for 125 Indian Rupees (￡1.25). Before the pandemic, the cost of a weekly meal was about 75 INR (￡0.75), but the rising cost of cooking gas and growing inflation led to the increase in price. The interview allowed low-income earners to share their everyday reality concerning making a decent income in a big city like Mumbai.

Culture and Values

In PUKAR, every team member is respected, and everyone is committed to meeting specific goals and objectives. The first day I stepped into PUKAR, there was a team meeting where I learned about each team member and the project objectives. It was exciting to know that there were staff who had been with the organisation for more than ten years, most of whom were products of the Youth Fellowship Programme. After the meeting, everyone had lunch together, and I loved the experience as we all got to share meals. It showed that if we can work together, we should be able to eat together.

I learned the value of hard work and supporting team members to meet their objectives. During a visit to Mandala on the Journey Towards Dignity Programme, which provides sexual and reproductive health education to young girls in the community, I saw how the staff supported each other in the programme delivery. Another piece of evidence was at the graduation ceremony for the Youth Fellowship Programme, where a staff member was absent, and everyone had to work together to ensure that the programme was delivered with no hitch. From observation, it is evident that the nature of support exhibited by team members is a deliberate part of the organisation's cultural values. Everyone was cheerful and willing to share their knowledge.

Every team member is dedicated to continuous learning as each project links to a documented project in the organisation. I enjoyed my conversation with the Communications Officer about documenting every project initiated through the Youth Fellowship Programme on the organisation's website. I realised that we might be doing great work often, but if it is not written down, it will not be easy to measure the success achieved.?

In the drive to attain gender equality, it is essential to note that PUKAR is an equal opportunity employer with no tolerance for gender-based violence. The organisation has a committee focused on the Prevention of Sexual Harassment (POSH), which provides a fair hearing peradventure of any violence incidence. The POSH mandate is displayed on a board as you enter the organisation, which is the right thing to do, as the safety of everyone is important.

Personal Learning

Despite my six years of experience in the nonprofit space, one of the things that stood out is how a passion drives PUKAR to support the learning and development of her rightsholders. The projects being embarked on by PUKAR are initiated with the participation of the rightsholders and providing the tools required for the change they want to see. For instance, the Youth Fellowship Programme, the organisation's flagship project, offers an opportunity for young people interested in research and community development to embark on projects that align with their interests. Through the project, fellows learn how to raise awareness on a specific issue plaguing their community, design possible solutions while working in a team, learning how to budget and involve the more prominent stakeholders in their project. Often, as a youth development advocate, I am motivated by the change I want to see, and I am more relaxed about the process of seeing the change happen, especially from the standpoint of rightsholders. However, I am learning that the process of creating change is as necessary as the actual result.

PUKAR, through the Youth Fellowship Programme, has successfully created a train-the-trainer model for inclusive community change, and it is evident in the response of members of the community towards every intervention programme. The organisation's programmes focus on amplifying the voices of the disadvantaged in the community where they serve, and this has contributed to healthy development for young people and women. An organisation should be a conduit for change rather than be at the centre point of the change process.

As the world strives to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, it is essential that everyone is allowed to define what sustainable development means to them and provided with the opportunity to co-create the kind of world that they desire. Many people are more interested in improving their quality of life by meeting their basic needs. They seek support from organisations that will enable their concerns to be heard by policymakers. For instance, in Dharavi, I met with an entrepreneur who was interested in improving the quality of output from his fashion business while being able to send his children to school. As someone interested in policy on education and decent work, improving access to both will transform the lived experience of people, especially those living in disadvantaged communities, as it offers the opportunity to break the cycle of poverty.