Savitri Waney Charitable Trust

The Savitri Trust has had a busy start to the year with Siobhan (our Grants Manager) attending last week's Oxford Real Farming Conference. It provides an interesting mix of in-depth panel discussions and speaker sessions on a wide range of food and farming topics. Plus, the opportunity to connect with partners working in the agroecological food and farming space, and related topics such as stopping harmful chemicals. It was also a great opportunity for us to connect with some of our funding partners and fellow trusts and foundations. We are committed to working collaboratively with other funders to strengthen the programme areas we are supporting, and we appreciate opportunities like this to meet and discuss the issues central to all of our work. Philanthropy has a potentially significant role to play after all, in helping to improve our existing food system. It was great to speak to so many people and have a deep dive into an area of our funding we are strengthening this year. Which includes the Real Farming Trust who we are giving an unrestricted £30,000 grant. We congratulate the organisers of ORFC on an inspiring, collaborative event and, beyond that, we are excited to learn more and support their work this year. As well as the rest of our partners working on related issues. @oxfordrealfarmingconference #funding #philanthropy #agroecology

This year we have supported a wide range of vital work addressing human health, environmental protection, and social justice. Our funding has helped strengthen palliative care and eye care across a network of rural hospitals in India, supporting access to compassionate care where it is often most limited. We have also stood alongside indigenous communities in the Amazon, working to protect land, knowledge systems, and ways of life that are essential to planetary health. We have funded organisations seeking to prevent harmful chemicals from poisoning human health and the environment, while investing in agroecological farming projects in both the UK and India. This includes empowering women farmers in rural India and supporting the UK’s seed sovereignty movement, areas of work that will continue to grow in the coming year. Alongside this, we have supported organisations nurturing young environmental activists, recognising the importance of resourcing those driving change today and shaping the future. Across all our work, we remain committed to trust-based, flexible, and responsive grantmaking. We thank Mr Arjun Waney OBE and the Waney family for their incredible generosity in making the work of the Savitri Trust possible. As we move forward from a year that has been deeply challenging for many, we extend our gratitude to our partners for their leadership, resilience, and learning. We wish everyone a period of rest and restoration over the festive season. #Philanthropy #Funding #Grantmaking #Gratitude #MakingADifference

In Loving Memory of Devika Waney Mokhtarzadeh. It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of our Chair of Trustees, Devika Waney Mokhtarzadeh. Devika was a driving force behind the Savitri Trust since its inception, working alongside her father, Arjun Waney OBE, to shape and guide our mission. She passionately spearheaded impactful community health projects across rural India ranging from maternal health, child malnutrition, curable blindness, palliative care, and improving livelihoods. In recent years, Devika’s deep love for the natural world overflowed into our programmes and began to shape our work in new and meaningful ways. She championed projects that bridged the health of both people and the planet, focusing on agroecology, biocultural diversity, youth activism and the fight against chemical pollution. She was truly excited by the possibility of a more just and equitable world; the golden promise that we are, in our tiny part, working towards. She believed in funding in community; working together with others to tackle complex global issues, and she was not afraid to challenge the traditional approach to philanthropy. Always pushing herself and those around her to think more deeply and act boldly. A constant presence at the heart of the Savitri Trust since our formation, Devika was involved in all aspects of our work. She led with a generous heart and a curious mind. She brought fun and joy to our small team here in the UK and India, encouraging us to approach our work with the same enthusiasm and love. Beyond that - she was a true friend, mentor and inspiration to many, and her honesty, compassion and warmth will be greatly missed. She once said, "Hope, love of beauty, and the perfection of the natural world are the drivers for me. We all have different reasons, but hope is the positive outcome. What more can we claim than that?" Our thoughts are with her family and friends and all who loved her. Together we will find ways to carry her hope, activism and passion for the people and the places she cared about, through the work of the Savitri Trust moving forward.

This year #WorldSightDay focuses the world’s attention on the importance of eye care in young people and inspiring children everywhere to love their eyes. We couldn’t agree more. A central part of our work in rural community health has been curable blindness - helping to restore sight to thousands of people who suffered from unnecessary blindness due to cataract. The geographic focus has been predominately in India and parts of Nigeria. • Over 20 years of funding this programme area • Over £8million given to fund eyecare • 20 hospitals funded, 11 partner organisations • Nearly 400,000 surgeries funded • Over 4 million people reached • 11 Indian states and 2 Nigerian states covered • 8 hospitals and vision centres built or expanded Many people continue to lose their vision due to curable issues such as cataracts and refractive errors. Blindness is a cause and consequence of poverty, which can have devastating effects on an individual, family and a community's wellbeing. When sight is restored through simple surgery, so too is the life and livelihood of that person. We thank our amazing partners at @RokaRestaurant.UK @ZumaLondonOfficial @CoyaMayfair and @LPMLondon who have been integral in our ability to support this vital cause through our ‘Small Change for Big Change’ funding partnership. We also thank the fantastic hospital partners we have worked with over the years: @akhand_jyoti_eye_hospital @akhandjyoti_footballtoeyeball @MISSIONFORVISION @lvprasadeyeinstitute Tulsi Chanrai Foundation @savitritrust is proud to have supported this work for more than 20 years. #WorldSightDay #Philanthropy #SavingSight #FundingHealthCare #HealthyPeopleHealthyPlanet

The Savitri Trust has been delighted to see the new winners of the @theiris_project announced this week. Over 1,000 young people applied, from 97 countries. Here are the 3 finalists! 👏 💚 2024 Winner Iris Prize: The Uru Uru project, Bolivia The Iris Prize of $15,000 for ages 16-24 is awarded to an established project, with the potential to be replicated and scaled. The Uru Uru Project combines indigenous knowledge with science to restore territories and combat pollution in the Uru Uru Lake, caused by rapid urbanisation and local mining. The project uses native Totora plants, traditionally used for construction, medicine, and fodder, as natural decontaminators. 💚 2024 Winner STEM Prize: Bangs Circular, Sierra Leone The Stem Prize of $10,000 for ages 16-24 is awarded to a project that exists on a small scale. The Tiwai Honey Initiative by Bangs Circular is revitalising bee populations on Tiwai Island. The project currently manages over 130 beehives, serving 3 of the island’s 8 communities. The hives placed in buffer zones provide an alternative income to illegal logging and poaching, with profits shared among cooperative members. 💚 2024 Winner Seed Prize: Guardianas del Estuario, Guatemala The Seed Prize of $5,000 for individuals aged 14-24 is awarded for a new idea that has not yet been established. Guardianas del Estuario trains fisherwomen in mollusc aquaculture and resource monitoring using Indigenous knowledge previously excluded in research and policy-making. The project supports women’s incomes, promotes mangrove restoration, and fosters intergenerational community collaboration. Please visit the Iris Prize website for more info - link in bio The Savitri Trust has donated £15,000 to the Iris Prize annually for the past two years, we are proud to support this initiative celebrating young climate activists around the world. Congratulations to all the winners and runners up, we can’t wait to see what amazing things you do! 🌱💚 @uru_uru_team @bangs_circular @j.a.b.e.l @forceofnature.xyz @coalitionwild @globalgreengrants @greenhousecomms #environmentalfunding #environmentalphilanthropy #irisprize

We've been reflecting on our Community Health partnerships this week and wanted to highlight some of the work from the amazing palliative care teams we partner with in India. The Home Based Care model they provide is much needed in rural communities where the geographical terrain is difficult and the obstacles to health care provision are numerous. Ensuring the Healthcare team can travel to the patient helps bridge glaring gaps within the health system and maintains a continuum of care especially for patients in remote locations. Our partners recognise the value of investing in strengthening the capacity of their teams to ensure this level of care can be sustained and importantly, that their staff are well supported to deliver this emotionally intensive work. We are proud to invest time and resources to support these inspiring teams; the drivers, counsellors, nurses, doctors and community outreach workers who each dedicate their time and skills to provide this much needed level of love and care. 💚 #communityhealth #palliativecare #peopleandplanet #assam #india #ruralhospital #homebasedcare #smallschangeforbigchange 📸by the Savitri team and shared with permission @emmanuel.hospital.association @org_cchrc

We were fortunate to spend time with Leslie and Dee, co-founders of Granville Community Kitchen and Grey, their Good Food Box Coordinator last week. Granville Community Kitchen is an inspiring community-centred food cooperative in northwest London, and earlier this year the Savitri Trust gave them a £10,000 grant, in support of Good Food Box. GCK is at the heart of its community, providing shared meals for those who need it every Weds and Fri, as well as a fantastic community garden which also grows herbs and leafy greens for their ‘Good Food Box’ scheme. This scheme offers veg and food bags for local people, with culturally appropriate options and offered at sliding scale prices dependant on individual’s means. We know that access to veg box schemes is often limited or impossible for people on lower incomes or living in challenging circumstances, GCK cuts right to the heart of this and offers a solution which embraces dignity and a sense of community. It is brilliant to see projects like this first-hand operating in central London and we can’t wait to see what’s next for GCK. “We work towards creating a just, resilient, and sustainable world by creating a localised, accessible and justice-based food system where local people of all incomes and backgrounds have access to nutritious, culturally appropriate and ethically and ecologically produced food.” – Granville Community Kitchen We were also delighted to be joined by the Roddick Foundation and the A-Team Foundation who are partnering with us and supporting GCK. Through combining our project visits and reporting, we are working together to fund flexibly and responsively. If you live in northwest London we encourage you to get involved and support this brilliant scheme. In partnership with: @grancomkitchen @gck_goodfoodbox The Roddick Foundation @ateamfoundation #foodsovereignty #granville #kilburn #communityfoodgrowing #foodforthefuture #foodforthought #agroecology #pooledfunding #philanthropy

🍏Last week we got to spend some quality time with @farmingthefuture_ - a group of inspirational leaders spanning the UK food, farming and funding worlds. 🌱Founded in 2019 by @ateamfoundation and The Roddick Foundation, it pools funds, networks and knowledge to grow, strengthen and connect the UK’s agroecology movement. 🫛Savitri joined in 2020 and it has provided a valuable space for us to learn about the sector and its funding needs. As well as the amazing opportunity to work with other funders and ambassadors with expertise and firsthand experience from within the food and farming movement. 👩‍🌾FTF has also given us a nuanced understanding of how and where our funding can make a difference and has been a valuable platform from which to explore different approaches to resourcing and grant making in general. 📈Although environmental giving has grown substantially in recent years (as highlighted in the latest EFN 'Where the Green Grants Went' report) less than 10% of green grants support ‘agriculture and food’ and only half of this is spent in the UK. 🐝If you are a funder interested in joining a pooled fund, exploring participatory grant making and working with leaders across the UK Agroecology Movement then please reach out to us or our friends at FTF to find out more 😊 #linkinbio #healthyfoodhealthyplanet #agroecology #food #farming #farmingthefuture #pooledfund #greenfunders #particpatorygrantmaking #foodforthefuture #regenerative #foodforthought @farmingthefuture_ @betheearth.foundation @ateamfoundation @squashlivepool @hodmedods @vickihird @abby_super @jokamal_ @osunchild @jyotilovesfood @growingcommunities @esmeefairbairn @organicnorthwholesale @samantharoddick @gothelneyfarmer

Our ‘Food, Farming & Land Programme’ aims to strengthen agroecological movements in the UK and India, working to sustainably grow food while conserving nature and strengthening communities. With two of our partners, AAINA and Sambhav, we are supporting women farmers in Odisha, India to gain skills and knowledge on the importance of seed saving and organic farming, so that they can build seed banks in their villages and long-term resilience for their livelihoods. Due to a global reliance on the use of one-time hybrid seeds, there is a burden on farmers to continue to use these despite the fact they are heavily reliant on chemical inputs and costly to buy. An alternative approach is seed saving - this not only protects the old variety of seeds but also promotes organic farming as an alternative to heavy use of pesticides. We are also partnering with Gaia here in the UK, funding their seed sovereignty programme working to make the UK food system more resilient against climate change and other pressures. Since 2017, the programme has been dedicated to building a movement of resilient seed growers, seed companies and community groups by providing training and a route to market for small-scale producers. Through funding in agroecology we seek to support projects that restore healthy soils and food and farming systems through regenerative agriculture and food production. #foodforthefuture #agroecology #fundingorganicfarming #fundingagroecology #philanthropy #environmentalfunding #foodforthought #seedsaving #seedsovereignty @sambhav_odisha @aaina_ngo @thegaiafoundation

Arjun Waney OBE, founded the Savitri Waney Charitable Trust in 2001 to make a difference to those living in poverty. The Trust is named in memory of his mother, the late Mrs Savitri Waney. Keen to apply his business acumen to his philanthropic endeavours, Arjun led the Trust in investing in cost efficient interventions with transformative results. We funded our first eye care project in 2001, over twenty years later the Savitri Trust remains very much a family trust; with programme areas and project interests driven by causes and interests close to their hearts. Ultimately health – of individuals, communities, and the environment. #familyfoundation #philanthropy #familyphilanthropy #funding #environmentalfunding #india

We fund up to £1 million in community and environmental health projects annually. In recent years, our funding has expanded to include programmes that address interconnected health and environmental issues. Mindful that these themes are complex and far reaching, we prioritise our funding towards the following programme areas: 🇮🇳 Community Healthcare in India ⚠️ Toxics, Chemicals & Pollution 📢 Championing Changemakers 🌍 Biocultural Diversity 🌱 Agroecology Find more info on our website: .uk * 📷 Photo credits: 1) by Savitri, eye health visit with community members in India 2) by Savitri, Nambita at Sambhav training centre in Odisha 3) by Savitri 4) by @global_diversity at their Community Exchange, Morocco 5) by Savitri, pictured are Savitri Trust Director @elckm with Climate Activist @abigaelkima #philanthropy #grantmaking #funding #environmentalfunding #environmentalfunder #grantgiving #indiaphilanthropy #smallchangeforbigchange #healthypeoplehealthyplanet

❓How much do you know about the pesticides being sprayed in your neighbourhood? And are they really needed? ❗Most UK councils use toxic chemicals to manage wild plants in and around our pavements, parks, and playgrounds. These chemicals are used for mostly aesthetic reasons, despite the harm they cause to our health, our pets, and native species. 🐝Encouragingly, some councils are now choosing to manage spaces without toxic chemicals. And the approach works. ✏We're joining our partner @pesticideactionnetworkuk and @thepesticidecollaboration in calling on the UK Government to #GoPesticideFree with a national ban on urban pesticides. 🌎 The Savitri Trust shares a vision for the food we eat, the air we breathe and the products we use to be free from harmful and hazardous chemicals. Each year we fund organisations seeking to strengthen UK and international law and policy to improve the regulation of harmful synthetic chemicals, as well as creating awareness on how to reduce our exposure to these substances to prevent long term disease and health issues. 🐞To find out more and Sign the Petition to #GoPesticideFree follow the Link in bio 🔗 #harmfulchemicals @pesticideactionnetworkuk #gopesticidefree #healthypeoplehealthyplanet #banurbanpesticides #silentearth #pesticidecollaboration #panuk #pesticidefree #harmfulchemicals