In the 10 years since it was founded in the UK, Kindled Spirit has dedicated itself to improving the lives of young women, invariably from India’s poorer communities, who are victims of abuse, exploitation and / or human trafficking. Their stories are invariably heart-rending. It is too often the case that once young women and girls are ensnared in abusive or exploitative situations they are trapped – perhaps forever. Even if they could escape they often have nowhere to go. They feel they have little choice other than to resign themselves to a life that no-one should have to live.
In 2013 Kindled Spirit established a collaboration with a local organisation in Mumbai, India called Kshamata. A core element of Kshamata’s work is what they refer to as ‘Kshamata Unlimited’. Kshamata Unlimited is Kshamata’s social enterprise initiative, aimed at providing a sheltered employment approach to selected women, prior to their independent placement with other organisations. Kshamata Unlimited makes a variety of products, mainly tailoring and jewellery based, along with a variety of craft items. The process enables women to “earn-and-learn”, at the same time providing a space to develop work ethics – discipline, punctuality, communication with others, and responsibility. This is an example of a form of impact sourcing.
For those new to impact sourcing it is a socially responsible business practice that aims to create positive societal impacts by providing employment opportunities to marginalised communities, often in low-income regions. It combines the principles of outsourcing with a focus on hiring individuals who face barriers to traditional employment, such as those in impoverished areas or with limited access to education and resources. Impact sourcing empowers these individuals and contributes to poverty reduction and economic development.
The key to the long term impact of such programmes is the business world adopting impact sourcing to support such initiatives and provide opportunities for what are highly capable people who have simply not had the opportunity to develop their potential. Business using impact sourcing benefit in a number of ways.
- They have a new source of local and reliable talent with additional skills.
- Businesses have greater inclusivity and diversity within their organisations, which has been shown to improve a business in areas such as productivity and innovation.
Along with the impact on individuals and impact sourcing businesses it also benefits the wider society in many ways. Unemployment and poverty is reduced by providing income-generating opportunities to marginalised individuals. Education and skills development is enhanced in underserved communities, improving long-term prospects for people. Economic growth is fostered and ethical and socially responsible business practices are promoted, setting a positive example for the wider corporate world.
Kindled Spirit’s 10th Anniversary Gala Dinner
To celebrate Kindled Spirit’s 10th anniversary and the 10-year partnership between Kindled Spirit and Kshamata a Gala Dinner has been arranged. The dinner will be held in Leicester on 2nd March. If you wish to support their great work by attending the dinner, sponsoring or donating, please go to: www.kindledspirit.org.uk for more details.
Ascea has embraced Impact Sourcing as part of their corporate social responsibility efforts and continues to actively support the work of Kindled Spirit.