Core Philosophy

The underlying thinking behind The Grassroots Institute (TGI) is to bridge the gaps between theoretical and discourse based knowledge developed in academic institutions and the actual field milieu using or requiring that body of knowledge. Generally observed, there is mostly a unidirectional flow of knowledge from universities or research institutions to the rural/urban communities who are treated as recipient ends of development interventions. The Grassroots Institute envisages to bank for research, trainings, documentation, publication, participatory initiatives and discourses upon local and Indigenous knowledge systems and communities’ primary experiences and experiments. The documentation, publication, trainings and academic discourses can better help mainstream the grassroots knowledge sets, local innovations, local needs and local technologies in the contemporary research, teaching and extension agenda of academic institutions/platforms. Obviously, the academic institutions and research organizations need to be supported and oriented to the real and grassroots issues, strengths, dynamism and needs of the common people especially Indigenous communities. In order to realize this paradigm construct, all teachers and researchers in academic institutions should contribute to field implementation projects, and all field staff of practice-based organizations should teach or assist the students. This way, all teachers will become field practitioners too. They would have a combination of theoretical knowledge and practical insights at a time. The philosophy of the “grassroots” validates the same interface of ground reality with the rhetoric or theory (The Grassroots Institute promotes this philosophy).

Aim of the Institute

The Grassroots Institute (TGI) aims to undertake education, capacity building, and innovative research, strengthen human development initiatives and take appropriate grassroots field action to empower students, practitioners, and local communities globally.

Organizational System

Started in 2005 as training and research institution in India, the Grassroots Institute has emerged as independent action research, academic and capacity building organization. In the year 2018, the Grassroots Institute was registered as Non-Profit Corporation in Canada. The Grassroots Institute is governed by the Directors and authenticated by International Advisory Council of various disciplines. Currently, the operation of Grassroots Institute is coordinated globally from Montreal/Vancouver (Canada).

In the future, the Grassroots Institute envisages developing it as capacity-building and education institution of excellence for evolving alternative policies, for transforming the public institutions, and for providing policy and technical assistance to governments, universities, civil society groups and people’s movements of various developing and underdeveloped countries.

Vision of the Institute

Objectives of the Institute

- To conduct research, studies, inquiries on the subjects/themes related to environment, natural resources, governance, policy, development and human health to galvanize the change in human society and global ecology.

- To coordinate with the various stakeholders to implement effective projects that meet needs as determined by our research.

- To provide services to Aboriginal/Indigenous peoples by providing them with culturally appropriate wellness programs, focusing on their traditions and customs or their particular cultural, spiritual or linguistic needs, and on facilitating their agriculture, water resources, bioresources, crafts, foods, etc.

- To organize and deliver trainings, consultations and capacity building activities on the issues/ themes related to development, environment, natural resources management, policy, grassroots action, social change and human health for strengthening the organizations, students, first nations and other local/ethnic communities.

- To conduct the education through structured or semi-structured training, courses, summer schools, internships, special sessions, workshops, seminars, and on-field exposure programs for the youths, working professionals, interested people and others on the issues/themes related to development, environment, natural resource management, policy, social change, human (indigenous) rights, and human health.

- To hold workshops, seminars, symposia, consultations, meetings, forums, conferences, etc. in order to promote ecological security, sustainable development, social/economic development, social justice, peace and people’s rights, and human health.

- To promote academic and practitioner linkages for information/ knowledge transfer, sharing, exchange and management in the interests of indigenous people, environment and society.

- To commission policy-oriented research, ideas, analysis, formulations and recommendations on domestic and international issues, including resulting publications, concerning environment, indigenous people, local resources, governance, biocultural rights, and allied spheres.

- To network, build alliances and make coalitions with like-minded organizations and individuals for promoting the above-mentioned objectives of the organization.

- To undertake activities proposed under each of objectives in Canada and internationally through direct operations as well as by involving intermediaries as permitted by laws of Canada.