Inspired by pay as you go fresh water
Gines Patag, The Philippines, February 21st, 2009 Right after my recent post where I wondered if business models and payment plans for those who live on irregular and unpredictable incomes could be designed to be as adaptable and flexible as the informal economy, I came across this snippet today that gives much food for […]
Alejandro builds a house
Alejandro starts early in the morning, February 20th, 2009 Alejandro used to work as a security guard in a wellknown company in the city until his youngest daughter was weaned. Then his wife left for Abu Dhabi to work in domestic service and, in a way, so did Alejandro, choosing to stay home to look […]
Village shops: Malawi and The Phillippines
John Lumbe has begun sending in reports from Malawi after speaking with various small business owners. While I'll start getting them organized and published soon, here is something that caught my eye, even as I was going through my own photographs from my fieldwork in the Filipino barangay. Just look at both shops. photo credit: […]
Photographs online
I've started uploading some of the photographs from Iloilo province, The Phillipines up online. Here is a photo album (you should be able to see it at the top of the right hand column of this blog page) of some ways and means of earning an income in urban Iloilo City and here on flickr […]
Primal patterns
Handmade furniture designer's workshop, February 24th 2009 I'm sitting here in my room at the Eugenio Lopez Conference center in the outskirts of MetroManila, on a hilltop to be exact, looking down at the poolside and the whole city, respectively from the french windows (pix later). The disparity of difference between this former mansion and […]
Pondering the possibilities
Iloilo Province, The Phillipines, 21st February 2009 I'm back online after my sojourn in rural Iloilo province and still digesting the whole experience of being immersed in BoP/rural life for (me) such an extended period. As impressions and images are still juggling into place, few insights emerge at this time other than an overall sense […]
An introduction to the values gap: a framework for interpretation
Believing as I do that the assumptions we make and the values we espouse influence the perspective from which we perceive the world and thus, the frame of reference which grounds the inferences we make from our observations, I thought to share a couple of snippets from prior writing on the subject. The first is […]
Preparing for The Philipines fieldwork
The next phase of the fieldwork, in The Philipines starts from the 20th of February in a small village of approximately 2000 people about an hour outside Iloilo city. Fascinating history dating back to before the Spanish occupation but I don't know if I'll get the opportunity to explore the actual city. The Western Visayas […]
Flexible systems accomodate unpredictable circumstances
Statue of Veer Hammir that's not officially unveiled yet, Sawai Madhopur, India Every hometown has its hero and Ranthambhore is no different. Rana Hammir (or Hamir) was a chivalrous romantic figure, a Rajput warrior king who held Ranthambhore Fort in the heart of what is now the National Park against the Delhi Sultanate. Here's a […]
When silver is in season
Chandiwala, Sawai Madhopur, India January 4th 2009 Mine is a seasonal business, the making of traditional silver ornaments that are worn by married women and a part of her dowry. This is still early, you are lucky today that I happen to be working on these anklets. It will start to get very busy in […]
