Remember the Tech Museum Awards? The award “honors innovators from around the world who are applying technology to benefit humanity.” The 25 winners were announced yesterday, with two innovators from India. MercuryNews.com covered the ceremony in San Jose, California and met…

We at ThinkChange India, have reported (and discussed) extensively on serving people at the Bottom of the Pyramid (BoP). One such initiative is the Entreprenurial Design for Extreme Affordability effort under the aegis of Stanford Institute of Design.

The name clearly conveys…

Many of our prior posts have spoken to the urgent need to overhaul, or at the least, significantly revamp the education system in India, as evidenced by the massive rise in demand for both primary and higher education institutions in…

• BoP Energy and beyond: BP has built a new stove for the BoP market that produces much fewer emissions than the typical wood burning stoves. Scaling up, the government predicts that by 2017, 10% of total transport fuel will come from…

• Agriculture: Politicians are expected to focus much of their rhetoric and polling towards the upcoming elections on issues near to rural agrarian sectors of the population. Amidst fears for price increases on basic goods, both Minister for Food and Civil Supplies…

Weekend headlines for your leisurely perusal:

• Inflation rates in India rose to a 13 month high of 6.7% for the week ending on March 15th.  Economists predict a sharp rise in prices of food and energy following.  In response, Congress leader Rahul…

• How long does it take to discuss a deal involving nuclear technology? Apparently for US President Bush and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee just a little longer than an episode of Khanna Khazana.
• Protests against Utkal Alumina International Limited’s attempt to open a…

A joint effort by ACCESS Development Services, an Indian microfinance technical services non-profit organization, and Hindustan Unilever is providing water purifiers to poor families. Unilever’s PureIt does not require any electricity or running water and so is perfect for rural…

Are the women who participate in Self Help Groups (SHGs) more socially, politically, and economically empowered than their counterparts?  How is “empowerment” defined or measured?  Can “empowerment” be attributed strictly to the savings and credit aspect of microfinance, or do…