TGD Life
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
posted by Doll @ 8:00 AM,
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Dolls of the World
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Labels: Dolls of the World
posted by Doll @ 11:47 AM,
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New Design of Women Art Center
Saturday, January 26, 2008
posted by Doll @ 2:16 PM,
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Engraved Woodwork
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Engraved woodwork - the name is enough to collectors, travellers and cautiously curious dreaming. Antiquity is the first message of the ancient art. And, woodwork executed in villages of Pakistan is a collector's delight that needs to be preserved.
During the Mughal era, Pakistan produced many intelligent personalities and talented artisans who occupied positions in the Mughal courts. Artisans of Pakistan have instinctive good taste and they have achieved a distinctive excellence in woodwork. They are said to have been employed during the construction of Taj Mahal at Agra and Golden Temple at Amritsar. Special types of furniture and decorative items with brightly lacquered woodcarvings and coloured woodwork are still made here and famous all over the world. Gujrat, Chaniot and Multan are particularly famous for woodwork.
During the Mughal era, Pakistan produced many intelligent personalities and talented artisans who occupied positions in the Mughal courts. Artisans of Pakistan have instinctive good taste and they have achieved a distinctive excellence in woodwork. They are said to have been employed during the construction of Taj Mahal at Agra and Golden Temple at Amritsar. Special types of furniture and decorative items with brightly lacquered woodcarvings and coloured woodwork are still made here and famous all over the world. Gujrat, Chaniot and Multan are particularly famous for woodwork.
What this internationally acclaimed craft of the country needs is an institutional patronization and extensive efforts for preservation. Made in Pakistan wood items are found at different antique shops and but this art seem to be fading away in the face of the factory made items. It can be a potent source of earning for village artisans if attention is paid to and earnest efforts are made. Sadly, the trained incompetents responsible for export promotion of art and culture do not see this and the unique potentials and its cultural importance yet.
posted by Doll @ 11:41 PM,
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Invasion of Privacy
Everyone has right to his or her privacy. But there are violations to this universal right. Word is out and it points to use of credit reports on a job application before hiring. This will be bad for fabrics of societies if the trend picks up and it goes unnoticed for long. Blog post triggers a thought that how job seeking candidates will feel if everyone starts checking on their personal lives, worst still on financial health.
Labels: Personal Finance
posted by Doll @ 11:21 PM,
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Activities in AeFeA
Projects line Thatta kedona require specific efforts and public relations. Unlike projects in highly populated areas or in cities, they are constantly in danger of being suppressed or ignored by the townsfolk. Therefore the village development project Thatta Kedona is keeping intense contacts with customers, other NGOs and colleges and involves NGO members in more than one ways including sending the NGO members abroad. Here are the statistics for three years:
2001
Dubai Shopping Festival with Mr. Muhammad Ilyas, Ms Ruksana under the supervision of a Senior Expert Service voluntary worker.
Summer academy with English crash course for seven village women under the supervision of an Australian voluntary worker.
2002
Dubai Shopping Festival with Ms Kanem, Ms Ruksana, Q-Damm Mile Berlin with Mrs Farzana.
International Workshop Island with Mrs Farzana under the supervision of a volunteer.
In port shop and market of the continents with Mr Ansar Ali under the supervision of two volunteers.
2003
Internship at the 'Deutsche Welle' with Farooq Ahmed.
Dubai Shopping Festival with Mr Ansar Ali.
The on-site support was made possible through the SES, which covers flight costs for experts, provided that the local contracting body can prove an economic interest and document it with an audited accountancy. The organization has to commit to providing local transport, accommodation and food for the experts. This autumn there are five experts of the SES in TGD, where the original arts and crafts project has in the meantime developed into twelve different projects:
Tourism
Accommodation for visitors and tourists are existing in the Village. Village Museum as tourists’ attraction is under preparation.
Computer
Computer
Installation of a teaching facility
Ecotechnology
Ecotechnology
Development of prototypes for electricity and hot water supplies. Preparations are in hand for training and sales.
Recycling
Recycling
Collection of plastics waste
Building and Architecture
Building and Architecture
Fourth award for the preservation of Cultural Heritage (best mud house, best brick house, best detail).
Music and Education
Music and Education
Training for young village boys in traditional music
Agriculture and Water
Agriculture and Water
A water project –- small experimental plot -- will be financed by a service club. Planting of 'kitchen gardens' is extensively encouraged.
Handicraft
Handicraft
Development of new products
Public Health
Public Health
Improvement of the local health service
Communication and Information
Communication and Information
Preparations for a radio channel for the district
Marketing
Marketing
Packaging and improvement of national and international sales
A Women Art Center, a 'Technology Transfer and Training Center and a Basic Health Unit in the village as well as a showroom in Lahore are functioning. All volunteers from abroad are either seniors (former general managers, directors, professors), juniors (students, beginners) or people in middle life who work and learn with the villagers, who so far had visitors and guests from over 40 countries.
A Women Art Center, a 'Technology Transfer and Training Center and a Basic Health Unit in the village as well as a showroom in Lahore are functioning. All volunteers from abroad are either seniors (former general managers, directors, professors), juniors (students, beginners) or people in middle life who work and learn with the villagers, who so far had visitors and guests from over 40 countries.
posted by Doll @ 3:50 PM,
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Workshop on Renewable Energy and Sanitation
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
posted by Doll @ 6:31 PM,
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Product Development in TTTC
Volunteer Zephanja Arzt is working on a new product at TTTC in TGD. The images show various steps of the product development process.
Labels: Products, Thatta Kedona, TTTC
posted by Doll @ 3:45 PM,
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Disclosure Policy
Sunday, January 20, 2008
This blog is a collaborative blog written by a group of individuals. This blog accepts forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content. The owner(s) of this blog is compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. Even though the owner(s) of this blog receives compensation for our posts or advertisements, we always give our honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the bloggers' own. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question.
This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest.
posted by Doll @ 8:53 PM,
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Dubai Shopping Festival - 2008
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Thatta Kedona is participating in Global Village Dubai Shopping Festival from December 12 to March 1, 2008. Mohammad Ilyas (in first phase) from Village-NGO AFA. and Roman Laube (in second phase) from NGO D.G.F.K. will be there on Thatta Kedona Stall.
Look them up when you are at Shopping Festival.
Relevant:
The Dubai Shopping Festival
History of the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates Resources
Maps of Dubai
Geography and Map of United Arab Emirates
Tags: Dolls, NGOs , Dubai Shopping Festival
Labels: Dubai Shopping Festival, Thatta Kedona
posted by Doll @ 7:45 PM,
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"Future Lies in the Rural Areas"
Saturday, January 05, 2008
Prof Dr Norbert Pintsch, Omar M. Ali, Aaron Pinsker write still more on the future is in rural development
In the past, we have often discussed various opportunities of investment in rural areas. Mostly discussions at consumer and social oriented project forms showed the individuality of the regional possibilities.
Instead of an "either – or” it emerged more of a "this –as well as that" situation, although the combinations may be counter-productive, if the individual characteristics of the one or the other part are not sufficiently taken into consideration.
The discussion of the waveband of possibilities leads to recognition of an urban culture and a rural culture. In areas of high population and lesser access to immovable property, the residents have no other option but to continuously vary, to invest. This segment of population requires permanent income and is therefore forced to accept long-term employment in order to organize their livelihood.
The individual here can eventually juggle, in order to cover his financial requirements to some extent, multiple jobs are one other possibility, but to escape the urban system is hardly possible. It is unthinkable to create the opposite of an old saying "city air makes free", -this was said at a time, when more people lived in the villages than in the cities.
The general administrations have their own problems to overcome, which was not such a risk in a growth oriented time and appropriate tax income. The requirements and demands developed on the basis of growth economy can hardly be turned back, -privatization appears to be a logical possibility for decreasing the pressure on the households, but it fails to recognize the most general principles of economic administration in a global background. Just to mention a comment in this regard, already discussed in sufficient detail at other platforms: foreign corporations cannot invest out of social considerations of responsibility, -a well known fact, which does not interest the short-term thinking politicians.
Should we start to consider the individual and the costs of general administration, which are needed to organize the city life, we cannot but come to the conclusion that urban life in all respects is expensive and problem growth-oriented.
The city culture is international, just as also its problems. One is forced to stand in competition with each other; this leads not to a solution of the problem but to more and more brutal competition, the results being changeable and more uniform. So the main principle is Hope and –in the absence of other possibilities- the affected masses are forced to live on hope only.
The problem of de-population of rural areas is in-fact caused by the city culture itself; the financially stronger segment can enjoy the solitude of their expensive penthouses, what however leads to other problems already discussed at other place.
People living in rural areas, they feel the taste of backwardness, -backwardness as seen by the city dweller, who cannot judge the real situation in rural background and sees it –if at all- only in romantic context. The rural life functions in a different way as compared to the urban way, a fact which may not be not be appreciated by the politicians, because only universally applicable methods appear to be logical, which are however a basis for further problems, mostly of financial nature.
To keep a clear mind here is not impossible: still there is –let us call it-"traditional culture" prevalent in rural areas, which remains unconsidered in economic terms because their evaluation, similar to the fifties of the 20th century, is quite difficult. We are today aware of the traditional culture only sub-consciously in museum and amusement. The real traditional values are thereby increasingly being lost. Such thinking is often discarded as being obsolete, -a result of stagnation. Whereby it is exactly this thinking which should be the basis for a discussion about "Future in rural development”
Infrastructure measures in the rural areas are cost provoking only then, when these are taken from the position of the city culture. It is important in the rural areas –and with that we touch the main principles of development, to support the traditional handicraft, to make it independent of the central infrastructure and also to utilize fully the possibilities of small scale technologies.
The principles mentioned here are valid for rural areas but also for areas where the industrialization has still not fully established itself, for example. in the so-called developing countries, which after an exacter inspection and discounting the pressures of industrial standards and gross domestic product and due consideration of the value of traditional culture are actually not so poor after all!
In the times of mass production, the transfer of production to so-called cheap-labour-countries etc., an individualization of the products, i.e. production according to individual requirements is becoming more and more evident. The markets are saturated after local demand is satisfied. But the principle of industrial production is actually not production according to individual needs! If one looks at the forms of individualization in the automobile industry, the practice corresponds to designing of a single family house with the means of industrial production.
We have tried to emphasize, that when the above mentioned principles are kept in mind, the future lies in the rural areas. Up till now, the cost of livelihood in rural areas is quite cheap: a simple household and the possibility of self-subsistence in many ways are quite clear. On the other side we see the advocates of city culture and the growth-oriented strategists, the insufficient infra-structure, missing workplaces, bad education facilities and many more co-criteria.
The effects of developments in the 19th century on western societies were serious and led to the well known east-west conflicts. Even if the supposed winners of this conflict continue to follow their line, it should still be pointed out, that times have changed considerably. Unfortunately this fact is not given due consideration by decision-makers and their sub-ordinates. So we should not be surprised if the population continues to think according to old patterns and continues to energetically participate, in order just to survive. Notable is, that the solutions for bringing changes, not for reforms, lie on the floor like pearls, ready to be picked up, which unfortunately should be a difficult task for a well trained and well-fed body not so keen on change.
Where can we find the traditional culture of the past? How can we make ourselves independent of the central infra-structure? What do Small-Technologies mean?
These and many other questions arise and they are not produced in pre-arranged form as mass goods, -this is strenuous, but also a challenge. The answers lie like pearls on the floor: unheeded results of ethnologists, models for appropriate technologies, new forms of employment, etc. It is interesting to note that even from USA, the land of unlimited possibilities, interesting theories have emerged, which are gladly seen as necessary and already delayed reforms to the western system, but are useful to much further extent.
Finally, since we have become accustomed to quote and give references, otherwise we are not believed, so we name Th. Kuhn (The Structure of Scientific Revolution), F.Bergmann (New Work). A. Gebhardt in Aachen looks forward to the period of individual manufacturing, of Recycelns, of three-dimensional printing, including developing and designing on a high-tech-level, -all challenges, new possibilities of rural development.
In the past, we have often discussed various opportunities of investment in rural areas. Mostly discussions at consumer and social oriented project forms showed the individuality of the regional possibilities.
Instead of an "either – or” it emerged more of a "this –as well as that" situation, although the combinations may be counter-productive, if the individual characteristics of the one or the other part are not sufficiently taken into consideration.
The discussion of the waveband of possibilities leads to recognition of an urban culture and a rural culture. In areas of high population and lesser access to immovable property, the residents have no other option but to continuously vary, to invest. This segment of population requires permanent income and is therefore forced to accept long-term employment in order to organize their livelihood.
The individual here can eventually juggle, in order to cover his financial requirements to some extent, multiple jobs are one other possibility, but to escape the urban system is hardly possible. It is unthinkable to create the opposite of an old saying "city air makes free", -this was said at a time, when more people lived in the villages than in the cities.
The general administrations have their own problems to overcome, which was not such a risk in a growth oriented time and appropriate tax income. The requirements and demands developed on the basis of growth economy can hardly be turned back, -privatization appears to be a logical possibility for decreasing the pressure on the households, but it fails to recognize the most general principles of economic administration in a global background. Just to mention a comment in this regard, already discussed in sufficient detail at other platforms: foreign corporations cannot invest out of social considerations of responsibility, -a well known fact, which does not interest the short-term thinking politicians.
Should we start to consider the individual and the costs of general administration, which are needed to organize the city life, we cannot but come to the conclusion that urban life in all respects is expensive and problem growth-oriented.
The city culture is international, just as also its problems. One is forced to stand in competition with each other; this leads not to a solution of the problem but to more and more brutal competition, the results being changeable and more uniform. So the main principle is Hope and –in the absence of other possibilities- the affected masses are forced to live on hope only.
The problem of de-population of rural areas is in-fact caused by the city culture itself; the financially stronger segment can enjoy the solitude of their expensive penthouses, what however leads to other problems already discussed at other place.
People living in rural areas, they feel the taste of backwardness, -backwardness as seen by the city dweller, who cannot judge the real situation in rural background and sees it –if at all- only in romantic context. The rural life functions in a different way as compared to the urban way, a fact which may not be not be appreciated by the politicians, because only universally applicable methods appear to be logical, which are however a basis for further problems, mostly of financial nature.
To keep a clear mind here is not impossible: still there is –let us call it-"traditional culture" prevalent in rural areas, which remains unconsidered in economic terms because their evaluation, similar to the fifties of the 20th century, is quite difficult. We are today aware of the traditional culture only sub-consciously in museum and amusement. The real traditional values are thereby increasingly being lost. Such thinking is often discarded as being obsolete, -a result of stagnation. Whereby it is exactly this thinking which should be the basis for a discussion about "Future in rural development”
Infrastructure measures in the rural areas are cost provoking only then, when these are taken from the position of the city culture. It is important in the rural areas –and with that we touch the main principles of development, to support the traditional handicraft, to make it independent of the central infrastructure and also to utilize fully the possibilities of small scale technologies.
The principles mentioned here are valid for rural areas but also for areas where the industrialization has still not fully established itself, for example. in the so-called developing countries, which after an exacter inspection and discounting the pressures of industrial standards and gross domestic product and due consideration of the value of traditional culture are actually not so poor after all!
In the times of mass production, the transfer of production to so-called cheap-labour-countries etc., an individualization of the products, i.e. production according to individual requirements is becoming more and more evident. The markets are saturated after local demand is satisfied. But the principle of industrial production is actually not production according to individual needs! If one looks at the forms of individualization in the automobile industry, the practice corresponds to designing of a single family house with the means of industrial production.
We have tried to emphasize, that when the above mentioned principles are kept in mind, the future lies in the rural areas. Up till now, the cost of livelihood in rural areas is quite cheap: a simple household and the possibility of self-subsistence in many ways are quite clear. On the other side we see the advocates of city culture and the growth-oriented strategists, the insufficient infra-structure, missing workplaces, bad education facilities and many more co-criteria.
The effects of developments in the 19th century on western societies were serious and led to the well known east-west conflicts. Even if the supposed winners of this conflict continue to follow their line, it should still be pointed out, that times have changed considerably. Unfortunately this fact is not given due consideration by decision-makers and their sub-ordinates. So we should not be surprised if the population continues to think according to old patterns and continues to energetically participate, in order just to survive. Notable is, that the solutions for bringing changes, not for reforms, lie on the floor like pearls, ready to be picked up, which unfortunately should be a difficult task for a well trained and well-fed body not so keen on change.
Where can we find the traditional culture of the past? How can we make ourselves independent of the central infra-structure? What do Small-Technologies mean?
These and many other questions arise and they are not produced in pre-arranged form as mass goods, -this is strenuous, but also a challenge. The answers lie like pearls on the floor: unheeded results of ethnologists, models for appropriate technologies, new forms of employment, etc. It is interesting to note that even from USA, the land of unlimited possibilities, interesting theories have emerged, which are gladly seen as necessary and already delayed reforms to the western system, but are useful to much further extent.
Finally, since we have become accustomed to quote and give references, otherwise we are not believed, so we name Th. Kuhn (The Structure of Scientific Revolution), F.Bergmann (New Work). A. Gebhardt in Aachen looks forward to the period of individual manufacturing, of Recycelns, of three-dimensional printing, including developing and designing on a high-tech-level, -all challenges, new possibilities of rural development.
Labels: Dr. Norbert Pintsch, Rural Development
posted by Doll @ 10:00 AM,
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Thatta Ghulamka Dheroka - Star of the Punjab
Friday, January 04, 2008
Labels: Thatta Kedona
posted by Doll @ 7:15 PM,
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Seal of Excellence 2007 Award
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Coveted UNESCO award “Seal of Excellence 2007” was conferred upon Women Art Center of AFA in Thatta Ghulamka Dheroka. In Islamabad, an International Jury selected the dolls project on September 12-13, 2007.
Labels: Award, Thatta Kedona
posted by Doll @ 5:18 PM,
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Happy New Year
Tuesday, January 01, 2008
“Happy new year to readers and friends,” Dolls of the World
Labels: Products, Thatta Kedona
posted by Doll @ 4:37 PM,
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Dr. Senta Siller
Dr. Norbert Pintsch
