Showcase
INDIA LAB – Action Learning at MIT Sloan
India Lab focuses on the opportunities and challenges facing a variety of businesses within the dynamic Indian economy. Created and taught by Yasheng Huang, this spring Action Learning lab is open to first and second year Sloan students interested in gaining experience in Indian business culture. For three months, teams of four students work in collaboration with an Indian host company to solve a company-selected complex challenge that they would like addressed. Students work onsite with the host for two weeks in March. Past host companies have ranged from small start-ups to non-profits to specific divisions within large multinational corporations. For more information, please email [email protected].
IndianRaga
Presenters: Sriram Emani, Anasuya Mandal, Parnika Agrawal
IndianRaga, MIT’s latest student-initiative and Winner of the MIT IDEAS Global Challenge 2012 (Community Choice Award), is a move to democratize the Indian performing arts space by bringing together the very best of upcoming Indian talent and connecting them with performance opportunities. Learn more about the upcoming IndianRaga contest, and the Shankar Tucker fundraiser concert at our table, or visit us at www.indianraga.in
Sahapedia
Presenters: Sudha Gopalakrishnan, Neha Paliwal
Sahapedia is an interactive online encylopedia about the histories, arts and cultures of India (and broadly South Asia). It is, in part, a curated resource, and in part, a platform for popular participation in conversations about India (and broadly South Asia) by registered users from all over the world to contribute content on areas of their interest.
MIT India
The MIT International Science and Technology Initiatives (MISTI) connects MIT students and faculty with research and innovation around the world. Inspired by the MIT Mens et Manus tradition, MISTI is a pioneer in applied international studies. Working closely with a network of premier corporations, universities and research institutes, MISTI matches hundreds of MIT undergraduate and graduate students annually with all-expenses-paid internships and research abroad.
The India Innovation Fund supports budding research collaborative between faculty and research scientist at MIT and their counterparts in India. Tangible outcomes reported by grantees, including papers published, grants obtained, and new career paths for students, point to funds as a practical, cost-effective way to spur international research collaboration from the ground up.
J-PAL
The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a network of 70 affiliated professors around the world who are united by their use of Randomized Evaluations (REs) to answer questions critical to poverty alleviation. J-PAL’s mission is to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is based on scientific evidence.
Essmart
Millions of people around the world have unmet essential needs, like lighting and clean water. There already exist hundreds of essential technologies that meet these needs, like low-cost solar lanterns and water filters. Essmart creates an essential marketplace for these technologies in places where people already shop. We demonstrate a catalogue of products at the village level, distribute products to local kirana shops, and facilitate manufacturers’ warranties to ensure that users continue to benefit. After positive results from our pilot, where two shop owners sold 17 products in one week, we launched operations in Pollachi, Tamil Nadu, India in August 2012.
GRIT - Global Research Innovation and Technology
20 million people in developing countries need a wheelchair. Existing products don’t work on the rough terrain and break easily. The Leveraged Freedom Chair (LFC) solves this problem. It uses a lever drivetrain made from bike parts, enabling users to travel 80% faster than a standard wheelchair on tarmac and off-road like no other mobility aid available, while ensuring local repairability. The LFC empowers people with disabilities to access education, employment and independence. The team behind the design met while they were students at MIT and have since founded an organization called GRIT to manage the commercialization of the product. They are currently manufacturing the LFC in India and working with Jaipur Foot to scale distribution.
Landscape Heritage Conservation: Barapulla Nallah
This year’s project seeks to expand the range of alternatives for conserving an historic nallah in the Nizamuddin area of south Delhi. Historic nallahs are those that pass through or by, and have associations with historic architecture, sites, and landscapes. They have heritage as well as use value. Nallahs serve vital hydrological and ecological functions in urban environments. They also have important settlement functions, initially providing water supplies, bridge crossings, and monsoon drainage. This project strives to expand the “range of choice” in historic nullah conservation by generating alternatives for the Barapulla Nallah in the Nizamuddin area of south Delhi. It explores alternative conceptual frameworks, physical design proposals, and institutional models.