Introduction
Sristi Foundation was founded in 2013 by Mr. Karthikeyan Ganesan, a psychologist who spent 15+ years working with children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Karthik grew up in an orphanage that treated all children, disabled or not, equally. However, his disabled siblings faced discrimination in mainstream life. Therefore, after his studies, he returned to the orphanage to help make a difference.
Sristi Foundation is a non-profit organization based in rural Tamil Nadu, Villupuram District, India that works towards improving the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. We use a combination of education, life skills training, and agriculture to help people who are faced with exclusion, neglect, and many other disadvantages that limit their effective participation in mainstream society. At Sristi, we empower our members with training and skills that will enable them to lead a more independent and dignified life.
On 10-acres of land, we have created an inclusive and holistic environment that we lovingly call Sristi Village. Sristi Foundation runs three (6) pioneer projects: Sristi Village, Sristi Special School, Sristi Farm Academy, Mobile Therapy Project, Girls Group Home for Young Adult Women with Intellectual Disabilities and Sristi Early Intervention Center as well as a lot of community support and environmental projects. Through these projects, marginalized individuals are given the opportunity to learn, grow, and become independent whilst being provided with nutritious food, shelter, and a loving & supportive environment.
Vission
An inclusive society where all people with intellectual and developmental disabilities are respected, valued, and have choices to lead a holistic and dignified life. We believe in an inclusive and eco-responsible world, where everyone is given the opportunity to reach their full potential regardless of disability, race, gender, etc.
1) Disability
2) Health
3) Education
4) Environment
Mission
Enable persons with disabilities and other marginalized groups to live as independently and as fully as possible through economic and social empowerment.
Sristi Projects in Brief
Sristi Special School welcomes young rural children with intellectual and developmental disabilities to provide them with special education, mid-day meal and other rehabilitation services.
Sristi Village is a self-sustaining and inclusive community which offers marginalized individuals and people with intellectual disabilities the chance to live, learn, work, and generate income thus, allowing them to reach their full potential and to live a dignified independent life in the mainstream society.
Sristi Farm Academy provides vocational training to individuals with intellectual disabilities in organic and sustainable farming to equip them with skills and experience to live independently in future.
Mobile Therapy project Sristi is taking an initiative to reach the poor children with special needs of Villupuram district through community-based rehabilitation to enhance their life by providing special education, physiotherapy, speech therapy, medical assistance, counseling at their doorsteps also to conduct awareness programs on health and hygiene. The main aim of this program is to reach the children with special needs who are in severe condition and to create a holistic environment for them.
Girls Group Home for Adults with Intellectual Disabilities Sristi initiated an assisted and Independent Living for Young Adult Women with Intellectual and developmental disabilities. A first-of-its- kind initiative in Puducherry a group home is just that – a home. It may have rules about how it needs to run, but it helps disabled adults live in a real community in a real house with a real continuity of people around them. This project aims to unlock the potential of these wonderful women to lead an independent life in society.
Sristi Early Intervention Centre for Children with Disabilities About 1% of children between the age of 0 and 4 live with a disability. 0-6 years is a very crucial age for a child to learn basic concepts, communication, in fact the learning child has in this age shapes his/her personality. If children are identified at earliest age and their intervention needs are mapped, it can be helped to great extent. The center’s primary objective is to offer high-quality, no-cost multidisciplinary interventions including speech therapy, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, behavior analysis and special education support to meet the unique needs of each child. Through Sristi Early Intervention Centre for Children with Disabilities we aim to fill this gap by offering hope for families in Villupuram District.
Enabling Inclusion® App Onboarding NGO training
Sristi Foundation has decided to adopt the Multidisciplinary version of the Enabling Inclusion® App developed by Amar Seva Sangam. This adoption aims to enhance the monitoring of activities and track the progress of both children and adults, ultimately improving the quality of services provided. The foundation recently conducted in-person training for its staff from July 8th to 11th, 2024. Their ambitious plan involves enrolling 350 children across six projects. These projects collectively include 20 Special Educators, 3 PTs, 6 Community Rehabilitation Workers, and 5 members of the management team.
