'Indian companies most open to new ideas'

The Louis Kahn building in the heart of Ahmedabad has got its latest admirer. This time, a visually-challenged lady from Germany.

Thirty-something Sabriye Tenberken, winner of the 2006 Mother Teresa Award and 2005 Nobel Peace Prize nominee, says she can feel the beauty of the IIM-A building.

Tenberken says she's also in love with Indian corporate houses. "They are far more responsive and generous than other corporate houses the world over."

Tenberken, a world-renowned visionary and founder of Braille Without Borders (BWB), an international organisation for the blind in developing countries, was in Ahmedabad to participate in the IIM-A Confluence 2007.

Sabriye and Paul Kronenberg, co-founder of BWB, have an ongoing project in Lhasa in Tibet and another one is coming up at Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala. The Tibet centre was founded in 1998 and educates blind children besides providing vocational training in cheese making to animal husbandry to computers.

The Thiruvananthapuram project, named International Institute for Social Entrepreneurs (IISE), would train blind entrepreneurs to set up their own training centres or small businesses. Infosys and the Tata Group have made good contributions to this initiative.

"Fund is the most crucial part of our initiative. We have traveled the world over and made presentations to various large corporate houses. Though they are morally supportive and very inspirational, when it comes to financial contribution they are very conservative. Indian corporate houses are just the opposite. They are far more generous, financially supportive and open to new concepts," she says.

The dormitory building of the IISE has been funded by Infosys. The organisation is working closely with the Tata Group, which has promised to provide internet connectivity and would set a up solar energy plant at the IISE. It is also in talks with US Technologies Global and has received favourable response from Dynamatic Technologies Limited, Bangalore, for software assistance, said Kronenberg.

He added that BWB was looking at some corporate houses, which could provide scholarships to students of IISE. "At present, we are receiving more applications from African countries and the number of Indian applicants is very little," Kronenberg said. The one-year IISE diploma course will start in January or February 2009 and have 40 seats. The campus is expected to be ready by next June-July.

Students would receive practical training in management, fund-raising, PR activities, project planning, computer technology, English, communication and soft skills.

"Post training, they will be in a position to speak for themselves," said Tenberken.