Climate action, LGBTQIA+ inclusivity: Stories of social change that sparked conversations this year

As 2024 draws to a close, the social sector has been a testament to the power of resilience, innovation, and community-driven change. From groundbreaking initiatives addressing gender inequality, grassroots movements for climate action, people who have created a defining social impact to social enterprises that have embraced tech for good, this year has showcased how individuals and organisations have believed in action for impact.

In this roundup, SocialStory looks back at the year that was, highlighting stories that sparked conversations, inspired action, and have constantly reminded us of the incredible potential of collective impact. These narratives also set the stage for progress the sector aims to achieve in 2025.

Here are some of our stories of change:

For an inclusive rural society

As a visually-challenged person, Pavan Kumar Muntha faced an internal battle while coming to terms with his disability. He was always trying to prove himself, competing with others and grappling with stigma. His perspective shifted when he participated in a World Bank-funded study on the lives of disabled people in rural Andhra Pradesh. As part of this study, he met a young woman with a severe disability and Muntha was struck by the systemic neglect she had faced throughout her life.

This experience led him on the path to address disability as an individual struggle and a systemic failure rooted in socio-economic inequities. It encouraged his journey into advocacy, and he built alliances with policy makers, community and civil society organisations, families of persons with disabilities and disability organisations.

Battling for trans representation in fashion and media

The fashion industry has often not been welcoming of transgender and gender non-binary models, where they are often compelled to hide their identities to survive. As a trans model, Rudrani Chettri saw this disparity and decided to create more spaces for people like her.

In 2015, she took the first step in this direction by starting Bold, a transgender modelling agency, which has now also expanded to include casting opportunities for the trans community as well. Over the years, Chettri has seen small wins, with trans models appearing in campaigns or runways. But the path to change is a long one still: even as Bold boasts over 50 trans models on its roster, less than six have been able to break into the sector so far.

Sisters of hope

In 2003, non-profit Awaaz-e-Niswaan opened the Rehunuma Library in the Mumbra suburb of Mumbai to empower young women and girls through exposure to Indian and global literature. The intent was also to nurture a strong sense of identity, social, and political consciousness. Today, the library has over 350 members, and has bloomed into a community space where women receive education, legal assistance and support with social issues like divorce, polygamy, and domestic violence. While in the 1990s, they supported survivors of domestic violence and Triple Talaq, today, they complement these existing efforts with education—both academic and socio-political.

Preserving Lambani art

Founded by Asha Patil and Seema Kishore, Banjara Kasuti aims to give Lambani women a platform to practice their traditional craft while making a livelihood from it. The Lambanis, also known as the Banjaras or Lambadis, are a traditionally nomadic community from the Mewar region, now a part of modern-day Rajasthan. 

Today, they are largely settled across the southern parts of India, including Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana, with some presence in the northern regions as well. 

The organisation sources organic handloom cotton from weavers in North Karnataka in an attempt to support sustainable livelihoods and uphold the traditional craftsmanship of local artisans. 

Lambani embroidery uses a minimum of 14 types of stitches that are an amalgamation of patterns and shapes, making the garments intricate and festive. All work is done by hand to preserve the cultural heritage of the art form while also countering the environmental impact of mass production techniques. 

Reviving indigenous crafts

In December 2022, Shahida Khanum, a 25-year-old philosophy and social science graduate, turned her paternal home into a centre for reviving the Gujjar community’s rich art and heritage.  

The Noor Centre upholds the vanishing handwork—colourful embroidery, stitching, knitting, and designing practices—unique to the Gujjars’ once pastoral lifestyle, identity, and ancestry.

Last year, with the help of the NGO Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited,  she presented her work at cultural events in Ladakh and Ranchi, gaining acknowledgement on a national platform.

Reviving traditional handloom through DIY kits

Kalaiyarasi Ramachandran hails from a weaving family, though her father transitioned to the power loom many years ago. She discovered that the number of handlooms in her village, Salangapalyam in Erode district in Tamil Nadu, had dwindled from 7,500 to 2,500. The area also faced some social issues—widespread migration to nearby cities for jobs, and girls dropping out of school to get married. 

These circumstances led Ramachandran to start Raatai during the pandemic–a venture that began with five looms in her own home in Salangapalayam and seven in other places in the village to offer work for weavers. 

She used organic yarn made from banana fibre, hemp and other materials along with natural dyes to keep the craft environmentally sustainable.

She also struck upon the idea of portable DIY handloom kits to give a fillip to traditional handloom weaving. 

Available in three options and operable at three levels, they can be used by adults and children above the age of three. 

The good samaritan of Bengaluru

The city of Bengaluru has its very own superhero–and he’s earned his reputation one good deed at a time. Dushyant Dubey rose to popularity as St Broseph on Reddit for helping people in Bengaluru with various issues. He runs the St Broseph Foundation and heads The St Broseph Army of 5,300 volunteers in the city, through a well-connected network of politicians, social workers, and social organisations.

He's also the co-founder and Creative Director of Nammawalls, an art collective that aims to transform public walls with art showcasing history and culture, with its popular 100-wall painting series "Freedom Wall" adorning Indiranagar and several other spots in Bengaluru. 

The organisation also has an RTI and Legal cell for free legal support, a Careers team to support individuals in need of jobs, and a women's wing known as Abbakka Brigade for women's issues and empowerment initiatives.

Breaking stereotypes, one goal at a time

A transmen football team by Ya_All, an LGBTQIA+ youth-led organisation in Imphal, Manipur, is helping create a safe space for the community while fostering inclusion in sports. 

Founded in 2017, Ya_All promotes LGBTQIA+ inclusion in India through sports, mental health initiatives, and advocacy. It offers free services for young people, including those from LGBTQI+ communities, people living with HIV, and those with psychosocial disabilities. 

Sadam Hanjabam started the organisation as a small support group on WhatsApp for LGBTQIA+ people from the region. In 2019, it was registered as an organisation. 

In 2020, the organisation formally introduced the first all-transgender team. Initially, it included other sports, but now it focuses on football alone.

Transforming farming in rural Jharkhand

When Sushant Gaurav was posted in the Gumla district of Jharkhand as Deputy Commissioner (DC) in February 2022, he realised that paddy cultivation was unsustainable and didn’t suit the place.

The Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer began convincing farmers to switch to ragi (finger millet), which can withstand dry spells and has high nutritional value. This could lead to a more sustainable agricultural system which involved lower risk and better gain. 

Beginning with over 5,000 farmers, Gaurav has empowered more than 30,000 farmers in the district to grow ragi. The crop fetches around Rs 30 per kg, leading to a substantial increase in the farmers’ incomes. The officer has also formed a system to help women sell ragi-based products in and out of the state and enable them to earn a livelihood.

The women reviving Tamil Nadu’s rivers

Led by Chandrasekar Kuppan from the Art of Living Foundation, 20,000 women under the TN government’s MNREGA scheme came together to revive the Naganadhi river, a tributary of the Palar river, flowing through Vellore and Thiruvannamalai districts, which had run dry for more than 15 years.

They built recharge wells and boulder checks, and now the river flows throughout the year and has changed the socio-economic landscape of the region. Today, the project is being replicated across 25 rivers in the state.