Work with The Elders

Ela Bhatt has been a member of The Elders since the group was founded in 2007. Profoundly influenced by Gandhian thinking, she advocates local, grassroots solutions for those who are poor, oppressed or suffering the effects of violent conflict.

A firm believer in the power of creative, collective non-violent activism, she joined her fellow Elders Gro Brundtland, Fernando H Cardoso, Jimmy Carter, Mary Robinson and Desmond Tutu on The Elders’ first visit to Israel and the West Bank in August 2009, where she was inspired by villagers engaged in weekly peaceful protests against Israel’s separation barrier.

On The Elders’ second visit to the region in October 2010, Ela Bhatt spent time in Gaza and spoke out about the need for non-violent struggle and self-reliance in a land that is totally dependent on – and controlled by – powerful outside interests.

“We are poor, but so many”

Ela Bhatt is one of the world’s most remarkable pioneers and entrepreneurial forces in grassroots development. Known as the ‘gentle revolutionary’, she has dedicated her life to improving the lives of India’s poorest and most oppressed women workers.

In 1972 she founded the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), a trade union for women workers in India’s huge informal sector, who make up 94 per cent of the female labour force and yet have never enjoyed the same rights and security as those in formal employment. Today SEWA has more than 1.2 million members across nine Indian states.

“We may be poor, but we are so many. Why don’t we start a bank of our own? Our own women’s bank, where we are treated with the respect and service that we deserve.” – Chandaben, SEWA member

The following year, Ela Bhatt founded the Cooperative Bank of SEWA. The bank helps women to gain financial independence and raise their standing in their families and communities - and puts into practice the Gandhian principles of self-reliance and collective action.

Empowering women workers

Among the organisations Ela Bhatt has created and inspired, she founded and chairs:

She has also served as a trustee of the Rockefeller Foundation for more than ten years.

In recognition of her work to improve the status of women and the working poor in India and elsewhere, Ela Bhatt was awarded the first-ever Global Fairness Initiative Award, the Ramon Magsaysay Award, the Right Livelihood Award, the George Meany-Lane Kirkland Human Rights Award, and the Légion d’honneur from France. She has also received honorary doctorates from Harvard, Yale and the University of Natal.