Who We Are
Carpentry training for young people
From One Village to Many
Sarvodaya USA promotes self-help development to improve the quality of life for everyone, especially the poorest and underprivileged. It also seeks to influence global development policies to become more human-focused and more mindful of our traditional and cultural values.
Sarvodaya USA is inspired by the Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement of Sri Lanka, a unique people’s self-help organization that takes an integrated, holistic approach to development, peace, and spiritual awakening. The Movement began in 1958 when A.T. Ariyaratne, then a schoolteacher in Colombo, led a group of students and teachers to volunteer their time to work with rural villagers. From its early beginnings in one village the Movement has grown to encompass more than 15,000 villages throughout the island, with supporters throughout the world.
Translated from the Sanskrit, Sarvodaya Shramadana means, “the awakening of all through shared labor.”
Sarvodaya promotes self-reliance rather than dependency. It enables and empowers people to take responsibility for planning their own futures. By engaging them, organizing and sharing voluntary work, the Sarvodaya approach aims toward fulfillment of individual, family, community, national, and global needs.
