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Centre for Socio-Cultural Interaction (CESCI)
CESCI stands for Centre for Socio-Cultural Interaction and is situated near Madurai in Tamil Nadu in South India. It was founded in 1993 by the Swiss psychiatric nurse and photographer, Maja Koene, in collaboration with the well-know human rights activist, Rajagopal PV, the initiator of the land rights movement, Ekta Parishad.
As its name suggests, CESCI exists to promote socio-cultural exchange. But it is also a place where the activists of Ekta Parishad can reflect on their work, receive training and regenerate their energies for the social struggle.
CESCI is managed by an Indian foundation, which is in turn supported by the Swiss support group. In fact, CESCI is now largely self-supporting, which means that the Swiss group, currently consisting of 350 members, can focus on contributing financially to locally initiated projects and also on supporting the work carried out on a national basis by Ekta Parishad to achieve comprehensive land reform.