Sharing experiences through images and words that have influenced and urged him to take up relief work, Anshu Gupta makes us rethink our definition of what constitutes a 'disaster'. He brings attention to the need for participation by all for improving the extant and redefining poverty, disasters and need as well as aid, relief and development.

Ramon Magasaysay Awardee and founder of Goonj, an organization that won the Indian NGO of the year award in 2009, Anshu Gupta has been working hard for more than 15 years to help underserved communities in India. He has been facilitating an economic bridge between urban, wealthy India and impoverished, rural India by simply sharing the surplus of wealth. Goonj established a culture of sustained donations in India by creating a mechanism for second-hand clothes and goods to pass from the wealthy to the poor. Goonj has built up a network in remote parts of 21 states of India and also carried out extensive relief work in post-earthquake Nepal.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx