Social Consciousness

A trip to Myanmar affords Karishma Tulsidas a comprehensive insight into the work of the Cartier Charitable Foundation. She joins Pascale de la Frégonnière and Grégoire Blanche for the first-ever press trip organised by the foundation, and discovers how it operates independently from the luxury maison

The jeep trundles ahead, jerking wildly as we navigate the uneven dirt roads that connect the highway to the remote villages we are visiting. But we instantly forget the early morning start and the long ride from Bagan in central Myanmar to Kan Thar Village as we spy a handful of villagers lining the road, waving enthusiastically as we make our way to their village. You would think we were a convoy of celebrities, but in fact, we are here with the Cartier Charitable Foundation and the Red Cross to inspect the water system that had been put in place at the village in 2015. The villagers sing, dance, laugh, take pictures with us (and of us), hug us and hold our hands. The attention is disconcerting, but it’s a telling sign about the positive impact the water system has had on the village. We are led to the primary school at the end of the road, and sit down cross-legged on a rattan mat. Here, we are once again humbled by the Burmese hospitality and respect: in front of us, a wooden table, covered with a lacy tablecloth, heaves under the weight of bananas, peanuts (“deliciously sweet”, my fellow companions rave), coffee and water. The village leader makes the first address, opening the stage for us to ask questions. Pascale de la Frégonnière, executive director of the foundation, leads the session, and finds out that since the water system was set up, there is enough water in the village to fulfil the domestic and drinking water needs of its 300 inhabitants. That means that they don’t have to walk miles and miles away to the next water source, saving the villagers a precious three to four hours a day, and thus allowing them to work on the farm and bring increased revenue to their families.