Lets join the...

How can I
make a
I see difference? I want to
problems all make a
around me change!
 2

Reap Benefit brings you thematic

playbooks to guide you in solving Local
Problems & become a Solve Ninja

These playbooks will be themed on

5 civic areas

Water Waste Sanitation

Energy Citizenship

Who is a Solve Ninja?

Any young citizen who can

use Local Data to create Local
Solutions to solve Local Problems

While solving problems a Solve NInja

will discover their potential and
identify as one of these personas

Hands on Hippo Action Ant

Build creative & Tackles problems
innovative hacks to combining actions of
tackle issues, small reporting, campaigning
and large and building solutions

Techno Tiger Curious Cat

Utilize technology to Discovering,
develop, prototype, investigating & asking
& install solutions the right questions

Campaign
Reporting Rhino Chameleon
Report, interpret and Mobilize and inspire
broadcast problems communities through
in local communities campaigns

Every young person has the potential

to become Solve Ninja and build
these skills to solve local problems

How can one be a Solve Ninja?

Unlocking
Creativity &
Leadership skills

Peer to Peer
Mentorship

Expert
Guidance

Learn to solve a problem using Reap

Benefit’s DISS frame work

Discover Investigate
and Identify a be curious,
local problem find details

Solve Share
by finding a your findings,
solution that experience
works and ideas
 3

Level up your Game

Raise the challenge for yourself

Each of the projects in this playbook

can be implemented at whichever
level you wish to.

Level 1: Use the project toolkit at

home. Impact: 5-6 People

Level 2: Take this project to your

neighborhood.Impact: 40-50
People

Level 3: Make this a community

effort. Impact: 100+ People
 4

Series 3: Citizenship
This series will focus on active
citizenship through working on civic
issues at a neighbourhood level.

A neighbourhood with no
recreational space to play or
exercise and a high accident rate

A young solve They arranged a

Ninja took up the meeting with
initiative, local political
conducted survey representatives
and took and came up
feedback from with a solution
stakeholders
 5

Solve Ninja success story

Solve Ninja Deepika Aiyer shares her
experience of solving waste related
issues using the Reap Benefit DISS
framework.

Initiated a collaborative effort

between these stakeholders for the
cleaning process

The Kumara
BBMP Ugly Park
Indian Residents

1
She first
Discovered the
blackspot
A place where garbage, waste
gets dumped which is not the
designated pick up spot.

2
During the
Investigate
phase
She did a deep
dive into
understanding the
waste generated in
the neighborhood,
the collection
system and waste
management and
treatment
processes.

3
In the
Solve
Stage
The blackspot was cleaned, park
instruments were painted, debris
cleared, potholes fixed, trees
trimmed and tarpaulin laid out. To
maintained, surveillance was
installed with the help of the local
community so that people don’t
feel like dumping there.

The collaborative effort was a

result of Sharing data, action
points and expertise among the
various parties involved!

And the result of this DISS

journey - A clean
neighbourhood! Are you
ready to be a solve ninja
and solve issues of waste
for your locality?
 6

Project 4.16 : Difficulty Level: Easy

Neighborhood
Challenge Map
Everyvillage, city or town has its own
set of challenges. This could be very
specific to the local community there
or could be issues of general interest
like waste management,
maintenance and availability of
public facilities etc.
As a resident of the neighbourhoods,
you will be able to best identify and
seek solutions for these problems.
Not only will this inspire and enable
more people to take charge of the
neighbourhood and be active
citizens - it will also improve the
overall quality of life.
 7

Step 1: Discover
Task 1:
Walk around your locality and keep
an observant eye for problems that
might exist.

This could include

1. Dysfunctional streetlights
2. Potholes on roads/broken
construction
3. Unsegregated waste
4. Leaky taps in public spaces

These are a few examples. Make an

exhaustive list of the issues you see
on your walk and mark the locations
where you identify them.
 8

Step 2: Investigate
Actions to take

Task 1. Make a consolidated data

document of the various issues you
identified.

Task 2. Create a visual

representation like that of a map of
your neighbourhood in which these
issues are highlighted in different
colours.
Example : Yellow icon for all issues
related to waste.

Task 3. Conduct a preliminary

research on the local authorities
responsible for solving these
problems along with contact
details wherever available.
 9

Step 3: Solve
Pick your solution For
Home or Community

As a Solve Ninja, three main types of

solutions to problems have emerged:

Report : This includes conducting a

thorough study of the local problem,
gathering support from neighbours
and working with the local
government authority to fix the
problem by raising a ticket for it

Build : This involves building a new

idea into a prototype to solve the
problem and testing its effectiveness.
An example is to build a DIY aerator
to save water from taps.

Campaign : Champion a cause and

make some noise to raise awareness
of the issue in your locality. This is a
community level impact created
through online and offline outreach to
many more people who can support
you.

Solution

Report
The first step for you as a Solve Ninja
is to report the problem.
For the same you would need to
identify the local government office,
authority and personnels incharge of
addressing the same.
You can refer to this document on
composing a report as reference so
that you have a comprehensive and
thorough report of the issue.
Reporting reference document

Build
After reporting the issues to the local
government - work with them to
come up with solutions/fixes for the
same.
According to the nature of the issue
three to four possibilities exist :
1. Creating a community group to
solve the issue - Eg : Fishing of
blackspots on the street.
2. Volunteering your time and support
in the local government’s attempt -
creating waste management
awareness for segregation of waste
in the neighbourhood.
3. Following up on the problem to
make sure a solution is worked upon

Campaign
As a Solve Ninja, once you have
undertaken the reporting and solving
cycle of problem solving - you are
ready to campaign for your motion.
In this case, campaigning would
mean that you build a tribe of
neighbourhood guardians and Solve
Ninjas who will always be on the vigil
and take action when they notice
problems.
Share about your journey with
potential Solve Ninjas and create a
group who are engaged regularly in
this kind of work.
Here is a campaign document you
can use as reference.
 10

Step 4: Share
Share your success by
creating a poster, ppt, video
or reel don’t forget to tag us.

Link to Forum

Don’t forget to check out our other

solvebooks in water, waste, energy,
sanitation, and citizenship.
 11
6

Solve Ninja success story

In January 2021, the High
Court, KSLSA, Reap
Benefit, Changemakers of
Kanakapura Road and
citizens from across the
city did a unique kind of
census: they counted
potholed roads and
pavements in disrepair!

The call to action through the Reap

Benefit whatsapp chatbot technology
helped receive good response from
citizens from all the 8 zones of the
city.

5435 pothole and footway issues in

their neighbourhoods were reported
with some citizens sending photos
and videos of the problem in the
locality along with the number of
months it has existed.

Read more about this initiative here

 12

About Reap Benefit?

Vision
We aspire to work with children and
youth in the country and make every
young citizen, a local problem solver

Mission
Reap Benefit strives to be a platform
that inspires and nurtures children
and youth to build their civic muscles
by engaging in local, civic and
envoirnmental problem solving.

Impact

Check out our social media

Visit us on reapbenefit.org