As early as 2006, Sagaan formulated a vision, a duty of which we have seen ourselves ever since.
Preamble
In the former Soviet Union, freedoms and opportunities have arisen that were unpredictable – like nowhere else in the world – with the decline of the communist regime. Since then, society has been in flux. We see it as our task to recognise this as an opportunity and to contribute to the development of a spiritual life based on freedom, an economic system based on mutual responsibility, as well as democratic politics and an independent judiciary.
Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, a societal vacuum emerged in Russia and the other successor states. Existing structures disintegrated, old constraints were broken, and society found itself in transition. This led to much uncertainty, fear, crises, and great suffering. At the same time, people, for the first time, officially took their destinies into their own hands and experienced freedoms that had never existed before. This situation overwhelmed many, while a few were able to powerfully forge a path that represents developmental potential for people, both intellectually and physically. They address grievances that arise during times of turbulent state policy.
Since the early 1990s, politics and administration have often failed to provide infrastructure and living spaces for people; on the contrary, they destroy them and restrict people's lives.
Through this concentration on self-interest, on material goals, people are deprived of their intellectual freedom and capacity for development.
At the same time, profit-driven megacorporations without heart and soul dominate the market and brutally exploit people and nature. Oil and gas are the biggest sources of revenue for the Russian economy, and these are extracted without compromise.
Mass consumption and disposable products enrich individuals. But intellectual development, social and ecological responsibility, and laws that serve people do not come about as a result. A free intellectual life (art, science, religion) can therefore only unfold with difficulty.
Since the early 1990s, a gathering of active people has been crystallising in Irkutsk, a city near Lake Baikal, individuals who consciously shape life through their work. They see humans as beings who, in addition to material needs, particularly require spiritual freedom and opportunities for individual development.
Within this spectrum, sagaan has emerged and, inspired by these impulses, we are formulating the sagaan mission.
Our vision
Sagaan's vision is to support networks between existing organisations and activities, and to help people on their path to self-realisation and societal development. We believe that only such a societal model can be sustainable and are of the opinion that economic activity carried out with social and ecological responsibility is a win-win situation for all stakeholders.
Through our commercial activities, we don't just want to give social institutions the opportunity to create beautiful and meaningful products for us and receive fair compensation for them. Rather, we also see our role in social work by supporting ideas and projects and thus advancing a common cause. This is a lengthy process and can only be achieved in small steps. We rely on the help of everyone involved.
Sagaan took a first step in 2005 when we established a manufactory for traditional birch bark products in the therapeutic facility „Istok“ Today, these birch boxes, which sagaan distributes, are produced here and in further small family businesses.
In addition to social responsibility, sagaan also aims for ecologically sustainable economic practices. The taiga is the largest forest belt in the world, and therefore the lungs of the blue planet. Unsustainable exploitation and destruction are particularly severe here. We focus on sustainable forestry and are developing criteria for the use of our raw materials. However, a long and arduous path lies before us here too.
With these activities, we want to take responsibility within our means.