“In Central India, individual plant species figure in the first fruit ceremonies of the adivasi (indigenous) communities. During certain periods of the year, their fruits, flowers, leaves or seeds are not collected or consumed. This allows those species to rest for a few weeks or months during crucial periods for their growth or regeneration. The norms around these practices or methods are often embedded within the cultural-religious traditions of communities. As a knowledge system being transferred between generations, seldom are they explained or discussed in terms of ecology or conservation.” – Madhu Ramnath in “How culture threatens species A note on Caryota urens in South India” (Current Conservation 16.3, accessed 4 December 2022)
https://www.currentconservation.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/16.3.pdf
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=20305
Villagers at Sawra have decided to revive their traditional dances in an effort to preserve and showcase their rich culture. Satpuda Foundation (a wildlife conservation NGO working in central India) is encouraging this and other community initiatives. | Learn more >> From the inspiring love legends of Mandu to the formidable regality of Gwalior, from the … Read more
Many small towns across India also have sacred groves. The kaavus of Kerala are managed by the government, temple trusts, local community, or even privately. In Thrissur, there are as many as 970 such kaavus in the district, of which 220 are in the heavily populated urban taluk of Thrissur. These kaavus are tiny oases … Read more
This is our first film shoot and edited entirely on mobile phone, produced from Dhadgaon block of Nandurbar a tribal district of Maharashtra. We have started making short films on different social issues to create awareness. SBI Youth for India fellow Nitesh Bhardwaj is helping us for this initiative. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8i6jw-_lZ4Accessed: 23 March 2018 Tribal boys … Read more
Tagore and His Indiaby Amartya Sen, nobelprize.org (with permission from The New York Review, first published 28 August 2001) Voice of Bengal Rabindranath Tagore, who died in 1941 at the age of eighty, is a towering figure in the millennium-old literature of Bengal. Anyone who becomes familiar with this large and flourishing tradition will be impressed by the … Read more
In the past 10 years [prior to 2013], India’s environmental movement has had a rebirth. It was first born in the 1970s, when the industrialised world was seeing the impact of growth on its environment. […] It was also in the 1970s that the second environmental challenge—issues of access and sustainable management of natural resources—emerged. In … Read more