yet again ... getting lost ... then enjoying self-discovery ...

Pleased to share our paper presented at ESD for transforming education for children and youth organized by CEE at Amdavad during September, 2016. Title: Planning to educate, Educating to plan: Conservation Education in an ecologically critical landscape. Authors: Nimesh Ved, Jayanta Pathak, Firoz Ahmed and Bibhuti Lahkar. Corresponding author: Nimesh Ved: nimesh.explore@gmail.com Need: The authors, especially Nimesh Ved and Firoz Ahmed, had during the recent years, had a series of conversations on Conservation Education ( CE ). These conversations besides raising questions on CE also highlighted stark weaknesses in CE; including in actions undertaken by the authors. A significant portion of these actions focused on generating stand-alone material and made attempts to reach out to maximum numbers. In addition, the belief that CE is an easy activity which can be taken up by anyone with good intentions appeared to be pervasive! With some trepidation, we woul...

This piece finds space in The Hindu Sunday Magazine today. Thanks are due to Lamakaan, Nayeem and Subba Reddy.       Open House. Image: P Jeganathan Some weeks ago I was discussing alternative spaces and cultural centres in our cities with a friend, and she asked what was so special about Lamakaan , the not-profit open cultural space in Banjara Hills. The answer I had then come up with was a rather drab one. Something about the place being different, that it warranted a trip to understand it, that it had a certain ‘something’. Then, a week ago I saw a woman, possibly in her 50’s sitting on the raised platform in a room at Lamakaan. She looked comfortable in her saree, adjusting it once in a while, as she read, absorbed, from her laptop. Suddenly it struck me: this is why Lamakaan is so special. It makes all of us, irrespective of age, class or gender, feel comfortable in our skin, at ease. Image: P Jeganathan  I remembered how I ha...

Pleased to share of the workshop at SCCS on Culling Culling: Beyond the sound and fury Date - 22nd September, 2016 Time - 2.00 pm to 4.30 pm "Recent culling orders stare at all of us in the face; however barring a few, the students, researchers, conservationists have largely been silent on the topic. While the press has ‘dropped’ the issue for now, chances of culling being extended to other areas and species are high. This discussion session will attempt to bring out what we ( students, scientists, conservationists ) could have done and more importantly, what we can do now?" Select readings: The Culling Fields The debate over culling in India requires more than just sound and fury Previous workshop at SCCS: Demystifying Conservation Education