Shining the light on community champions in the spirit of Gandhiji

Foundation for Ecological Security will release a collection of short films spotlighting those who have restored common resources through collective action

Nobody asked Tulsi Gowda to start planting trees. She decided to do it all on her own, driven by nothing but her sheer love for them. “Everyone needs to grow trees,” says the environmentalist, often affectionately referred to as the ‘Encyclopedia of the Forest’, hailing from Honnalli village in Karnataka’s Ankola Taluk, Uttara Kannada district.

In a soon-to-be-released short film, part of a series titled Celebrating Community Stewardship, the Padma Shri awardee, who has planted more than 30,000 saplings so far, also asks, “Because there are trees here, we are here.”

Gowda, a member of the Halakki Vokkalu tribe, indigenous to many parts of northern Karnataka, is one of 10 remarkable people from across the country featured in this short film series, which will be launched by the Foundation for Ecological Security (FES) on October 2. “This 2nd October, we celebrate Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday by celebrating communities and community champions for their efforts in their expression of stewardship of their natural resources,” says Subrata Singh, Executive Director of FES. “Stewardship is key to achieving Bapu’s vision of Gram Swaraj.”

According to a release issued by FES, Celebrating Community Stewardship spotlights community champions who have played a role in restoring Commons — shared natural resources like forests, pastures and water bodies, as well as local cultures and traditions — through collective action. “Each documentary in the series offers an intimate portrait of the community champion, exploring their personal journey, the specific challenges they address, and the innovative pathways they have taken,” states the release.

The community champions showcased in these films include the aforementioned Tulsi Gowda; Chhattisgarhi folk theatre artist Anup Ranjan Pandey; Rajasthan-based water warrior Laxman Singh; Nuklu Phom, an environmentalist from Nagaland’s Longleng district and Radio Bundelkhand’s Varsha Raikwar, among others. “From dedicated stewards of water bodies and pastures, champions of seed sovereignty and climate resilience, to custodians of culture, traditional knowledge, and passionate biodiversity conservationists, these films capture the spirit of community-driven environmental action,” it states.

Why commons matter

Bengaluru-based visual storyteller Arjun Swaminathan, who directed these films, still remembers his cameraperson asking him on a shoot what ‘Commons’ really meant. “Commons as a word, subject or idea is not widely spread,” says Arjun, the director of Native Picture, a media organisation that produces films, photo stories, podcasts and articles on the lives of people and their relationship with the earth. “Even for a lot of NGOs who have worked with communities and the commons, in general, the word ‘Commons’ does not feature in their vocabulary,” he says.

And yet, commoning has traditionally been an intrinsic, embedded part of our culture, points out Kiran Singh of FES who has curated the film series. “When it comes to any resource, culture or tradition, it is the people who carry it forward,” she says, adding that preserving and respectfully using the Commons ensure that it is available for future generations.

This is precisely what the 10 people showcased in the film are doing: attempting to create positive, discernable changes at a local level.“There is so much communities that can do to protect their commons; these are shining examples of this,” says Kiran, who is convinced that commons will thrive only if there is stewardship within communities. “We want viewers to see these stories and think, ‘I can do similar initiatives in my village, Panchayat, region and with my community too,” she says.

Diverse perspectives

The idea for creating these films first came up in October 2023 from FES, says Arjun, who has been working closely with the foundation for over a decade. FES was planning a huge event, the Commons Convening, for the next year, and as part of that, “there was a lot of brainstorming, back and forth sessions and discussions that happened,” he recalls.

One of the things which came up during the preparations for the Commons Convening 2024 was that it would be a good idea to feature community stewards who have done important work to restore the Commons. “The idea for us was to look at real examples on the ground that inspire others,” says Subrata, pointing out that they tried to look at examples of community stewardship across the spectrum, whether it was seed conservation, tree planting or cultural preservation. “The idea was to bring as many diverse perspectives as possible,” he says.

Released in August

The stories of these 10 Commons Champions went on to become part of a publication titled Our Commons: Celebrating Commoning and Community Stewardship, which was released at the Commons Convening in August this year. “But we also wanted to explore other mediums, including podcasts and videos, to take the story to as many people as possible,” says Kiran. “Because they are stories that need to be told…as they can inspire and motivate millions of others across the country to take up similar initiatives.”

Arjun says that they began shooting these films in February this year, spending the next few months travelling across the country to places that were often remote and not easily accessible to capture the stories of these people. He has fond memories of the time spent doing that. “It has been such a learning experience. I was amazed by these people,” he says. “They are so warm…just let you into their lives. I am so happy that this openness still exists.”

In his opinion, the culture and livelihood of the people he encountered were inextricably linked to their Commons. “Their entire universe happens to be around the Commons, and they are part of Commons,” says Arjun, who believes that it is also vital for people in urban centres to look at their own Commons—parks, transport systems, lakes—more mindfully and nurture a sense of ownership, responsibility and belonging towards them. “The Commons are not decorative; they have a purpose,” he believes. “If you mess with it, you’ll have to face the consequences.”

The Celebrating Community Stewardship series will premiere online on YouTube through two webinars at 11.00 A.M. - 1:00 P.M. and 3:00 PM - 5.00 P.M., respectively, each showcasing five Community Champions. To register https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86930671653

Published - October 02, 2024 09:00 am IST