As a wrapping up of the Green Economy programme offered by Samanvaya Trust in collaboration with Bhoomi College, and with numerous experts and practitioners, an intimate group of people spent time at a community farm – Aalampannai, from 27 December 2023, to 1 January 2024, reminiscing on life, society, economy and alternatives and welcoming the new year together.
The retreat was a space where people simply lived together, got to slow down, pause, be at peace in nature’s midst, off the grid. Cooking together, working in the farm, taking walks around while spotting and tasting herbs and fruit on the way and experiencing what natural farming could look like.
The space was graced by the resident farm couple Jaishankar and Sreelatha; Ram and Rama of Samanvaya Trust, and their daughter Mythri; who all ensured that the people in the space felt at home.
What was unique about the retreat was that it challenged the formal process of learning – and facilitated learning from being in the environment itself. Long conversations over chai, chopping vegetables, de-weeding, eating meals, walks and by the new year eve’s campfire.
Rich conversations spread across the retreat – ranging from the backstory of Samanvaya, Gandhian ideas and stories, climate science western narratives, indigenous knowledge systems and how traditionally knowledge-sharing and learning had so many dimensions – including experience and intuition; exploring a problem rather than direct solutionism; the meaning of work; farming practices; perils of the dairy industry; local economy, a visit to the sandhai (local market), the resilience of rural India, the diversity of livelihood streams in rural India and theatre as a mode of expression and education; travel and culture stories – these and so many more.
Baskar Anna and his friend Karthik Anna also graced the retreat for 2 days, adding in rich experiences and stories to the mix. Bhasker Arumugam is a free intellectual, educationist, alternatives advocate, campaigner and Director of Nammalvar Multiversity and he shared such vivid accounts of his travels and projects and interesting life perspectives.
Participants shared their own ideas, questions and challenges with regard to things each wished to work on and insights were offered. Practising conscious and sustainable living in one’s life, influencing and reaching out to different groups of people with these ideas and practices, switching to a career in the sustainability space, navigating first steps – were all concerns participants expressed and talked about. The group also explored conversations on interest areas – waste management, sustainable and ethical food systems, storytelling, sensitisation and community-building. Towards the close of the retreat, each participant could pick out a card with a message to hold on to – cards curated on the occasion of Samanvaya’s Silver Jubilee, with learnings from working in the social and alternatives space.
The participants left with warm memories, insights, wonderings, questions, stirrings, and also hope.
– Ananya, alumni of Bhoomi College and participant of the green economy programme.
The E-Co Travellers 