In this episode of Protect The World, I speak with Ashish Kothari – founding member of Kalpavriksh.
Kalpavriksh is a not-for-profit environmental action group striving for ecological sustainability and social equity in India. They have a fully democratic, non-hierarchical governance structure, so it would be incorrect to call Ashish the director. However, he has been heavily involved in the organisation throughout its 44-year history.
During this conversation, Ashish and I discuss the changes he's witnessed in India over the course of his career, some of the inspiring movements he's been a part of, and his vision – or should I say visions – for the future.
Ashish is someone who has spent his entire career standing on the frontlines alongside a range of social and ecological justice movements in India, whilst simultaneously thinking deeply about what it would mean for humans to live meaningful lives within the finite boundaries of our planet. He's worked in the ecological, economic, sociocultural and political spheres at local, national and international levels, and has a remarkable understanding of inequality and biodiversity in India and abroad. I'm very grateful to Ashish for sharing his time and knowledge throughout this conversation, and I hope you learn as much from it as I did.
As always, half the money that came into the Patreon this month was donated directly to Kalpavriksh. In line with their organisational structure, this money will be democratically allocated by the members of Kalpavriksh to wherever it is needed most.
You can donate to Kalpavriksh directly at kalpavriksh.org/donate, and if you'd like to help me give more money to more amazing NGOs in future, please consider signing up to the Patreon for as little as $5 a month via the following link: patreon.com/brodiehopkinsmedia
You can follow Kalpavriksh on Facebook, and Ashish is on Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.
You can also follow the rest of my own work on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
A huge thank you to everyone who supports this podcast, and to Ashish Kothari for joining me on this episode. If you enjoyed it, please be sure to leave a review and share it with your friends and family. Thanks for listening!
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Additional links:
Churning The Earth: The Making of Global India
Narmada Bachao Andolan Movement
Community Conserved Areas (South Asia)
Community Conserved Areas (Global)
Pluriverse: A Post-Development Dictionary
Vikalp Sangam (Confluence of Alternatives)