Kurt Archer

Today I attended a symposium on environmental sustainability, social justice, and spiritual fulfillment organized by volunteers from the Pachamama Alliance. Called the Awaken the dreamer, change the dream symposium, members and individuals from various walks of life in and around Calgary joined in at the new thought United Church.  It was really nice to network with other vegetarians, some vegans, as well as educators on sustainability or spiritual guidance. The symposium asks the question, where are we? and follows by addressing more questions like how did we get here, what is possible for our future, and finally, where do we go from here? It was an arrangement of expressing ones feelings and connection with the world, and fostering a sensation of community and oneness. I was pleased to see an array of videos from various different sources being used in the production. I feel this group, initiated in Calgary by the Humanity Unites Brilliance, was able to help bring up a conciousness to an otherwise apathetic populace. 40 people doesnt represent Calgary, but it does show there is alternative movements breaking into shape all over the city.

Keep an eye out for their next event in your city.

So many of you have been asking what I have been upto, and why I have stayed in Bangalore for so long. Well, that is because I have signed on to a small project here called: My Choice! Here is a small blurb about it:

My Choice! is a project that aims to raise awareness among Indian young generation about Sustainability Issues.
We offer to deliver a holistic understanding of Sustainability seen as People, Society and Environment. For us, Environment is impacted by human footprint; human footprint is the results of community interactions in Society (economy, leisure, family) , Society activism is the expression of embedded values in the people that are part of the society. It is vital for Youth to grab this inclusive picture if we call on more responsibility from them.

The projects will have a 3 step learning approach. 1. Classroom presentations to inspire youth to get active. 2. Simulation and learning activities about sustainability. 3. A project competition on sustainability, where students get mentors and are awarded prizes based on creativity, sustainability of design, and general youth choice.

It has been a pleasure to settle down and work with this team and helping to see their passion become a reality.The output of this project has the opportunity to be a part of a best case practise, I will be sure to share the output afterwards with you all.

Looking forward to hitting the road soon again!

Delhi is traditionally among the last places you would think about stepping out into the fresh air, but that is exactly what the Government is aiming for with its new control on tobacco consumption.

As of October 2nd 2008, all public establishment shall be smoke free zones, thus ending the majority of the threat caused by second hand smoke. In their campaign they targeted schools colleges and restaurants with signs that not only read no-smoking, but also “It is an offence here” just to drill home the point that there will be no tolerance.

Delhi is the first city to adapt such laws in India and the subcontinent, and can only hope that others will follow suit. This action was put forward by Dr Ramadoss from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare as a series of city wide pollution clean up efforts leading up to the commonwealth games in 2010.

Along with this campaign, Delhi University has seen a massive transition as the students union (DUSU) who speaks on behalf of the 40,000 plus students has also enacted a non-smoking rule in and around the campus. They have made it illegal for cigarette vendors to sell cigarettes within 100 meters of any college establishment, and for staff students and visitors that don’t comply, there is a fine up to Rs. 500.

This example just goes to show that tobacco companies don’t have the developing countries fooled any longer, that awareness is building, and there is only hope that other institutions will follow close behind. Recently, I had a chance to visit LUMS campus, one of the top universities in Pakistan, and it appalled me the sheer amount of smokers, both male and female, smoking all over campus. Whether it’s an act of poor enforcement or lack of policy, the students of LUMS should be encouraged to take action to make their campus a smoke free environment, with the hope that other institutions will also follow suit.

In the heart of beautiful Amritsar in Punjab, the jewel city of the Sikh followers, lays the Golden Temple, by far one of the most ambitious developments of the millennium. Over 750 years old, this temple was enacted by Guru Nanak, the first Guru of Sikhism.

The religion boasts a very humanitarian approach to life; to serve humanity is to serve God, as some signs around the compound will tell you. This feat is proven in its entirety on the sheer volume of travelers, pilgrims and devotees that come through the gates. All throughout the day and night volunteers are working to sweep the premise, to clean the temple, and enacting their duty to service the people of this sanctuary.

Most noteworthy are the eating grounds provided here. The Langar Khanna (Blessed Food) is a completely systematized wheel of food for the people. No cost for entrance and all are welcome. Everyone eats together in lines on the floor so there is no distinction in class here. Thousands of people come through these gates everyday, and everyday they provide this service. It is all funded by the amount of donations and volunteers provided.

First, you get your metal dish, a metal bowl for drinking and a spoon. Then you, like hundreds others like you at this time, enter the large hall where everyone will sit in lines, cross legged. Volunteers then come by with spoonfuls of daal (lentils), rice, curd, or halva (a sweet flour mixture) in the mornings. All vegetarian options. Water is poured into the bowls for drinking and the food is eaten with small rotis (similar to pita bread). After you are done, you carry your plate outside, hand over the spoon to these men sitting in chairs, and then you pass your dish and bowl down an assembly line of volunteers who take the dirty plates in large trolleys over to the dish washing area where even more volunteers are ready to clean all the dishes that come their way. Then you move along to the side of the Langar Khanna and take another metal bowl for chai (tea with milk) and enjoy it amongst a crowd.

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Renewable action in practise before my eyes.

I had the pleasure of visiting Teri Gram estate today in Gurgaon, which is on the outskirts of Delhi. It is a project of The Energy and Research Institute (TERI) foundation, which began under the patronage of Ratan Tata in the 1970s. It is now under the leadership of Dr. Pauchauri, noble laureate winner for sustainability.

The campus is literally in the middle of nowhere, which symbolizes its removal from urban waste societies, but what a retreat it was indeed. Upon arrival, I was given an electronic car which resembled a CNG rickshaw, green in colour obviously. We passed by golf courses, cricket fields and lush vegetation. The retreat itself was a very modern design with high end facilities. Its primary source of light was from the sun, and it had no air-conditioning. In fact, this facility produces no waste.

I got a guided tour of the facility which began with looking at the structure itself, its energy efficient design, its use of wind-air ducts that run 4 meters below the earth and is cooled and shot up through the building with the use of fans.  To complement this invention, warm air ducts run up the building so that when the cold air enters the room there is somewhere for the warm air to go. The idea first emerged in ancient Greece and is now something taught in elementary science – hot air rises! So why have contemporary builders not heard of this concept? Got me.

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