A compilation of Ecologically Sensible Good Practices
Imprints of Ecological Footprints ‌. A compilation of Ecologically Sensible Good Practices Aug 2016 Authors: MV Rama Chandrudu Beneta Mahanta Waseem Mohammad Anitha Reddy V MB Vali Saab Editors: K Suresh MV Rama Chandrudu Visuals:Cheriyal Nakashi Artists Family - Shri D Vaikuntam and his family members Mrs. D Vanaja (wife); D Vinay and D Rakesh (sons). Design and Layout : Ankush Copy Left : These case studies could be used for non-commercial use, with proper acknowledgement. Supported by : Indian Foundation for Humanistic Development, Bengaluru Produced by : WASSAN (Watershed Support Services and Activities Network) Produced for Leaders For Nature Program. This program is collectively organized by CII; Hivos; IUCN; Wild Life Trust of India. IFHD is anchoring the Leaders for Nature Program. Published by: IFHD, Bengaluru
Acknowledgements I am very happy to present "Imprints of Ecological Footprints ‌. A compilation of Ecologically Sensible Good Practices". I take this opportunity to thank all organizations and individuals who contributed to the process of documenting these good practices. They were kind to frankly share with us their experiences, thoughts, challenges and achievements. They also shared relevant data to substantiate any critical point from their experiences. Some of them even prepared the first drafts of these case studies. They also revised them, based on our feedback. All the organizations/ individuals happily gave consent for publishing these case studies and using them for learning purposes under "Leaders for Nature" program of IFHD, IUCN, CII, Hivos and Wild Life Trust of India. The entire process of producing this compilation was an enriching and fruitful experience. It is also a humbling experience for us to learn several lessons from these interactions and visits to several villages/ sites. We genuinely believe that this compilation truly enriches the learning processes of "Leaders for Nature" program. The Writeshop was one of the important events of this process. We got guidance and feedback on the '0' drafts from the participants of the writeshop. This was useful in refining the initial drafts. The participants of writeshop also made important suggestions on the presentation and utility of these case studies. From their busy schedules, they spared few days for refining these case studies, which is a very kind gesture. I thank everyone who participated in the writeshop. Their inputs are invaluable. I thank Ms. Aruna Rangachar Pohl, IFHD for having faith in WASSAN and entrusting us the responsibility of compiling these case studies. She is an active team member at all critical stages of the project and guided us on choice of case studies, structure/ framework, presentation, etc. The partnership with IFHD is really cherished by all of us, at WASSAN.
I also thank the family of artists of Cheriyal - Shri D Vaikuntam, Mrs D Vanaja, Mr D Vinay and D Rakesh, who visualized these experiences in their own unique style. My team -MB Vali, Anitha Vustela, Waseem Mohammad, Benita Mahanta, Radhashree who spent considerable time on this agenda. I also thank K Suresh for providing editorial inputs and support at various stages of this process. MV Rama Chandrudu WASSAN Aug 2016
Foreword It is almost three decades back, the threats to "Our Common Future" were formally identified and deliberations started gaining more steam and support from governments too‌ (Our Common Future,Gro Harlem Brundtland, 1987). Climate Change and its implications were also slowly getting recognized during this period. The need for "producing more with less" was also part of this thinking process, as a means to address the challenges of the future. Over a period of time, the world witnessed more economic distress, unemployment, political turmoil and ecological disasters across different countries and regions of world. Those early predictions seemed to be less threatening than the current reality. The global gloom got predictable companions - unscrupulous industrial growth, irresponsible urbanization, careless global politics, dishonest governments, self-centric citizenship, which tried to glorify the current trends as achievements and inevitable solutions. In the middle of such despair and misery, there is a hope. "Imprints of Ecological Footprints - A Compilation of Ecologically Sensible Good Practices" is a compendium of good practices that brings the efforts made by relentless civil society organizations, citizens and community based organizations, to change the direction of this trend. These experiences bring cheer and hope in the lives of thousands of rural, tribal and urban citizens in India, who are part of these experiences. They were able to take a different path that is less travelled and troublesome. There were several challenges, at each step and milestone. But they continued their journey and proved that "producing more with less" is possible. They also ensured that the ecological and environmentally sustainable processes are feasible for improving economic standards and quality of life of poor communities. These case studies give a hope and confidence that we can face the cruel world and transform the same into a comfortable place for all - including endangered species, poor and marginalized communities. While Corporate Social Responsibility is gaining more support
from governments, corporate agencies and development agencies, these experiences provide guidance and help them to think about alternatives. These experiences help the willing and discerning development agencies and investors in social change, to transcend the mundane "photo stories" of majority of current CSR interventions. They provide an array of options, strategies and ideas that proved themselves in different parts of the country. I thank all the organizations and agencies who shared their stories - highs and lows of it, with us frankly and completely. I thank them for providing leadership on the chosen theme - promoting biodiversity; conservation and governance of natural resources; promoting ecologically sensitive production processes; enhancing livelihoods by developing environmentally harmonious economic models and several others. These experiences are invaluable and are certainly useful for provoking thoughts in the minds of participants of "Leaders for Nature" programs, which are jointly organized by IFHD, IUCN, CII, Wild Life Trust of India, HIVOS and other like-minded organizations. I thank WASSAN for producing this compilation of case studies and supporting us in this endeavor.
Aruna Rangachar Pohl IFHD, Bengaluru Aug 2016
22 Green Hotel for Green Funds…
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…I came with my wife, who is part of "Knit for Peace" program… I stayed in The Green Hotel in Mysore for last one week. I have a wonderful experience staying here. The staff is helpful, food is excellent… room is clean and everything is good here…. I understand little bit about the charity work that is done here.... some part of the fees goes towards the development projects in Mysore and India. We visited some schools and other projects that are associated with The Green Hotel. It is such a nice idea that a hotel is supporting welfare programs and I would encourage my friends to visit this place…" Alan Judd, England (Jan 2016). Alan is a first time visitor to India. He got an opportunity to be part of an innovative development aid that is built on strong values of sharing and caring. Like him, several other visitors to India from all over the world and also several Indians come and stay in "The Green Hotel" in Mysore, Karnataka and discover a new way of changing lives. No wonder this hotel has been selected as one of the "World's Best Ideas" by the Institute of Social Inventions, London.
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Come, stay at The Green Hotel. Be comfortable. Financing development, welfare and conservation activities has always been a challenge. It is generally assumed to be the responsibility of governments and corporates. Are there alternative ways of funding development? Can this funding source be sustainable? Can this be an enterprise? Can a common citizen be part of this process? Can this enterprise also be supportive to environmental sustainability? These are some of the questions that lingered in the mind of Dame Hilary Blume, London. While visiting India during early 1990s, she was exploring ways and means of finding 'sustainable enterprises'. She was trying to connect dots that everyone thought was impossible. But that was the challenge she accepted. The Green Hotel is a resounding success and a new model that is running since 1990. Dame Hilary Blume is a strong proponent of environmental sustainability and conservation. She thought that a good hotel could support "sustainable enterprises" of underprivileged communities. However, the services and facilities at the hotel have to be exceptionally different and should communicate the core values and principles of the initiative - environmental sustainability and conservation. She understood that Indian cities are losing their character in the fast pace of development. The architecture, environment, natural resources, urban landscapes are victims of this development process. There is a need for conserving urban settlements and make them environmentally sustainable. After considerable exploration in different cities of India, she narrowed down to Mysore city, where she could find a place - Chittarnajan Palace. This palace was a film studio during 1950-70. Over a period of time, the studio became dysfunctional. It was almost in a dilapidated condition. In 1990 244
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Dame Hilary Blume could get Governance of Green Hotel this building for a long term The Green Hotel was set up as a model lease and the idea of the of sustainable tourism by the UK based green hotel started Charities Advisory Trust under the leadership becoming a reality. of Dame Hilary Blume. The governance of The The building was renovated without losing its original charm. The palace was restored to bring back the natural comfort. All rooms were carefully designed with furniture, decorative articles and other necessities. Good and clean washrooms were provided. Furniture, equipment and other decorative items/ artefacts were procured from national award winning craftsmen and women of India. This added a different flavour to the dÊcor of the hotel. In accordance with the principles of environmental sustainability, none of the rooms have air conditioners. Green Hotel for Green Funds‌
Green Hotel offers some innovative practices. The Green Hotel is owned by The Greenways Company, which is held in Charities Advisory Trust, UK. The majority shares are owned by the Charities Advisory Trust with token shares by the Directors. This means that the hotel is not driven by share-holder values, but by the principles of Charities Advisory Trust. All the directors are honorary and do not receive any remuneration for their time.This Green Hotel established an Indian Charitable Trust "Tzedkah Trust". This trust receives grants from The Green Hotel and supports development and welfare activities. A board of directors/ trustees of this trust are Dame Hilary Blume, Mr Brij Bhasin, Stan Thekaekara and Mari Marcel Thekaekara (ACCORD, Gudalur). These members oversee the management and governance of the hotel and associated development/ welfare projects. Some of the partners of Tzedkah Trust also have organic linkages with "Good Gifts" initiative of Charities Advisory Trust, UK. 245
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But all rooms are comfortable with natural ventilation and fans. The hotel also established its hybrid solar and grid power system to meet the entire energy needs of the hotel. Incidentally, this was the first solar unit in Mysore. When Blume leased-in this palace, the open space was almost barren but for few trees. This place is now converted into a nice and functional garden, where guests can relax under the tree shade. The garden also has dining place and most visitors like to spend their time in the garden. Rainwater from roofs/ campus is harvested for recharging the groundwater. Thus the groundwater resources were augmented and the hotel is independent of municipal water supply system. The waste water from the hotel is re-used to nurture the trees in the garden. No wonder this garden received best garden award for several years from Mysore Horticulture Society. With this, other hotels in the city started gardens in their campuses. Majority of the hotel staff come from disadvantaged backgrounds. The staff is adequately trained and has relevant skills in running the hotel and offering variety of services. The staff is very supportive and caring about the guests. They demonstrate traditional values of hospitality, which is difficult to find in regular hotels. The hotel identified young women from disadvantageous backgrounds and trained them as bakers. These women run "The Coffee Shop" of the hotel, which has an attached bakery. The women bake a variety of delicious items which are included in the hotel menu. The Green Hotel follows the principles of fair employer. All staff members have statutory benefits such as provident fund, etc. It is interesting to note that 1% of salaries of the staff is also contributed to Green Hotel for Green Funds‌
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charity, which is decided by the staff each year. There is hardly any turnover of the staff in the hotel. The Green Hotel also provides a platform for showcasing and selling green products from farmers, tribals and artisans. Every year Green Melas are conducted in the campus, which are attended by large numbers. Over the period, The Green Hotel built its credibility and there is a sustained flow of guests from different parts of India and world. This increased the financial health of the hotel and thus it is able to contribute development aid for sustainable enterprises. The Green Hotel supported various development agencies - NGOs, Community Based Organizations, schools, hospitals and others. These projects are also varied - improving education and health; conservation and environmental development; enterprises. Until now, The Green Hotel provided about Rs150 Million of development aid to different partners. Rural Literacy and Health Program (RLHP, Mysore) and Shola Trust (Gudalur, Nilgiris) are the prominent partners of The Hotel. RLHP has focus on urban issues since long and recently it started working in rural areas also. RLHP gets a grant of about Rs. 8 to 12 lakhs per year (Rs. 2 to 3 lakhs from The Green Hotel and Rs. 6 to 9 Lakhs from Charities Advisory Trust, UK). With this continued financial aid for more than 10 years, RLHP is able to support a variety of welfare and development activities in Mysore town and neighbourhood: improving educational standards of children in urban slums; shelter homes for children; sanitation facilities to families in urban slums and related issues. There is a clear focus on overall development of children and rights of child in these initiatives. Green Hotel for Green Funds‌
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It is interesting to see how the partnership between Shola Trust and The Green Hotel (through Tzedakah Trust) is able to trigger conservation and biodiversity related initiatives in Gudalur region of Nilgiris. The Sholas are a mosaic of evergreen forests and grasslands. They are found only in high altitude regions (>1500 metres above mean sea level) and are limited to the southern part of the Western Ghats. They are characterised by undulating grassland patches, interspersed with thickets of stunted evergreen tree species, and are home to a host of endemic and endangered plants and animals. They are also vital in the water cycle. They retain most of the rain water during the monsoon, and release it slowly throughout the year through streams and rivers that serve the needs of a large number of human settlements in the region. Despite the huge ecological significance; they have not been protected as the short, stunted trees have little or no timber value. Vast areas in the Sholas were planted with Cinchona and Eucalyptus monocultures over the last decades. And the grasslands continue to be encroached by expanding human populations. With support from The Green Hotel (Tzedakah Trust), Shola Trust has bought privately owned patches of Shola forests that are in wildlife 'corridor' and 'buffer areas'. These lands are used for growing nurseries to regenerate Shola species, particularly those species which are not available in mainstream nurseries and that are hard to grow. These nurseries also provide a space to educate people about the importance of the Shola forests. The funding also allows engaging in some restoration work - to bring back forests to a healthy state. Shola Trust collaborated with local educational institutions and other agencies for generating awareness on importance of conserving Shola forests.
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As part of its overall mandate, Shola Trust is engaged with a variety of initiatives in protecting rich biodiversity of Shola Forests - action research projects that focus on nature of interface between wild life and human beings in the Gudalur Forest Division; documenting the contribution of traditional practices associated with sacred groves in Gudalur region towards conservation and sustaining biodiversity. In these initiatives, the Shola Trust collaborates with variety of other partners/ donors. "…the partnership with The Green Hotel (Tzedakah Trust) is built on two way communication process… Shola Trust received about Rs 26 Lakhs grant from The Green Hotel so far… The funding has been very flexible, allowing us to plan and implement our work with significant autonomy. Thus we are able to change and adapt to the realities of engaging with conservation projects on the ground. This funding support helps to address some of the critical issues and support "out of box" solutions…" Mr Tarsh Thekaekara (Shola Trust) reflects on the nature of relationship between Shola Trust and The Green Hotel (and Tzedakah Trust). All partners of The Green Hotel (Tzedakah Trust) share similar relationships with The Green Hotel, which make this hotel a unique development facilitator. A typical visitor or a traveller, biting lemon drizzle cake and sipping fresh lime juice in the Coffee Shop, may not be conscious of all these efforts and their impact. But those travellers who are conscious of their role in this process are able to realize that they are actually contributing to development aid, without much sacrifice. In fact, they enjoy the type of services they get at The Green Hotel. The sublime brilliance of the idea is in the bill that each traveller pays at the hotel which is actually creating a green fund for green initiatives. While the new Act by Government of India mandates the corporate agencies to share 2% of their profits towards 252
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Corporate Social Responsibility, the practicalities of this idea are still evolving. But here we have a live example where a corporate entity which is sharing its 100% profits with less privileged members since several years. Can the corporates go the green way?
MV Rama Chandrudu, WASSAN Based on the narration by Dame Hilary Blume, The Green Hotel; interactions with staff; meeting with Mr Nagendra, RLHP, Mysore; inputs from Mr Stan Thekaekara, ACCORD and Mr Tarsh Thekaekara, Shola Trust; and web page of Shola Trust.
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About Cheriyal Paintings Shri D Vaikuntam and his family members Mrs. D Vanaja (wife); D Vinay and D Rakesh (sons) are keeping the tradition of Cheriyal Paintings of Telangana state, for generations. All members of the family are engaged in protecting and conserving this rare art form, that is not likely to survive for long. This is the only family in the country that is still engaged in this traditional art form. The Cheriyal Art has a unique character - red color background; vivid presentation of figures (men, women, animals, flowers, plants and others) with unique strokes and style. This art form belongs to "nakashi" form of paintings in India. But Cheriyal paintings contextualized this nakashi format to local Telangana and improvised it, with their unique styles. Apart from paintings and scrolls, Cheriyal Masks are also very attractive and unique with their bright colors and large eyes. D Vaikuntam received several awards from Central/ State governments, for his unique contribution to Cheriyal Art. D Vaikuntam and his family members agreed to present the key messages of these case studies. They spent time with us to understand the essence of each case study and presented it in their own style. These pictures further enriched the experiences, which are already exemplary in several ways. WASSAN thanks the family of artists of Cheriyal for their support in visualising these case studies. Pictures of some of the paintings/ scrolls and masks could be seen on this blog: http://vaikuntamnakash.blogspot.in/
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"…..In the middle of such despair and misery, there is a hope. "Imprints of Ecological Footprints - A Compilation of Ecologically Sensible Good Practices" is a compendium of good practices that brings the efforts made by relentless civil society organizations, citizens and community based organizations, to change the direction of the trend. These experiences brought cheer and hope in the lives of thousands of rural, tribal and urban citizens in India, who are part of these experiences. They took a different path that is less travelled and troublesome. There were several challenges, at each step and milestone. But they continued their journey and proved that "producing more with less" is possible. They also ensured that the ecological and environmentally sustainable processes are feasible for improving economic standards and quality of life of poor communities…"Aruna Rangachar Pohl, IFHD, Bangaluru. "……these experiences are invaluable and are certainly useful for provoking thoughts in the minds of participants of "Leaders for Nature" programs, which is organized by IFHD, IUCN, CII, Wild Life Trust of India, HIVOS and other likeminded organizations.The entire process of producing this compilation was an enriching and fruitful experience. It is a humbling experience for us to learn lessons from the interactions and visits to their villages/ sites. We genuinely believe that this compilation truly enriches the learning processes of "Leaders for Nature" program" - MV Rama Chandrudu, WASSAN