The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : An insider’s view of ecological concerns

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Wednesday, Aug 06, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

An insider’s view of ecological concerns

Bageshree S.

The book explores issues relevant to the lives of the Soligas
It has information on the cultivation methods of the Soligas

Bangalore: Access to formal education, sadly, is often at the cost of knowledge that communities have accumulated over the years. This is how a big wealth of information on ecology, agriculture and healing methods of traditional communities have been lost after they have come in touch with modern knowledge systems.

Is there some way of balancing this and ensuring that one kind of knowledge is not gained at the cost of the other?

A teachers’ environmental handbook brought out jointly by Atree, Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana Kendra and Kalpavirksha specifically to help children in and around Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple Wildlife Sanctuary, Forests Alive!, hopes to remedy this by bringing traditional knowledge within the fold of the formal education system.

Kannada version

The Kannada version of this book, Vana Sanjeevana, has now been brought out by Navakarnataka Publication. The original is authored by Sujatha Padmanabhan, Sunita Rao and Yashodara Kundaje.

It has been translated into Kannada by Nagesh Hegde.

The book addresses one basic question: how does one teach a child from Soliga tribal community, who is born and brought up in the midst of the Biligiri Rangana Betta, lessons on environmental sciences?

Obviously not the way a child brought up in Bangalore’s concrete jungle is taught.

On this premise, the book explores a range of issues that are relevant to the lives of the Soligas within the wildlife sanctuary.

It lists about 175 activities that the teachers can use to help children become more aware and proud of their culture and natural heritage.

The handbook was created for teachers of the Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana Kendra School, located within the sanctuary and its contents were finalised after discussions in a workshop with the teachers. It contains drawings, maps and colour foldouts to make the book interesting for children.

Though the specific context and a target group — a school in a small revenue pocket within the sanctuary that links the ecologically fragile Western and Eastern Ghats — it makes an interesting reading for anyone who is keen on knowing the knowledge systems that lie outside formal education.

It has, for instance, interesting information on the cultivation methods of the Soligas, herbs they use (with names in Soliga language as well as Kannada and English) and discussions on threats to the fragile ecological system of the hills.

Navakarnataka Publication can be contacted on navakarnataka@vsnl.com for details on the book, priced at Rs. 275.

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