By Erik Meijaard and Douglas Sheil ABSTRACT We discuss a recent press release calling on wealthy countries to do more to combat climate change and protect their biodiversity. We examine some further examples of how questionable views are imposed unilaterally on conservation problems. Until we better engage with local perspectives we shall be less credible... Continue Reading →
Where are the missing boys?
Rema Devi and I have visited a set of schools and villages in the Samastipur district of Bihar very recently. There are interesting developments in education there.
First, there is a significant increase in the readiness to admit children in schools. Hence the enrolment has gone up substantially. This may be due to the limited improvement in, and investments for, human development that are happening in Bihar during the last 1-2 decades. These could be facilitated by the political mobilization of non-elites and the emergence of a competitive democracy there. Though some of the people who became literates through the Total Literacy Campaign might have relapsed to illiteracy (an issue that is noted here), there could be a substantial increase in the demand for schooling as an outcome of the campaign. That too may be reflecting in Bihar.
Currently, there are no major issues that work against sending girls…
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Living Utopias |November 14 – 19, 2018 | Odisha
We are happy to announce a short one week residential course titled, “Living Utopias”, in November 2018. The course provides a perspective to understand a) the urgency in combating the crisis of industrialism in the world today and b) the various alternatives in different spheres of a civilisation—ecology/ economy/ politics/ socio-cultural/ education and technology. The... Continue Reading →
Social Actions That Followed the Total Literacy Campaign
Lessons from Malar (Kanyakumari District) By V Santhakumar, Anant Gangola, K K Krishna Kumar First posted @ http://practiceconnect.azimpremjiuniversity.edu.in/2018/10/25/social-actions-that-followed-the-total-literacy-campaign/ 1. Introduction The Total Literacy Campaign (TLC) of the early 1990s was a major mass literacy initiative in India which brought governmental and non-governmental stakeholders together. It was the first time that a nationwide campaign was launched for... Continue Reading →
Tathagat: A Play by Jana Natya Manch
Title: Tathagat Performer: Jana Natya Manch Written and directed by Abhishek Majumdar Music by M.D. Pallavi (Hindi, approx. 35 mins) Date: Friday, October 26, 2018 | Time: 7.30 pm | Venue: Pixel A Cafeteria Synopsis of the Play Set in an imaginary Buddhist kingdom in ancient India, Tathagat explores the ideas of caste and gender, rebellion and nationalism,... Continue Reading →
Opinion | A fraying lifeline for India’s deprived children
Anurag Behar first posted @ https://www.livemint.com/Opinion/e2RSJjRWziEioCwUSFh6QK/Opinion--A-fraying-lifeline-for-Indias-deprived-children.html Tombstones for the young, without graves. Each a foot tall, clustered closely together. About half carved with black cobras, for the boys who died young. The other half colourful, for the girls who died young. Every phala has such a shrine. Phalas are hamlets of the Bhil in south... Continue Reading →
Applications invited for Azim Premji University Undergraduate Programmes 2019
Applications invited for Undergraduate Programmes 2019 Azim Premji University invites applications to its Undergraduate Programmes 2019. The programme is conceived as an educational experience that prepares reflective citizens, capable of meaningful engagement in work and in society. This is a full-time, residential programme based in Bengaluru. Three-year Degree Programme B.A (Economics or Humanities) B.Sc. (Physics,... Continue Reading →
A New Internet Scam?
I have been writing and posting an essay every week in this platform for the last 20 months. However, due to the tiredness arising out of travel during the last couple of weeks and also due to a forthcoming trip, I have almost decided not to write anything this week. However, there is an email in my inbox that has changed my decision.
We are used to a number of internet scams. The `business proposals’ from a few African countries are of one kind. Then we have seen mails using the id of colleagues and academics who are apparently facing some financial difficulty during their foreign trips. However this mail scam has gone beyond all these types. There is a direct mail. `I know your pass `xxxxxx’. I have developed a malware. I know all the pornographic and other such sites that you visit. I have made a video in…
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Urbanisation and New Agroecologies
The Story of Bengaluru’s Peripheries By Sheetal Patil, Dhanya B, Raghvendra S Vanjari, Seema Purushothaman Rural–urban interfaces worldwide are increasingly witnessing massive transformations in the structure, functions, and services of complex ecosystems of these zones. An attempt has been made to understand the transitions triggered by urbanisation in the peri-urban agricultural systems of Bengaluru. Using... Continue Reading →
`They have had 40-50 years but they could not do much; Let them sit back now’
Nimrat, Shraddha and I are waiting patiently in a coffee shop. We have fixed an appointment with a political party worker who is involved in the reforms of education there. When he approaches us, it becomes clear that he is not even 30 years old. He has joined a post-graduate program in education after starting the work on these reforms.
He was meticulous in giving us a good description and insider account of the reforms there. Gradually, the discussion turned to certain contentious issues. A few aspects of these education reforms are unacceptable to well-known educationists in the country. They have written editorial pieces in leading newspapers on the `callousness’ of these reformers. While talking about these developments, our guest or interviewee has made that observation which is given as the title of this essay.
There could be a divide between political activists who pursue certain reforms and educationists or…
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Azim Premji University 