swapathgami kabaad se jugaad meet

 

Every day, people in the cities of India are churning out mountains of plastic and non-biodegradable waste, which are threatening to eclipse our living spaces. 

 

And yet, traditional cultures around India have not had a conception of waste.  Each and every thing is to be used and re-used, until its own unique place and purpose has been found – sometimes as a building material; other times for creative art; still other times for new useful functions.

 

Luckily, in small towns and villages around India, as well as with experimenters around the country, people are finding ways to continue this tradition of ‘upcycling’, of transforming kabaad (garbage) into jugaad (useful things).

 

From December 16-19, 2005, the Swapathgami Network would like to invite kabaadi-walas (those who make useful things from waste) for a gathering to share and explore:

-           What kinds of creative and useful things are we making already out of waste?  What kinds of new things can we make?

-           How are we connecting ‘upcycling’ with art, architecture, music, performance, farming, festivals, and many other aspects of daily life?

-           How can we expand our understandings around Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Regenerate, Upcycle, Unlearn, etc.?

-           How can we earn a healthy livelihood from our waste creations? 

-           What can we do to nurture ‘zero waste zones’ in our families and communities?

 

and many other questions related to creativity, waste, nature, and our selves.

 

The gathering will be hosted at Karm Marg, in Faridabad, Haryana.  Karm Marg has been working with street children for years, to transform industrial waste into useful items for sale.  Their inspiring initiatives, as well as their large working spaces, make them great hosts for this meet. The event will be facilitated by Ranjan De (Bridging Gaps), Vishal Singh Dhaybai (Shikshantar) and Anish Singh (Manzil).

 

Please share this invitation with friends and neighbors who are doing wonderful things with waste.  They make be working with industrial waste, household waste, or the ‘waste’ of nature (i.e., coconut shells, wood shavings, corn cobs, etc.). We hope to have about 35-40 people come and share their creations, experiences, and fresh ideas. 

 

Confirm your participation with Shilpa Jain shilpa@...

 

From: Dr. Leo Rebello

leorebello@...