Global Education
Day 8: A Trip to the Seed Bank
Following our now-routine breakfast with the Welham girls, we set off to visit Navdanya, a local biodiversity farm, before traveling to The Doon School for the first time to explore their campus and meet the Headmaster for dinner.
At Navdanya biodiversity farm, we met its founder, renowned environmentalist Dr. Vandana Shiva. While enjoying chai under a rainwater-collecting gazebo, we listened to Dr. Shiva explain her life's work, from a Ph.D. in quantum theory to advocating for seed sovereignty and being an ecofeminist. Dr. Shiva was inspired by the Chipko movement in the 1970s, a nonviolent social and ecological movement by mostly women to protect the forests in India. Now, she works to preserve seed sovereignty by fighting biochemical companies that wish to control agriculture by patenting genetically modified versions of seeds. Navdanya stands for the nine planets in the cosmos applied to nine types of crops, representing crop diversification and one continuum of life.
After spending time with Dr. Shiva, we toured the farm, examining natural pest-repelling plants around the fields where women were busy harvesting crops and the seed bank, which holds more than 130 varieties of rajma (aka beans), among other types of seeds. Since its conception, Navdanya has trained 2.2 million women farmers and pushed Monsanto, one of the four core companies patenting genetically modified seeds, out of India. It is now fighting the use of genetically modified mustard seeds. We also took a peek at the farm's vermicomposting heaps, which use a mixture of cow pat and earthworms to turn food waste into fertilizer in 1.5 months.
Following a delicious lunch made from Navdanya crops and other local Dehradun ingredients, we hopped back into the bus to make our way to Doon school. We were given a tour by two ninth graders who patiently observed our antics (including Tea's rendition of Urinetown) in the Rose Bowl amphitheater. We then settled into a screening of "3 Idiots" in the Arts Building. Despite being slightly sleepy from our travels, we were all blown away by the perfect over-the-top dramatics of the movie and the positive message. "All is well" is now our favorite song.
We concluded our busy day with dinner at the Headmaster's house, where we enjoyed delicious food and good company with the Doon boys.
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After spending time with Dr. Shiva, we toured the farm, examining natural pest-repelling plants around the fields where women were busy harvesting crops and the seed bank, which holds more than 130 varieties of rajma (aka beans), among other types of seeds. Since its conception, Navdanya has trained 2.2 million women farmers and pushed Monsanto, one of the four core companies patenting genetically modified seeds, out of India. It is now fighting the use of genetically modified mustard seeds. We also took a peek at the farm's vermicomposting heaps, which use a mixture of cow pat and earthworms to turn food waste into fertilizer in 1.5 months.
Following a delicious lunch made from Navdanya crops and other local Dehradun ingredients, we hopped back into the bus to make our way to Doon school. We were given a tour by two ninth graders who patiently observed our antics (including Tea's rendition of Urinetown) in the Rose Bowl amphitheater. We then settled into a screening of "3 Idiots" in the Arts Building. Despite being slightly sleepy from our travels, we were all blown away by the perfect over-the-top dramatics of the movie and the positive message. "All is well" is now our favorite song.
We concluded our busy day with dinner at the Headmaster's house, where we enjoyed delicious food and good company with the Doon boys.
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