Suno #KediakiKahaan, Volunteers ki Zubaani (Listen to Kedia's story through the volunteers)

For 3 years, I’ve been working with Greenpeace volunteers in Delhi. I also get lucky sometimes and get to work volunteers in other parts of the country. They may come from different cities and backgrounds, but they all have atleast one thing in common- the Greenpeace core values and spirit.

This unbreakable spirit has driven twenty four inspiring volunteers from all parts of the country to come to a small village in Bihar called Kedia. 

My colleagues on ground await our volunteers eagerly! Pic Credits: Chaittanya Kumar

Their journey may have taken 51 hours to reach there, they may speak multiple tongues and have different life experiences- but they all realize that there is something else which connects all of them apart from Greenpeace- food. 

Volunteers from Chennai embark on a 48 hour trip to Patna. Pic Credits: Maliha Abroo

 

Harrowing train journeys and eating guavas in the train seems to be another thing connecting them together. Picture Credits:Piyusha Gupta

It is with this realization that they’re here to bear witness to Kedia’s amazing transition from chemical dependant farming, to ecological practices which do not harm the bio-diversity and soil health.

 A lot of you may have celebrated Friendship Day yesterday. Volunteers from Kedia camp celebrated with a simple lunch made with organic food together in Patna while waiting for their delayed friends. Pic Credits: Debu Nayak.

Starting today, twenty four volunteers from all across the country have embarked on a journey for week long volunteer camp along with the 99 farmer families of Kedia. The ultimate ambition of this camp is to get ecological agriculture to the city, and the city to ecological agriculture. These Food for Life change-makers will be working with famers to learn various Eco-Ag practices, encouraging public participation on the issue of chemical-dependant farming and learning methods to mitigate that, and get trained in tools which will help them exercise their citizen muscle back home.

In the coming week, they will show us what we in the cities ought to learn about our food, farming and farmers and how it is possible for all of us to get involved in India’s Eco-Agriculture movement. If I can give you a hint, the answer lies right in our plates... and waste-bins. Watch out for #KediakiKahaani 

Sanchita Mahajan is a Public Engagement Campaigner at Greenpeace India