15-day climate action event to blend academics, folk history

Aiming to take climate action to people, Azim Premji University will hold ‘Rivers of Life’, a 15-day event that will explore nature in all its forms with a focus on river ecosystems.

The programme — to be held daily between November 2 and 16 — has been designed by Harini Nagendra, director of Research Centre, and lead of Centre for Climate Change at Azim Premji University. It is a blend of interactive workshops, panel discussions, talks, poetry, and movie screenings with community engagement.

The event will bring together experts, academicians, storytellers and folk artistes to interact with school and college students on crucial climate issues. It will highlight historical references to the life of the rivers, forests and environments in folklore and lived experiences from the oral cultural perspective.

The event will kick off with a self-reflective workshop titled ‘Urban Wastewater and Our Lifestyle Contribution’. River ecosystems, wastewater, water conflicts and other matters will be elaborated on through discussions, workshops and multiple other activities.

Academic talks apart, the programme will introduce a hands-on approach to some basic environmental issues. For instance, in the talk on “What is the right of a river. What is the right of nature?”, participants will be trained to examine local environmental issues by using innovative tool kits. Harini said the innovative programme seeks to draw audiences from different backgrounds and age groups.

Bilingual event

“It is also a bilingual event (English and Kannada) focusing on the local audience, with a special emphasis on younger children. We are looking forward to hosting about 300-350 students from schools and colleges, apart from the general public,” Harini said.

What to explore at the event:

Photo exhibition

River Diaries-Folklore and storytelling sessions

Activities for school, college students

Talks, academic sessions and panel discussions

Hands-on workshops