[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Greenbelters come in all shapes, colours and sizes, but they have one thing in common: They all love, care and work for the Greenbelt.
To be precise, not everyone who works in the greenbelt lives there – just as not quite everybody who lives there also works there, at least not exclusively, but we are here speaking of the typical Greenbelter who lives and works in Auroville’s Greenbelt – be it forests or farms.
Only two centuries ago, it is recorded that elephants were roaming the Auroville area in a lush dense forest. Human ignorance led to cutting down the forest (for building nearby Pondicherry and ships), leaving behind a denuded and barren plateau. The amazing greenwork done in Auroville’s early years has restored the forest and healed much of the environment. But returning the land to its original fertility takes generations, and thus today most of the land is more apt for careful forestry than for farming. Today Auroville has about 30 farms, of small and medium size, and well over 40 forest communities, with a few hundred actively involved in greenwork.
Greenbelters come from all over the world, including the local villages. They have all kinds of backgrounds – you may discover by chance that the mumpti-wielding forester in front of you has an academic past life….
Greenbelters are a shy species and usually not much seen around town. They prefer the voices of the forest to the clamour of meetings… Many of them have deliberately chosen a lifestyle of quietness, even a degree of seclusion, to reduce distraction while focusing on karmayoga.
If you do get to talk to one of them, entering the sheltered world of the woods, make sure you aren’t in a rush. Don’t glance at your cell phone (which is likely to be of coverage anyway) to check the time. You’ll learn that many of them have been here from the early years of Auroville. You’ll find yourself spell-bound by countless stories – what brought them here, how they learnt many lessons of coping with land, water and weather, patiently nurturing back the forest and returning some fertility to the hard red soil… Tales of adventure, of struggle and even sacrifice, of fun and surprise… You’ll find out that many have given their savings for buying lands for Auroville’s green belt… and how some of them occasionally return to the West for a season to earn the funds for maintaining their places … You’ll glimpse wisdom grown through long years of experience – as well as cutting-edge knowledge in fields from botany to geology, meteorology, hydrogeology, water conservation, entomology, ornithology and so much more. If you accompany them for a walk, you’ll be amazed at their intimate knowledge of hundreds of indigenous plants, or how they spot the traces of wildlife invisible to us…
Greenbelters believe in simple living; although some have pucca houses, many have embraced the most modest conditions, living in variants of ‘capsules’ that recall the pioneer times, and all sorts of keetroof structures that will strike the rare visitors through their stark contrast to nowadays ‘city living’. There, bats, birds, bees, geckos and frogs are house mates, snakes, mongoose and monitor lizards familiar neighbours, and a rich bird and animal population (including hare, jackal, fox, porcupine and the rare spotted dear) surround these quiet dwellings in Auroville’s tucked-away green spaces.
Greenbelters, with few excpetions, use reneable energy – such as solar for lighting and running gadgets, windmills for water pumping, and often wood for cooking.
Farmers or foresters, they are inspired by multiple methods, schools and philosopies. They work, research, document and share their experience, the environment their constant teacher. Surrounded by a world in the grip of commercial exploitation and a degrading environment, often directly affected by the effects of destructive developments, theirs is a search of living with and from the land in a healthy balance and harmony. Whether they are cultivating food crops, growing trees for selling some timber, or nurturing a pristine forest sanctuary, sustainability is the very base of their work and existence, so obviously that they seldom make use of the buzzword. They are preserving a small green world under mounting pressure of a dense and increasing population, where resources are scarce, survival harsh, land precious and urbanisation a seemingly irreversible trend.
Most of our greenbelters have far more work to do than they can manage, with limited funds, time, and helping hands. The pioneers among them are not getting younger, hired labour is scarce, and what is needed is the young ‘green’ generation who will join in with their own enthusiasm, keenness and dedication, starting to share the many tasks, from the daily practical maintenance work to careful documentation of so much that waits to be recorded, and taking our precious green spaces into a safe, viable and promising future.
‘If you ate today, thank a farmer’, says a street sign recently circulated on facebook. We have this and so many more reasons for gratitude – from water to clean air, to the substantially cooler climate in Auroville compared to nearby Pondy, and the privilege of having green spaces surrounding and inviting us at all times… incalculable treasures, so essential to the Auroville we love.
In summary – if you’re lucky to meet a greenbelter, it’s a door to a whole amazing world, and a representative of a yet little-known species that deserves every support![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
