Blog # 2. FORESTS: Is Global Knowledge Failing?

Knowledge is in the Air
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A quick internet search using two keywords ‘Forests’ and ‘People’ brings you to over one million knowledge in the forms of research publications, policy briefs, news, videos and various other multimedia.

What do we do with an enormous knowledge that is floating in the air? 

In the current world, about 90% of knowledge is stored in one language. Interestingly, majority of people about whom its written cannot read or understands the language. Almost 70% of knowledge is created by people who are not part of the ‘community’ about whom this information is collected. More than 50% of this information do not help, for example, landless to buy a piece of land or farmers to buy resources, or to stop deforestation. Yet, this knowledge is 100% critical with hope that one day we will need them. It’s true that we need this knowledge. It is time to stop and question: ‘how much knowledge is good knowledge.’ The next step would be to find out how this knowledge is helpful.  

Conservation & Adivasis

​Protesting Farmers
Few days ago (March 12, 2018) while I was at the Farmers March in Mumbai, Maharastra state of India, I interviewed Ajay, a tribal youth. He was participating in this march and his question struck me. 

"What is the use of intellectual knowledge if its of no help to us (Adivasis). Ultimately we have to defend our own rights ourselves."

About 40,000 farmers marched 170 kms to claim their rights to forests and land. Joining this long walk, a 65-year woman Adivasi farmer said to me,
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“I've been cultivating the land for years and earlier my in-laws were tilting it for several generations. Despite the State's promises to recognise our (Adivasis) traditional land and forest rights as per the Forest Rights Act of 2006, we remain as 'encroachers'.”

Protesting Forest Dwellers
The Kanha-Achanakmar tiger reserve corridor is proposed to connect tiger reserves which are in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh respectively. 
March 19, 2018, in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh states of Central India, Baiga tribe, one of India's Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs), marched for two days. They were protesting against the displacement from their ancestral home due to the Tiger Reserve project in the Kanha-Achanakmaar Forest area. During my filming inside Achanakmar area, Sargoo Baiga sounded disappointed. 

"We (Baiga Adivasis) have been living inside forests and shared space with wildlife, including Tigers. Why are we getting displaced? "

Sargoo Baiga is one of the protagonists in TARA Alpinia nigra, a short docufilm I directed and produced. Last year on the International Day of Forests, I gave a paper presentation at the World Bank's Land Governance Conference and presented the case study of Sargoo Baiga. 
Today, one year later, I see that Sargoo Baiga is fighting together with his Adivasi community to get recognition of their Forest Rights. 

Unfortunately none of the global knowledge has served any purpose for Baiga Adivasis.   Unlocking LearningsIn both the above people-led social movements, it was people's power that created the ripple among the policy makers. While intellectuals collecting knowledge on the ground are failing to connect with Adivasis, indigenous peoples and traditional forest dwellers. 

A few questions from local communities remain unanswered such as 

• How can the existing global learnings be used for local communities? 
  
• When will international institutions confront the States rather than proposing non-legal binding Voluntary Guidelines and optional FPIC (Free, Prior and Informed Consents).
  

Docufilms Sharing Knowledge
Baiga Adivasis give voice in our film TARA Alpinia nigra about displacement due to Aachanakmar Tiger Reserve.

Today on March 21st the 2018 International Day of Forests, we at the Landing Together films would like to share with you that our first indie short docufilm, TARA Alpinia nigra, was premiered eight months ago in Amsterdam, July 2017.

International Public Screenings 
TARA Alpinia nigra Docu + Q&AWe are happy to announce that TARA is available for international public screening invitations:
- invitations could be from an NGO, CBO, academic and research institute, philanthropist, think-tank, or anyone interested in human rights, forests, landscape, gender, conservation, indigenous peoples and in general social development issues. 

Premiere 2018 for upcoming productions
For our upcoming production - a series of four short doco films (each 20 mins), we welcome potential partners interested to become host for film premiere launch in cities of Europe, Africa, Asia, Americas & elsewhere you are based. 
You can host premiere of our upcoming documentary films!

Feel free to connect with us for details: purabib2 (at) gmail (dot) com. 
​Kindly feel free to circulate this message amongst your networks. Thank you! 

P.S. Landing Together Films is self-funded by Purabi Bose and it is a not-for-profit initiative.  ​