The start of a new academic year brings a lot of things, new friends, new classes, an atmosphere of excitement. For the 11th and 12 graders at my school, it also brings along election frenzy. This year was my first time running for elections, and the process made me think about sustainability in a whole new way. It all started when I stood in front of the collection of stickers in my room, stuck to the side of my bedside cabinet. There were about 30 of them, all obtained from last year's campaigning, creative, colorful and shiny. But it made…
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It is not a common occurrence for me to be able to watch a well-made promo video of a theatre school; I did that for the first time when I reached out to the Drama School Mumbai, and the programme coordinator, Neeraj Panchal, sent me the video, which you can see here I noticed the words "Annual Student Production 2018-19" on the excellent brochure that was given out before, and about, the play This intrigued me and I found out that the play was staged by the students of this school; some of them told me, after the play, that…
Read moreThis programme features young participants of Radio Active's annual story-telling competition held in schools and NGOs across the city. Their stories highlight important aspects like child rights; Children also recount fables and regional classics that impact morals and life lessons. https://soundcloud.com/radioactivecr90-4mhz/story-telling-children-with-their-story-tales-rj-manjula-rajeshasamanth-yuvaraju
Read moreAradhana Academy is not on the list of "elite" schools of Bangalore. But here's our experience. I sent this email to Rajane Prasad, Admissions Co-ordinator, and Sister Moly, the Principal of the School. Dear Ms Rajane: There is a FB group called https://www.facebook.com/groups/bangaloreschoolsshweta/Bangalore Schools (closed group, you may not be able to open the link) where parents exchange information about various schools. Here's what Anjana (my daughter, and Kavya's mother) posted: I wanted to write about my experience so far with Aradhana Academy. Some of you may already know that my family has relocated from the U.S. My daughter joined…
Read moreFor the first time in Bengaluru, the Walk to School (W2S) program was conducted successfully in Sanjaynagar. 1,500 children from six schools participated in the program by walking to school from their homes on Saturday November 5th. Those living further away and typically travelling by bus or other vehicles, were dropped off at common points a few kilometres away, and walked to school in groups. Pic: Manju George It was surprising to see that instead of complaining that they had to wake up early and walk to school on a cold morning, the children were excited and happy to walk.…
Read moreEvangelical Social Action Forum (ESAF) in association with Citizens for Sustainability (CiFoS) with the support of B.PAC is organising the Walk to School on Saturday Program (WSS) to encourage children to adopt the Active and Safe Routes to School (ASRTS) initiative. File pic. Pic: Shree D N Six schools in Sanjay Nagar will participate in this initiative which is bring organised on December 5th 2015. Background Active commuting has reduced in the recent days due to many reasons. Lack of last mile connectivity and inadequate public transport have paved way for the increase in use of private vehicles. Even the…
Read moreWith most school managements in Bengaluru reluctant to adhere to some of the child safety guidelines issued by the Police Department, there is uncertainty in the air. While the Police Department is unsure about taking action against schools that do not comply with the rules after August 31, school managements have not decided on their course of action yet. Bangalore Police Commissioner M N Reddi is aware of the concerns raised by the private school associations. However he admitted that taking action against schools that don’t follow the norms is not easy. "We just cannot take action immediately, there are…
Read more"Bad Pati." - said my twelve year old granddaughter.This was her reaction to my dumping milk bags into the kitchen waste bin that contained only ‘wet waste'."Sorry dear, I won't do it again." - I said feeling proud of my eco-friendly grandchild. Yes. I felt ashamed. It is true that grown-ups should show more concern about such things in the presence of the younger generation. If we ‘pooh-pooh' their remarks and continue to be callous it would be shameful.I was walking in the park in our neighborhood and was rather upset when two youngsters threw the paper plates in which…
Read moreIt started with an idea - how practical it would be if we could get schools to grow their own gardens. It would not only give children a hands-on experience with organic gardening, pests and plants, but also enable them to enjoy the produce in their mid-day meals. Loyola school teachers at the terrace garden. Pic: S Laxminarayan I discussed this idea with our mentor Dr B N Vishwanath and fellow members of the Garden City Farmers Trust, an NGO working to spread awareness on organic urban farming. We got an immediate thumbs up. Then began my search for funds;…
Read moreWhen we come across a unique not for profit organisation, social campaign or initiative, we may be interested in knowing more about its regular activities and achievements. But do we try to find out why and how it started? Irrespective of their size and successes, many civil society organisations (CSO's) or non-governmental organisations (NGO's) have a distinct personal story behind them. Some organisations like Sangama (helps sexual minorities) or the Association of People with Disabilities (APD - supports disabled persons) were started to highlight and counter the challenges or discrimination that an individual or a community experiences and assist them.…
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