By Sarah Arnebeck |
ACT IAuroville is near the Coromandel Coast in south India The rain is pouring down and five figures in suits holding umbrellas approach Shiva, their guide. She is calm and tranquil in the midst of the downpour. It is fall, the rainy season in Auroville, India, which is a better time for westerners to visit than the hot season. However, the visitors act rather annoyed with the weather, and complain to themselves. But Shiva opens her arms to them like a god welcoming them into heaven.Shiva: (extends arms and smiles warmly) Welcome, to our city. I am pleased that you are all interested in looking at Auroville as a successful example of a community working together to benefit everyone here and in surrounding villages. We work with the environment to create sustainable livelihoods. I have been living here since Auroville was established in 1968. It is an international community, representing 26 nations, that has decided on a set of values that ideally involves no exchange of money. "For in this ideal place money would be no more the sovereign lord. Work would not be the means of gaining one's livelihood, it would be the means whereby one expresses oneself, developing one's capacities and possibilities, while doing at the same time service to the whole group, which on its side would provide for each one's subsistence and for his field of work." The woman we refer to as the Mother, who I just quoted, founded this city on the ideals of Sri Aurobindo, an Indian seer and spiritual visionary. You are here because we as unified humans can no longer afford to ignore the consequences of our actions. We are all linked and this is a place based on peace and unity. But before I go any further let me know a little about each of you. There is a little shifting among the visitors until Sam looking very uncomfortable and out of place speaks up while fiddling with the neck of his tie. Sam: Howdy, I'm a state representative from Louisiana in the U.S., I graduated from Yale with George W. Bush our dear charming president. I received a degree in economics and then went to graduate school at Princeton. Before I became a public servant I spent about ten years studying global warming and it's economic effects on the world. Sam leans over and whispers to Larry so he thinks that Shiva can't hear him. Sam: (smiling slyly) And I figured out that the costs equal the benefits globally so I don't know what these crazy people are all up in arms about spending money on the abatement of CO2 emissions. Shiva: That is very interesting I would love to discuss your research later, we here Auroville would like to make a positive enough impact on the land by reforesting the land that we would actually in effect change the weather patterns so that we do not have such an intense rainy season and then a long intense hot dry season. Sam nods blankly not believing a word she is saying. Shiva looks expectantly at the next visitor, James Dunkin, his glasses keep fogging up, and he has given up on keeping them clear. He already shows some annoyance towards his traveling companions. He has trouble looking at people in the eyes, more because he has too much going on in his mind than because he is shy or awkward. James: Hi, I have studied history and philosophy all of my life. I have traveled all around the U.S., central and south America, and more recently India. I'm interested in looking at how social capital and co-production between different institutional bodies or groups of people can be created, in order to help communities. Larry Bovart, standing next to him, shakes his head slightly. Larry: (mumbling) Well that's all fine and dandy that you are thinking so much about that, but it would be nice if you actually did something that helped people instead taking de tour de world. Shiva: That is very nice James; I'd enjoy hearing how Auroville will fit in your world-view. Now, next here we have a distinguished banker, correct? You interrupted a moment ago. Larry: Yes I am an economist work for the World Bank. We have been working to support projects to help the poor in third-world countries around the globe. James: It would be nice if the projects made things better for the poor instead of worse. Or if you put a little more thought into your actions before you implemented them. If there is one thing I have learned from my travels, it is that there is not one four-step program that you can apply to every problem to get results. Larry: When you are working to help as many people as we are, we do not always have the resources or time to spend a lifetime looking at every variable. People would rather we try something than just leave them alone. James: How many of the people that you have helped have you talked to? The positive reinforcement you are getting from your banker friends must be going to your head. Shiva: The community here does not believe in the process necessarily, but in our inner-spirituality, growth, and values. And isn't this why we are here? To search for some answers and see if we can find a strategy for managing our resources that is sustainable and applicable? The Mother said that: Each one has good reasons to support his own opinion, and I am no expert to judge between them. But from the spiritual point of view I know that with true good will all opinions can be harmonized in a more comprehensive and truer solution. This is what I expect from the workers of Auroville. Not that some give way to others, but that on the contrary all should combine their efforts to achieve a more comprehensive and perfect result. The ideal of Auroville demands this progress - don't you want to make it? Everyone looks down with western Puritan shame. Loretta: Well, I am a forester, and I'm particularly interested in how we are going to link rural areas and cities and be able to manage our forests to provide for everyone. I believe a lot of research still needs to be done to see how much we can manipulate our forests and still have them retain their ecosystem functions. Shiva: We very much have the same concerns here you will see that we are trying a number of techniques in what we call our Greenbelt. Now let me give you a tour to show you how we have implemented our ideas. This city was designed for a population of 50,000 we only have about 1,500 people living here now. There are thirteen villages around Auroville with a total population of about 40,000 people. All of them have the opportunity to benefit from our services and many of them interact with the city or are employed here. It gives the rural people an alternative to migrating to the cities. ACT IIEveryone is standing in a circle around an urn and the dome Matrimandir is in the background. The rain has stopped momentarily and the Aurovillians are very quiet and peaceful going to and from there meditation in Matrimandir.Shiva: This is the center of Auroville. Matrimandir or 'Temple of the Mother' refers to the Universal Mother, which seeks to help move humans beyond their limitations. There is no religion or organized gathering, just meditation. The urn you see here has soil of nations all over the world to represent unity. Sam: Hmm, where are all of the government buildings, how do you run things around here? Our city halls, the center for democracy, are in the center of our cities. Shiva: Everything radiates out from this point, sometimes referred to as Peace. It is called the Galaxy Plan and there are four different zones as you might have noticed coming in. There is the residential zone, international zone, industrial zone where there are non-polluting businesses, cultural zone, and finally the Greenbelt, which we do not own all of yet. The administrative buildings are in the industrial zone. But we also have the amphitheater where we are standing so people can gather. Sam: Now my understanding was that you have no leaders, what is this place exactly and how do you organize to get anything done? Shiva: We have many strong characters here but no we do not have any leaders. This is what some people have called, "creative anarchy." We do not have a set organizational structure. We want to go beyond artificial organization and have it express a higher consciousness. Organization is needed to get work done, but in our view it must remain very flexible to be able to modify to the needs of the community. We are an experimental community and we have tried a number of different strategies to get people involved in decision-making. We have a number of different working groups that have evolved out of necessity. These groups have power and authority but they must struggle constantly with the community to convey their thought process to them and gain the communities approval. Larry: How did you originally get approval from the Indian government, did you have some governing body then? Shiva: Yes, we had the Executive Council for the purpose of dealing with the Indian government. Under the Auroville Foundation Act we became a project for the Indian government where they handed over some of their central government authority to us as an experiment. The Executive Council or General assembly also deals with internal disputes, but they do not act as a police force. We do not have police. Many people here think that the Executive Council has too much general authority though. Loretta: Why do you think you are in a different place then the Karnataka, vbIndia project, and what suggestions would you have for them? That was a government proposal that got World Bank money thrown at it for 5 years. It had the some of the same goals as Auroville: To combat ecological degradation, and help meet the basic firewood, fodder, ad timber needs of the rural population. Shiva: If I remember correctly, that is the case where they just planted Eucalyptus trees? When we first settled in Auroville, we collected any seeds we could get, but we also relied a lot on the local knowledge that we found here to plant trees and shrubs that would support the ecosystem functions and support humans. I will explain our techniques more when we get to the Greenbelt. In the case of Karnataka I think they probably realize now that they should have relied on some local knowledge. But the people implementing the project were also not really accountable to the poor landless villagers; they were primarily working on private lands. When they realized the Eucalyptus was good for pulp production and not for firewood or for creating fodder, they probably didn't care that much because it was benefiting them. Here in Auroville we have introduced values into the economic model. Larry: (looking skeptical) How do you expect to have any kind of entrepreneurship when you are relying on warm-fuzzies for a reward. Shiva: Private property is fundamental for capitalism. Taxes are fundamental to socialism. We do not have private property or taxes here. Lets move through the residential and international zones to the industrial zone, and I will show you that our system based on values does work. ACT IIILarry and Sam look with particular awe at the industrial scene. The area appears to be immaculate, and there are no smoke emissions to be seen, or funky smells that they are used to having accompany poor towns.Sam: It's okay, I'm from Louisiana, you can go ahead and turn the smokes stakes back on. Shiva: We try to rely on alternative energy sources that are appropriate to our location. We have 30 water-pumping windmills of varying designs to take advantage of the persistent rain we have in the fall. We also have experimented with solar and biogas energy. The Indian government has helped support us and we are working on making these technologies available to local villages. Solar cookers are one thing that would help out the degraded forests as well as the people. Larry: How do you think your businesses will fair in the global market place? Do you really think you can get enough money out compared to what you put in to make your businesses worthwhile? Shiva: We are very adaptable here. A lot of people that
come here don't end up doing the same kind of work they had done
previously. People adapt their skills to do what is needed for the
community. People are also ready to be innovative in their businesses
to compete. And ultimately we will work to be self-sufficient. There
are more than 100 businesses or what we call commercial units. Some of
the products include: Woodwork, vegetable-dyed hand-wovens,
handicrafts, pottery, pressed flower stationary, computers, and
electronic systems. James: So would you say that even though there is no real central government or bureaucracy, people feel like they have a stake and are equal in this community so they are able to work together to achieve their goals? Shiva: I think you are beginning to understand. Our Newspaper also plays an important role in creating an open transparent system. The Central Fund must disclose where all money goes. Businesses must also disclose their plans and give a timeframe for the community to respond. Having access to information is fundamental for people to act as citizens. ACT IVAll of the visitors and Shiva are standing at the edge of a forest and agricultural land. Larry holds his nose to the smell of decomposition. Shiva smiles proudly at the land around her still with a feeling of amazement.Shiva: The earth is resilient but you do not want to
see the land to come to the point of no return. Auroville, when it was
established was about 2-3 years away from the point where it would be
completely barren. One-third of the planet's surface is desert or
semiarid and that percentage is growing. Richard St. Barbe-Baker has
brought to minds that
"If a man loses one-third of his skin, he dies. If a tree
loses one-third of its bark, it too dies. If the earth is a sentient
being, would it not be reasonable to expect that if it loses one-third
of its trees and vegetative covering, it will also die? Through using a number of techniques we have been able to bring it back to where it is today. With the population growing rapidly as well forests are not going to be able to be left completely alone. We must learn our limits to use while ensuring their ecosystem functions remain intact. Larry and Sam look down possibly somewhat touched. Loretta and James nod with appreciation for the quote. Shiva: With the help of the neighboring villages and
the Aurovillian community we have worked to restore the land. The 1985
Report of the National Remote Sensing Agency in Hyderabad showed that
53.3 million hectares of land are considered to be wastelands. When we
choose we chose this sight there was little vegetation left to hold the
soil and when the monsoon rains came the soil would wash away into the
ocean and leave deep gullies and ravines. Loretta: So how does agriculture play into this restoration? In my experience foresters and farmers often find themselves on opposite sides of issues. Shiva: One of our working groups is made up of both farmers and foresters, they work very closely together here out of necessity. We have been working with and researching pesticide-free fertilizing because our soil and water are very precious and we do not want to contaminate them. Loretta: Besides having local people work on restoration do you share this ecological knowledge in any other way? Shiva: Yes. We have been doing a lot more outreach recently, we've been having organized seminars and training sessions and we have included local and state foresters in this process as well. Loretta: Impressive A noisy vehicle pulls up and the visitors show mixed feelings of relief and sadness that their tour is over. Shiva: It seems we are out of time for now. I want to thank you all for joining me and I hope you take away with you an attitude that we must start changing our attitudes about development. Hopefully, this can be a model city. And please join us later at the community meeting to contribute your opinions. The visitors humbly give their thanks and walk down the dirt road with Matrimandir behind them. Shiva looks up to the sky The verdict is still out. "Critique"This creative anarchy sounds more like what democracy was supposed to be in America after the Revolutionary War, yet in our present day it seems like a radical idea. Who can really imagine the U.S. state representative, the world bank economist, the historian, and the forester all together touring Auroville, India? But why couldn't this happen? This Utopia is not "perfect" but it is striving for perfection. The ideals values are set at a high level, and on the scale of Auroville, they seem to be materializing. They have helped revive the earth to a functioning level and have helped the rural poor that have been neglected for so long and have not been part in any kind of process.The play Auroville and Auroville the place are about creating social capital in a climate where it is difficult but not impossible to do so. It only takes a little creativity and persuasion to begin something like Auroville and have the support to sustain it. But of course that is simplifying the problem. You might say that in Auroville, India they have the most adverse conditions to work in socially and environmentally, but the microcosm that was created by Auroville became the ideal condition for the development of a community dedicated to innovative forestry, agricultural, spiritual, and social ideas and practices. It is based on equality and unity, it has a relatively small identifiable group of participants that feel they have a stake in the community, and they have built relationships and networked with the rural villages around them, the Indian government, and schools and businesses all over the world. As with all experiments, the verdict is still out on the viability of Auroville, but it has already influenced many people in a positive way and the technology and ideas they are bringing to the table during this Democratic Dark Age are invaluable. Auroville puts a set of values back in our minds. While Wendell Berry said, "There is no economy without ecology," an addition to this may be, "values are a central part of the economy." It is an easy way out to say that values are arbitrary, like putting values on nature or ecological processes. And they can be dangerous when taken to an extreme and are completely uniform, but if we as individuals don't attach ourselves to any values how will we realize our full consciousness? The play had a quote from the Mother that confirmed Auroville is not some brainwashing cult; it emphasized that she expects everyone to have different opinions, that is a fundamental part of decision-making and realizing the truth of the future. Work CitedAuroville. [Online] Available at:http://www.miraura.org/aa/av/av.htmlBlanchflower, Paul. "The Dawn of a Forest." Resurgence Issue 211. [Online] Available at: http://resurgence.gn.apc.org/issues/blanchflower211.htm Evans, Peter. "Government Action, Social Capital and Development: Reviewing the Evidence on Synergy." World Development, Vol. 24, No. 6, pp 1119-1132, 1996. Korton, David. Community management Asian Experience and Perspectives. Kumarian Press. 1986, pp 238. Sri Aurobindo Society. "Auroville, the City of Dawn." [Online] Available at: http://www.sriaurobindosociety.org.in/subnav/aurovil.htm Wickenden, David. Living with the Land. "Regreening the Earth," 1984, pp 51. [Online] Formerly available at: http://www.context.org/ICLIB/IC08/Walton.htm |
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