The is slide from the presentation made by Gauranga Das Ji on 7 Oct 2018 in Singapore's Tanglin Club

1. THE YOGA OF SUSTAINABILITY
A Journey of Harmonizing Innovation & Tradition
Gauranga Das
Director, Govardhan Ecovillage

2. HERE are we : WADA, Maharashtra
LOCATION

3. HISTORY
STARTED in 2003 THRIVING in 2018
5 Humans & 8
Animals 250Humans & 100Animals
Govardhan Ecovillage is a model farm community
and retreat center highlighting the need for us to live in
HARMONYwith ourselves, nature and the sacred.

4. 2008 : HOW IT ALL BEGAN

5. CONCEPT YOGA
ECOVILLAGE concept is
about taking into consideration
all the aspects of LIVING

6. CONCEPT YOGA
YOGA is defined as a state of HARMONY
among all the aspects of LIVING

7. 4 HUMAN NEEDS
DHARMA
Ecological - Self Sustainability
ARTHA
Economical - Self Sufficiency
KAMA
Social - Self Worth
MOKSHA
Cultural - Self Realization
CONCEPT YOGA

8. CONCEPT YOGA
ECOVILLAGE is a place where there is
YOGA of HARMONIZING our
Inner Ecology with External Ecology

9. ECOVILLAGE design is
about CREATING
an ECOSYSTEM for LIFE
DESIGN YOGA

10. DESIGN YOGA

11. DESIGN YOGA
INFINITE
RESOURCE DUMP

12. Resource
1
Waste 1
Consumer
1
Consumer
1
Resource
2
Waste 2
Consumer
2
Consumer
2
Resource
n
Waste n
Consumer
n
Consumer
n
=∑Resource 1…n =∑Waste 1…n
LINEAR
RESOURCE TO
TRASH MODEL:
Individual
Consumers
DESIGN YOGA

13. DESIGN YOGA
ECOSYSTEM
THINKING

14. ∑=Waste n∑=Resource 1
Resource 1 Waste 1Consumer 1Consumer 1
Resource 2 Waste 2Consumer 2Consumer 2
Resource n Waste nConsumer nConsumer n
=∑Resource 1…n =∑Waste 1…n
Resource 1 Waste 1Contributor 1Contributor 1
Resource 2 Waste 2Contributor 2Contributor 2
Resource n Waste nContributor nContributor n
Resource 3 Waste 3Contributor 3Contributor 3
LINEAR RESOURCE
TO TRASH MODEL:
Individual
Consumers
SYMBIOTIC
RECYCLING:
Individual
Contributors
DESIGN YOGA

15. DESIGN YOGA

16. ECOVILLAGE construction
is NOT about creating buildings
but creating LIVING SPACES
CONSTRUCTION YOGA

17. IDEA was to use LOW EMBODIED
ENERGY materials and LOCAL
materials for CONSTRUCTION
CONSTRUCTION YOGA

18. CONSTRUCTION YOGA

19. CONSTRUCTION YOGA

20. ECOVILLAGE water supplies
must not just meet today's
need, but even FUTURE!
WATER YOGA

21. WATER YOGA
Creating Water
Security for the
Village by
IMPROVING the
consistency of the
water sources in
the Village

22. WATER YOGA
HYDROGEOLOGY for WATER SECURITY

23. WATER YOGA

24. WATER YOGA

25. Its not WASTE, but excess
concentration of NUTRIENTS
WASTE YOGA

26. WASTE YOGA
Open drainage
systems affected
ground water
quality

27. WASTE YOGA
Traditional wisdom
points towards SOIL
based treatment systems

28. WASTE YOGA

29. Not just depending on
subsidized FOSSIL FUEL based
power but switching to
RENEWABLES
ENERGY YOGA

30. ENERGY YOGA
Sun is the ONLY source of ENERGY
Traditional lifestyles centered
around Sun
Simple living means
“Sun-centric” living
Life depended on the “Present”
Sun or Sun captured over a year
or a decade or even a century
Modern lifestyles depend on Sun
captured over millions of years!
We are creating a “SUN DEBT”

31. 30 KVA Solar Power
Biogas Plants Animal driven water pumps
Bull based farming
ENERGY YOGA
Reducing our SUN DEBT

32. SOCIAL YOGA

33. Creating a livelihood model
that ensures SOCIAL equity and
ECOLOGICAL sustainability
SOCIAL YOGA

34. SOCIAL YOGA
HOLISTIC rural
development
program
centered around
ORGANIC
FARMING WATER
SHED
MANAGEMENT &
HEALTH CARE

35. SOCIAL YOGA
1100+ families
benefited from Shetkari
Vikas Program
50+ Villages
across GEV
benefitted
in year 2017.
30-35%
increase in Overall
income of participants
SEWA PROGRAM

36. SOCIAL YOGA
8 Districts
Visited to give Technical
Guidance to farmers
and to learn New
Innovative Techniques.
6000+ Farmers
from all over Maharashtra
trained at GEV
71 Farmer’s
Visited resource
mapping survey
completed of Parabhani,
Nasik, Beed, Latur,
Sangali, Satara, and
Dhule
FARMER'S TRAINING PROGRAM

37. SOCIAL YOGA
250+ Families
benefitted from Landless
support initiatives
50%
increase in individual income
50+ Livelihood
Initiatives
including like that of Kirana,
Barber, snack center, flour mill,
etc.
LANDLESS FARMERS STABILIZATION

38. SOCIAL YOGA
5500+
Drinking water beneficiaries
1050+
Customized irrigation beneficiaries
850+
Lift Irrigation Beneficiaries
WATER RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

39. SOCIAL YOGA
2000+
Women Empowered to contribute
financially to their family
200 +
Self Help Groups formed in 50 +
villages
10,000 sq. ft
Facility planned for training
women in handicrafts and
2500 sq. ft. for training women in
Food processing
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

40. SOCIAL YOGA
50+ Schools
are benefited through
various rural education
programs
1000+ Session
Conducted for the
children
8700+ students
benefitted in Aanganwadis
and Zilla Parishad Schools
visited by GEV teachers
RURAL EDUCATION

41. SOCIAL YOGA
35 Tribal Youths
skilled in 2 Batches last year
in streams like Engineering,
Energy & Environment ,
Agriculture & Animal care
80% placement
for students so far after the
course either through jobs
or facilitating them to have
their own enterprises
6000 Square feet
of facility to be constructed to
skill atleast 60 tribal youths
every year in various trades
SKILL DEVELOPMENT CENTER

42. SOCIAL YOGA

43. SOCIAL YOGA
15000 VISITORS annually
from various countries
The retreat center model
bridging the
URBAN-RURAL
MODERN-TRADITIONAL
SCIENCE - WISDOM
divide

44. AWARDS & ACCOLADES
United Nations World Tourism
Organization
Award for ECO-TOURISM
as a catalyst for RURAL DEVELOPMENT

45. AWARDS & ACCOLADES

46. Gauranga Das
gaurangadas@ecovillage.org.in
THANK YOU