"WAT-E[ve]R" - are we drying ourselves up?

So is it true for everyone, every family, every city; that only when the worst is upon us, do we wake up and start the process of trying to find a solution? Shouldn't the "trying" part be done long before the problem reaches its peak? 
 You know, there are categories. Of people. You give everyone ONE common problem. Obviously, the way and intensity at which it affects those people is going to be very dynamic. But the point is not that there are people. the point is, that there IS a problem.  And no problem reaches its peak overnight. It, like most other processes that are either natural &/or political in context, is a gradual process. 
   So let's say the problem we're talking about is, the current water crisis. The lack of available safe drinking water. And the lack of enough water in general. This issue, has today, almost reached its ultimate ferocity. Maybe that's why our efforts to overcome this crisis are also, almost taking form. We always wait till even the red alert has become old news to take action. 
  Why?  - Is it our tendency to just ignore the magnitude of what is going to come down upon us? Or is it that we are simply too lazy to do anything ourselves? Why do we always wait for the civic administration to do something and step a step forward by designing some plan? Don't we also have the individual power to think? Or is it that the water crisis only affects the administration and not us? Aren't we all suffering from it? Aren't YOU? 
  Quite simply - if you ARE part of the problem [even if it's indirect involvement of the farthest kind], you HAVE to be part of the solution. 
   Or are we just not aware? Either that, or we're incredibly foolish by continuing to endanger the mere survival of our species, our planet and already existing future generations! 
   We HAVE TO start now! We must understand that the red alert was already old news last year when the monsoon ignored us and just went by! We disturbed the natural climate cycle. And we're paying for it. And you know what? It's not just us.
   Because of us, ALL of Earth's species are also paying for it. With THEIR lives. And if this doesn't induce even an iota of guilt, responsibility and humility in you, you need serious field biology counselling!
   You need to know that those poverty stricken, water-starved villages you see on news channels and in films, - that's going to be your situation, someday. Soon. If you want to continue living the royal life, you're going to have to pledge your royal support and make a royally significant contribution to the planet that put you on it! 
   Part of the solution, is said to be this whole new trend  in rain water harvesting [RWH]. Frankly, it should've been done years ago , if not decades! But at least some people are beginning to understand its importance and necessity at this point. Like I said, not that this technology or the [severely uncommon] common sense was unavailable to us before now, before today. It was all in place. We just thought it was a headache, a useless one at that. 
    Everyone seems to be assessing the pros of RWH to make it a big hit. The media, newspapers et al. have been going ga-ga about it. We, here, are going to list the cons. Yup. The cons. 
And I'll tell you exactly why too. Actually, I won't need to. You'll pretty much figure it out yourself if you're smart enough. 

1. RWH means we actually have to GET involved in the process of setting it up. The RWH is very house specific if we want it to be. WE have to study, do our homework, assess, analyse, implement, maintain, and well.. WE have to take the initiative. No one else is going to come to your door to beg and plead. It's a decision YOU have to make. 
2. Getting involved is just step 1. The next part means you have to REMAIN involved. Throughout. The system requires maintenance about twice a year and that doesn't cost too much either. Calling the people who take care of repairs, adjustments, etc. is up to us! It's a duty that has to be carried out from time to time. No else reminds you to call them and check your RWH system. You have to remember. 
3. It means we have to break all our mental blocks about how it's okay to let someone else do their part for conserving water, but that it doesn't apply to us. It's apparently, okay to continue spending Rs.15 for a bottle of Kinley or Bisleri mineral water. It means understanding that you DON'T need to pay for a resource that would be abundantly available to you if you only used your head; and hence,
4. It means you actually have to USE .... YOUR head. 

   Now, judging by the kind of society we live in, al of the above [though totally do-able], seem very far fetched for mankind to achieve going by its current creditable position. 

•  So what if you're helping the environment progress from "near extinction" into "sustainability"? 
•  So what if people (a small portion of us who put the environment before all else), will applaud your exemplary effort and give your name as a motivational example to hundreds and thousands of people of this country who will then, be forced to think that if YOU, a normal citizen, could do your part, why can't they?
•  So what if you will be helping in putting an end to an omnipresent onslaught of excuses? 
•  So what if YOU will contribute to bringing about a much needed positive change in mindset and lifestyle of our common citizens? 
•  So what if you will be an inspiration?

Who wants THIS sorta satisfaction?? Right? 

An Important Lesson

Here's an extract from "A View from the Machan" by Ullas Karanth.

This is something that people in this field really ought to understand. And faster, the better. Here goes:

"My experience with volunteer naturalists makes me wary of such clever schemes. Grand plans for 'sustainable use' of nature rarely work unless local people are inspired to care for the wildlife in the first place. Before local people in general can be educated and enthused about saving wildlife, one must build a dedicated cadre of  naturalists and conservationists who can advocate the cause of conservation within the local communities. However, mere passion and care for animals cannot turn into effective conservation advocacy. There is perhaps no tool more powerful than practical field biology to inspire naturalists and nurture them to be effective community leaders for wildlife conservation action."

Body & Soul ... of a different kind

Someone once told me, that an organization is like any 'body'. It has arms, legs, a heart, a brain, a spine.. every thing. Somehow, I don't entirely disagree. Come to think of it,.. it is pretty cool. Without the brain, the heart and the rest are no good. If the CNS is not co-ordinating everything, what good is the blood that's in the arteries and the veins.. that reach out to every single part of our body? What good are the nerve endings that pick up and transport signals? Basically, without one, the rest are just organs with immense potential but rendered useless.
  It takes a LOT of effort to put together something like this, and then, more importantly, maintain it and run it! To be a part of the brain, the heart, spine, blood, arteries, veins, limbs, eyes, etc... is like being the omnipresent creator of Earth! In a word, it's whacko! And somehow, it has to be made possible. Not because people have proved that organizations can be run. But because no one has proved what you want to prove. And because it's up to you, because it's important to you, YOU.. will create, will mould, will nurture, and grow with.. and metamorphose into WE.

In our effort to change from I & ME to US & WE, Wild On Wheels... will now be training volunteers, launching a range of products that will not only be innovative and durable, but will earn revenue for those tribes and locals that are not only stakeholders of, but the true vigilant protectors of our natural habitats... the sale of these products, will make it possible for under-privileged children as well as urban kids to have access to field experience, at a very early age, hence influencing wise decisions in the future from our coming generations.. in a move to life sustainably.
   We currently have T-shirts & mugs and calendars for sale... Anyone interested in purchasing any of the above, can leave a comment here, or revert back to us on: http://www.facebook.com/?sk=2361831622#!/group.php?gid=358173849880

Thank you :)
-Apoorva.

Thank You for UnTame

So this was our first EVER official event! And man, did it test every square millimetre of our nerves! 


  UnTame April 2010 - the first day was a runaway hit thanks to it being a Sunday. Day 2 and 3 were moderate as regards fund raising but one consistent achievement over all 3 days was interaction and networking. 
  
  Seeing a team of volunteers talking to people, interacting them, helping them, guiding them, gives a sense of warmth about having come 0.34% closer to the set goal. :) 
  A huge thank you , first up, to :
- Arjun Srivathsa & Rohan Chakravarthy - you guys are an AMAZING source of strength especially during the last minute madness that surrounds all events. Thank you for making things so much easier to deal with and giving me some breathing space. Love.
- OrangeNet Gang - one mad group of people who just merged in like they were always part of Wild On Wheels... :) Love their spirit! Loved the fact that we could work together the way we did. and the fact that this, is not a one time association! :) Thank you Shakir, Sameer, Humaid, Abrar, Zuaib and everyone else! :)
- Rahul, Amey, Devashri, Paroma, Jheel, Priya, Smayukhta, Disha, Akshay, Hans, Tanay, Manish & Aditya  for taking the work seriously and giving it your best shot. HUGELY appreciate your effort and help. Thank you for being part of this team. Thank you for making the night of the 24th less terrifying than it would have been otherwise.
- Chaitrali, Arijit, & Ravi - for trying. Always felt it's important to appreciate even those who try. So here I am, thanking you for trying to be there, for trying to be of help. :) Hope you can be around next time :)


And last, and MOST importantly :
 - To everyone who attended the event. Without you, we'd have had a gallery full of rare exclusive images from India's wilderness with no one to appreciate them! Thank you for coming out in FULL support and participating so actively, so cheerfully! We truly appreciate your presence and are very grateful for your comments, suggestions, and for the fact that you stood by us precisely when we needed the pillars. :) Thank you SO much :) We hope to see you next time!


- To ALL the photographers who contributed their brilliant images for the event! We have NO clue how to thank you. So we'll try various methods! :) Thank you especially to Sagar Gosavi and Saurabh Desai for being present on the very day and for being an immense source of inspiration. 


- To Sarang Mahajan and Mr.Alok for being kind enough to sponsor our t-shirts, which, by the way, are a hit with the public! :)


- To Mr.Joel Paul for sparing us your precious time and inaugurating our beloved event. For the amount of interest you took in the event and for your comments! Thank you Sir.


- To Kedar Bhide for being an exceptional friend who criticized on my face and who made it a point to scrutinize everything for our benefit. 


- To ALL those friends who have stood by our ventures, endeavours, and our organization through the roughest of circumstances. Without you, life would just be another mess. With you, it's a mess worth living and enjoying. Thank you for pledging your support from wherever you are, because, like Ive always said, it really does matter. Thank you Pushkar Pandit, Natasha Ballal, Aneesh Kamat, Avanti Mulay, Abhijeet Gandhi, Vinod Bartakke, Kainaaz, Farrah, Priyadarshini, Prashun Pawar, Mom, Paa, and the rest of you who know you played a part in making UnTame what it is, in making Wild On Wheels... what it is! :)


- To Dhruvjyoti Basu, Late Mr.John Thorbjarnarson, Late Mr.Steve Irwin, and every single Croc biologist who has taken the efforts to inspire a younger generation. Basu uncle - :) will always value our conversations. end up learning a LOT from them. You're a gem. And for the latter two - nothing I say or write will ever be enough to express what I feel about you. Love.


--- To everyone who took the trouble of reading this!! :) 

UnTame in the DNA Article

Page 3 of AfterHrs Pune
http://epaper.dnaindia.com/epapermain.aspx?queryed=40&username=&useremailid=&parenteditioncode=40&eddate=4/20/2010

WOW in Media Part 2

JagranCityPlus / Pune(Deccan)

Stop polluting Mutha riverConsidering the rate by which the river is getting polluted, Wild on Wheels demands a check on river pollution. With increasing horizontal population growth, the water pollution of river Mutha is increasing day by day. Though water flowing from original source is less polluted the moment it enters city limits, the pollution level starts increasing to a greater extent. Same is with water flowing from Deccan area. To add more to this, garbage bins kept on the river bridge are broken, or are over flowing resulting in more water pollution.There is need to create awareness to stop polluting river and replace broken and overflowing bins. The history of water pollution goes with the history of man itself when he first arrived on this planet. Growing civilisation, large settlements gave rise to the problem of water pollution. In earlier times, sewage was discharged untreated in the river. It was later realised that sewage must be treated before its discharge into water bodies to check pollution. Presently, the major problem is the Nirmalya (flowers offered to God). Though there is need of decomposition of these flowers most of devotees prefer to add this Nirmalya in flowing water. To stop this, many environmental NGO step forward to save this. PMC has even put up special Nirmalya bins on the bridges to prevent people from polluting river. Environmental science student Chaitrali Ranade said, "I can understand that people cannot throw Nirmalya on garbage bins but they can definitely throw in special Kalash shaped bins kept at bridge. Also most of times the garbage is collected in plastic bag and complete bag is tied or packed and thrown in bin. This really does not solve the problem. Plastic takes lot of time for decomposition. I would like to request that you can carry Nirmalya as it is dry, put it in Nirmalya bin and take your plastic bag back." Another major problem is that the Nirmalya bins placed by PMC are either broken or absent resulting in major pollution. Each Puneite has his own Nirmalya and it is surely major concern for pollution. This awareness is seen during festive period most of the times. PMC garbage department either fails to collect the garbage and this overflow starts dropping into water because of the winds. Regular Nirmalya collection is need of hour to prevent water pollution to some extend as water has physio-chemical, biological, toxic and pathogenical effects of pollution. Another nature lover Ameya Pangarkar said, "We add plastic bags and other materials to flowing water knowingly or unknowingly. But this actually affects the very badly to animals or birds. While drinking water they also swallow plastics. There are many cases where we find animals having plastic in their stomach. This is really ridiculous! In spite of regular awareness programmes, the mentality of people is not changing. It's high time and we need to show serious concern for this issue. Also PMC should support by making collection time to time. We are actually affecting our eco-system." When Ghole road ward officer Vijay Landge was contacted he said, "I agree water pollution is major issue. I have already issued instructions to my team to work on this. We will see that Nirmalya bins are cleaned on a regular basis and broken bins will be immediately replaced. I also urge people to put the Nirmalya in the special Kalash kept for this. People should help PMC to tackle the problem of water pollution. —Prachee Kulkarn

WOW in the Media Part 1

JagranCityPlus / Pune(Deccan)

Activists clean up river, seek serious attention towards issueThe organization, Wild On Wheels had arranged for a River Bank Clean Up event at Deccan on March 14. This event was organised to symbolise the start of fund-raiser. This organisation wishes to address the need for serious concern towards the environment. The initiator of this movement Apoorva Joshi said, "We are students of Environmental Science and Biotechnology from FC College. We aim at working on wildlife documentation and wildlife protection. We have started on small note but it was really surprising that in span of two hours, we collected 21 bags of garbage. People should think seriously about this." Adding further her friend Chaitrali Ranade said, "We had established this NGO Wild On Wheels two years ago. We have collected garbage from the banks of river which included plastic, medical waste, vegetables waste, worn out clothes, flowers and garlands. Actually we have garbage bin on Bhide Bridge but it is overflowing and PMC does not even bother to clean up resulting in water pollution. We had contacted Ghole Road ward office for this and they had supported us." Amit Ambedkar of Hingewadi-based Balson Industries sponsored the bio-degradable bags for collection of garbage. In noble gesture, a young boy Zakir Hussain came up with gloves to support this initiative. Around 20 of them participated in it. Also some passersby who saw this movement joined the group wholeheartedly. Apart from this, members also urged the people not to throw paper and plastic in river. Apoorva said, "Any kind of bio-degradable matter that is dumped into water bodies decays due to the action of micro-organisms present in the water. These organisms require oxygen for these processes to occur. However, when excess of organic matter is dumped in the water bodies, the rate of degradation decreases and most of the available oxygen is used by the microbes to decay the dumped waste. When so much oxygen is used by microbes, the other organisms in the water body, like fish, or aquatic plants and insects, get less oxygen for their survival. Hence, the biological oxygen demand of that water body increases. When the demand reaches a certain level, the water is unhealthy. And only anaerobic organisms which do not require oxygen can survive in such water. This changed basic chemistry and biology of the water body affecting all living organisms that depend on this water." Those interested can contact on wildonwheelspune@gmail.com.

Invitation to Untame

You are ALL cordially invited to be with us on these very special days! Do come, to attend, help, volunteer, and make it a grand success! :)

Info for Photographers Contributing to UNTAME

 TABLE OF RETURNS for the Photographers Contributing:

Selling Price	% of Return	Amount returned
500 – 1000	10%	50 – 100
1001 - 2000	12.5%	125 - 250
2001 - 3000	20%	300 - 450
Above 3000		30%  -

UnTame UNLEASHED!

Wildlife Photography Exhibit & Sale

Event Introduction

WILD  ON  WHEELS…

PRESENTS

Come April and Pune will witness a flurry of Indian wilderness. Wild On Wheels… brings to you, in association with OrangeNet, 
“UNTAME”.

India’s wildlife is famous the world over for its sheer variety. While the Western Ghats are dotted with stretches of rainforests, the north-western part of India is sprinkled with desert sand even as the North is frozen in sheets of snow. From the fertile, marshy field of the Gangetic plains & the mangroves of the Sunderbans to the coasts & the islands, India is loaded with wilderness.

“UNTAME” presents this wilderness for you from all over our country. Photographs taken by people with spectacular perspectives are up at “UNTAME” for you to come and admire as well as purchase.

“UNTAME” is an event organized as part of a fund raiser to help an NGO with wildlife conservation. ‘Wild On Wheels…’ works with wildlife, environmental education in rural & urban areas, environmental law & policy as well as domestic animal rescue and basic first aid training for animal rescue.

 The organization has been working on a local as well as national scale on a range of different issues ranging from river pollution to the ecology of Tigers and Gharials and the communities around their habitats.

“UNTAME” is a charity event where in exquisite photographs depicting Indian wildlife and landscapes will be put up for exhibition and sale. Proceeds from the sales will go partly to the photographers who have generously agreed to contribute with their prized images while the rest of the proceeds will be invested in conservation work by ‘Wild On Wheels…’ in one of their species-habitat based field projects.

Keeping in mind that 50% of India’s population is the youth, images will be priced at a variety of ranges affordable to all and sundry from several walks of life.

Our aim is to spread awareness and ultimately, conserve wildlife. We do not believe that it is only the elite class that needs to be aware. And hence, our effort to reach out to every single person, irrespective of his/her background.

We cordially invite you to grace our event with your presence.

Because you matter.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

VENUE:

YASHWANTRAO CHAVHAN Art gallery, kothrud, pune

DATES:

25^th, 26^th and 27^th of April, 2010.

TIME:   

10am to 8pm on all 3 days.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Why Should I Clean Up Someone Else's Mess?

Why should I clean up someone else's mess?

Because when I walk along the Chambal, I see crystal clear blue waters. The minute I reach the Yamuna at Etawah, I see BLACK. The water, is BLACK. Think. Why? People.They built houses, farms, factories, industries, all along the bank. They didn't know what to do with the amount of crap they generated, that they converted the Yamuna into a dumping ground. 41,000 types of bacteria in the water and growing steadily. Only one type of fish - the Tilapia exists today in that water. How? It's originally from Africa. Exotic and invasive. Can tolerate toxins. Can multiply and thrive in them too. But we don't stop at anything do we?
   
We hunt this fish, we eat it. What happens? We die of poisoning. Toxins get accumulated in our body n those of our next generations too. History is full of instances of heavy metal and water pollution cases which have gone out of hand. Then WE complain that we are dying. 
  
So wait... basically, WE dump, WE fish, WE die and then WE complain.. Honestly, this is precisely why I once said mankind has got to be the stupidest race on the face of the planet!


 And so why SHOULD I clean up someone else's mess? Because it hurts. To see the nature I love in the situation it is in today. To see animals dying of plastic choking their wind pipes. To see man kind become more and more insensitive to its actions and their consequences. To know that people dont even understand that what they do affects scores of other life forms including other humans, and not just them!   
   
Because everyday when you go to work, yuo cross a bridge, you look down, at the sheer mess you have helped create, and everyday, you ignore it and drive by... Why? Because there are people like us who staple their noses, wear gloves, step into that load of crap and clean it up. Not because we're jobless. Not because we need publicity. But because we honestly care. Not about you. About ourselves and about OUR home. 
   
When I see the Yamuna, I have the most disgusting sinking feeling in my heart when I imagine the Chambal going the same way! I dont want that to happen. You may not even care about it, like you dont care about your own life. But I do. And if I can start small, locally, I will. I am. With or without the help, I am always going to do just this. whether anyone likes it or not. 


Anyone interested in helping out, can contact wildonwheelspune@gmail.com 
Thank you.