Good educators have shaped our lives in ways we carry with us every day. Since childhood, we have been fortunate to be lifted up by educators who gave us encouragement, insights, and opportunities to find our voice. You, too, can likely think of educators and do-gooders who opened new possibilities for you and for society. We imagine five such educators in every district in India, ready to empower students to face the climate and ecological crisis.
Today, 9.5 million teachers and 260 million students walk through India’s 1.5 million schools. Yet most students complete formal schooling with little understanding of the land they live on or the ecosystems that sustain life. Environmental stewardship is often missing from education. We believe that to change this, we must change how we nurture educators themselves.
So, we have been guided by three questions since 2018:
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What does it mean to educate an educator?
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What does it mean to educate for place—the land, oceans, and life around us—in today’s world?
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Why should people meet?
From hosting our first cohort meeting in a humble tea shop in 2018 to gathering by the Sharavathi River for an 8-day residency with the fourth cohort, our journey has been uncertain but deeply rewarding.
In the life of the canopy, the calm of the river, and the music of the birds, a new generation of educators found their beginning. Eighteen Earth Education Fellows, the YouCAN team and nine incredible practitioners came together with one purpose: to strengthen an education movement that reconnects learning with nature and place. We moved from narrating personal stories to building a collective one, shifting from “Me” to “Us.”
This publication captures the spirit of adventure, deep listening, and co-creating a new way forward in education.
We have come to believe that movement building is only possible because of people and
organisations that are asking big questions in their own fields and who choose to stand for a larger cause. We are deeply grateful to each of them.
No student should lack opportunities to develop wonder for our Planet’s health, explore climate
change in their own neighbourhoods, and protect the ecosystems we call home. Together, we can reimagine education for a healthy planet.
Having been introduced to Grove today, we look forward to sharing and learning from the community.
Rachita Sinha and K. Ramnath Chandrasekhar
Founders, Youth Conservation Action Network (YouCAN)
Earth Educators Fellowship Residency 2024-25.pdf (8.5 MB)