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VISITING A VILLAGE
For years, eco-tours to wildlife sanctuaries and national parks have been looked upon as the best options for school chidren to learn more about nature and environment. It is perhaps time to get off the beaten track. How about visiting a village? A village grows crops, manages resources like water, forest and commonlands. The village economy and the society is a product of the movement of biomass in the form of natural resources. As villages are still the places where humans draw livelihoods and interact directly with natural resources, they are the best ground for children to understand environment and its relationship with humans. Where’s the village? But how does one go about it — walk into one! Do you want to do that? You would be able to locate one just as you go out of the city into the countryside. Do a little bit of research on villages in your area and identify a few. 
Some villages may be popular just because they use machinery like tractors and tubewells, and their agricultural productivity is high. But such a village may not neccessarily be able to provide as rich an experience as a village implementing and sustaining traditional methods of natural resource management. Even if it does not have as high agricultural productivity.Sounds confusing? Take the simple rule, villages managing natural resources like forest or the local water spring may provide the students deeper insight into human beings’ relationship with environment. As the livelihoods of the people are dependent on the natural resources. There are also some villages, which are now on the national map due to their outstanding work in natural resource management. If you want to visit one — Check box ‘Gobar Scope’. But remember, identifying a village nearby means one spends more time at the village than in the journey. The logistics It would be a good idea to actually identify an NGO or organisation working in the village, which can provide you logistical support in conducting the trip like place to stay, food arrangement. The teachers or tour coordinators should ideally visit the village once beforehand to familiarise themselves with the place before taking the entire group. The tour coordinators can also meet the village headman and other people in order to take them in confidence. Once in the village, what do you do? An alert and curious mind is the best tour guide. Just keep your eyes and ears open and keep probing. From the environmental perspective, some key areas of exploration can be: WATER This as an element can help you understand a lot about how the village operates — because everyone needs it. Try and do the following activities and find answers to a few of these questions and think of more:  Find out the source of water for the village — Is it tap/handpump? Is it a well or something similar? If it is a natural water body, visit the water source. What condition is it in? Who is responsible for ferrying water from it?Probe about the different ways this water is put to use-drinking, irrigation and others.
Find out how water is a part of the village culture. Does it have adages or songs related to water and water bodies?As you delve in, you will be surprised to see the role played by water in the social and cultural life of the village folks. LAND Find out who owns the largest plot of land in the village and whether all the people have equal land holdings or not. Is there any common village land or waste land? Who owns the forests? Taking stock of the kinds of trees and plants in the village can be an interesting exercise. It would be worthwhile to take some village children/youth along, who can tell one about the uses of various plants and trees. Their knowledge of biodiversity may surprise you.Check out the crops grown by the villagers. Do they use imported seeds or use local seeds? Probe the use of pesticides and fertilisers in the village. What was used before pesticides came into use?ENERGY Explore the sources of energy for the village. What material is used to cook- wood, cow pats? Try and light a fire in a kitchen — you will discover it is not easy.When did the village get electrified? Talk to some village elders to hear interesting stories about the reactions to the first light bulb or the pump to pull water.Are bullocks used for transportation or tilling? Or is it tractors? Ask about the pros and cons of both.WASTE The waste cycle of a village may come as a surprise. Find out what kinds of waste is generated in the village household and what do they do with it?What happens to the agricultural waste like leftovers on the paddy fields? Is there any waste generated from the cattleshed?How does the village reuse or recycle the waste generated by it?Do they have a dustbin or a composting unit? Where does the plastic go, if used?Does the village provide any waste lessons for us ‘cityzens’? The learnings It would be a good idea to divide students into groups and let them explore the village. The groups can later get together and share information among themselves. Let each group present their findings and experience while collecting information. Activities coupled with real life experience of spending time in the village can make an exciting as well as informative eco-tour. Gobar Times invites readers to share and seek information about Green Schools at eeu@cseindia.org or write to Environment Education Unit Centre for Science and Environment 41, Tughlakabad Institutional Area, New Delhi-110062 or e-mail: eeu@cseindia.org
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