Star Gazing

A thing of beauty is a joy forever!

This phrase holds more meaning to it than what one reads on the surface. Beauty is a term replete with paradox. While the mind appreciates beauty as it reads it, its vision and interpretation is limitless. The paradox lies in the different interpretations that any object can create in the mind of a human. While an object can arouse specific emotions in one mind; completely different and sometimes opposite emotions can be created in another.

Star gazing brings me joy and something I can rely on for quick remedies to bouts of sadness of dampening emotions. To watch these heavenly bodies hundreds and thousands of light years away as tiny specks in space can have a calming effect on the mind. Life and all its worries seem insignificant in comparison to the magnitude of these incredible dots in space. The mystery, wonder and beauty they hold brings joy to my heart.

A thing of beauty does bring joy but it also leaves me pondering over a lot of things as I get back to my normal life. It’s like being transported to a completely new world that is filled with magic and all things mysterious but if not for its nature of transience, our unimportant lives would have been worth living in this infinite space.

So no matter what pleases your heart, capture it and savor it forever.

Blog Action Day 2009

One day, One issue. Thousands of Voices! Join the Blog Action Day 2009, register your blog and talk about Climate Change.

You can talk about technology or music, art or games … Climate Change is the underlying theme, so write about it. Raise your voice. Create a social movement on the web.

Peace!

a bloggers block

If a writer’s block can exist then surely a blogger’s block should make its entry into the human dictionary. Now I am afraid I do not have anything to say on this post and I am afraid I am developing symptoms of amnesia. Why can’t we have silent posts? blog posts that don’t read anything but still say a lot about the blogger’s mind? That’s an idea to ponder on eh? That’s my complaint on blogs, they are too committed to seeking an audience, they are too in love with strangers and way too cocky about themselves. Now I couldn’t have cared much if me blog hit counter struggles to go beyond single digits and neither do I care about overflowing comments coz all I need is a calm space to write something down or even publish sans content. Is it so difficult? Or would it be that easy?

What remains ironic is although I complain, I conform! And this is a rather disturbing thing to acknowledge and relentlessly observe in everyday life that while one states their complaints openly, one may or may not realize that such singular and isolated calls still remain a part of a highly constricted, rule based system that accepts these complaints as normal aberrations. So if I ought to follow the norm, then I clearly have to break a few rules. Going by a sequence of logic that has been passed onto me by my parents; once a complaint is lodged on a certain entity for an assumed offense, a stipulated body with adequate mental faculty and designated authority looks into the matter and passes a judgment.

In this very simple sequence is a major flaw that debilitates the capacity of man to think and act according to his will and choice (unfortunately, both his will and choice are also being manifested by a creative system of rules in today’s time) For an ailment of somebody else’s causing, I am to suffer and worse, witness others who are proven gullible and paralyzed to stand up against! These rules I speak of are not abstract and are certainly not derived from arcane sources, but would be clearly visible to us if we only choose to see them. So the obvious question is what does one do when faced by a question, the answer to which remains in contradicting the norm and disobeying the protocol? Well, what can one do when faced by a force that is a million times stronger than his? The answer would simply be to face it with an equal number of opposite voices and forces. A critical mass of opinions that not just questions the rules but is in a position to influence more people and tilt the balance to the other end.

My blogger’s block remains and will remain until I see a critical mass of people on the streets who will stand up against things that control the society without us not even knowing it. So I clearly refuse to complain in mute and I shall turn vociferous in words and action and take with me another million.

Peace!

….

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Urban Habitats Forum Fellow Program-Apply now

www.iycn.in

ABOUT THE PROGRAMME

The Urban Habitats Forum Fellows Program is designed to provide talented students and young professionals between the ages of 18 and 35 with an interest in urban issues with financial sponsorship covering their delegate fees to attend the 1st Habitat Summit.

Young professionals include but are not limited to – journalists, development professionals, policy makers and social entrepreneurs. We also strongly encourage students from the liberal arts, management, engineering and IT related fields. This sponsorship will be provided through the nomination and pairing of these applicants with interested organisations, donors and benefactors.

THE PROCESS

Applicants are required to complete the application form (which includes a personal bio, 4 short questions and a most recently updated CV) at www.iycn.in. The application can be submitted either online or via email to fellows@mirabilisadvisory.com. Dead line for submitting applications is 31st August 2009.

The selection committee will review all completed applications and select 300 Fellows for the 1st Habitat Summit, 2009 programme. Selected candidates will be notified on or before the 5th of September and will be awarded financial sponsorship covering the delegate fees to attend the 1st Habitat Summit.

There are no restrictions on becoming a Fellow, except that nominees must be between 18 and 35 years of age. Students and young professionals from all backgrounds can apply to the Fellows Programme. Young professionals include but are not limited to – journalists, development professionals, policy makers and social entrepreneurs. We also strongly encourage students from the liberal arts, management, engineering and IT related fields.

A quote

Where constraint breaks people, and mediation makes fools of them, the seduction of power is what makes them love their oppression. Because of it, people give up their real riches for a cause that mutilates them; for an appearance that reifies them; for roles that wrest them from authentic life; for a time whose passage defines and confines them – Raoul Vaneigem, The Revolution of Everyday Life

From greenanarchy.com

peace!

South Asian Youth Summit on Climate Change ‘09

Dear Friends,

India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and many other South Asian Countries will take part in the biggest South Asian Youth Summit on Climate Change. Scheduled from the 3rd to the 6th of September in Kathmandu, Nepal, the summit will try to bind the aspirations and visions of youth from the south asian countries and come out with a single voice.

On the road to Copenhagen, this summit will be important in building ties and relationships amongst the youth of the countries that are most vulnerable to climate change impacts. These relationships will go beyond Copenhagen and the collective action is only set to grow.

For more information on the objectives, vision and other important details, please visit http://ping.fm/EPHjU

The summit is now accepting applications from across South Asia and only a select few can make it from India. So if you feel for the need for immediate action on this issue, make your voice heard, Apply Now.

Please visit http://ping.fm/3K26f for more information and also the registration form. The deadline is 10th August and all the applications need to reach saysocc@gmail.com.

For any queries please contact me at chaitanyakumar@iycn.in or drop in a mail at saysocc@gmail.com.

peace!

Badlaav ‘09: Be the Change

BADLAAV’09 LIVE ON THE INTERNET at http://ping.fm/I2rtT

What?

Badlav 2009: Be the Change! is a week-long youth summit on climate change to be held in the nation’s capital, Delhi. We aim to have hundreds of young people come from across the country to:
Be trained on skills of organizing, running projects, lobbying, direct action, presentations, and facilitation.
Participate in eye opening discussions of equity, theories of change, water, energy, agriculture etc.
To enjoy concerts, cultural performances, film festivals and many other opportunities to have fun and learn!

When?

July 18th to July 23rd

Who?

Being organised by Indian Youth Climate Network (IYCN) for you and hundreds of youth from across India.

Where?

American Embassy School, Chanakyapuri, Delhi

Why?

Have you ever looked at the dirty dying rivers, floods, breathed in the pollution, see people on the streets living with diseases and in poverty, and just wondered – how can we change this? Do we wish to witness incidences like Cyclone Aila in West Bangal more frequently? Are we ready to handle the increased number of climate refugees? Our basic requirement like food and shelter is at risk. Have you ever thought that our politicians are corrupt, our businesses are corrupt, our system is corrupt and that it is too hard to make a change? Have you ever thought why doesn’t anyone care about our country, our planet, our future?
Think again.

Yes there is corruption. Yes there is pollution, poverty and disease. Yes it may seem like the people around us don’t care – but what about you? Have you tried stopping the corruption, pollution, poverty and disease? Have you stood up and told the world that you care about your country, planet and future? Even if no one around you seems to be doing the right thing – remember you can. In the words of Gandhiji “Be the Change you want to see in the world”. Every action counts and your contribution can certainly make a difference.
At the end of this year in Copenhagen an international treaty will be signed, committing the world to trying to stop dangerous climate change at the UN climate negotiations. However a lot of the world holds little hope that it will be a good treaty that will protect our future. The interest of the Indian people and majority of the developing world are not being listened to.

What do we do? Do we sit back and let the countries of the world sign away our future stability?

No. We don’t. We take action.

cinema cauldron: instinct

There are a lot of movies out there which fall under the celebrated category of “underrated” Hollywood flicks and Instinct is supposedly one such movie. Directed by John Turteltaub, the man behind the national treasure movies, Instinct stars Anthon Hopkins and Cuba Gooding Jr. Released in 1999, this movie didn’t rake in much at the box office and understandably so, did little to move the critics. I just watched the movie for the 2nd time and felt a need to describe the sense of watching a classic example of an underrated movie.

What makes this movie rank mediocre amongst audiences is clearly the story line. A normal human being (Anthony Hopkins) is obsessed with his study of apes and eventually becomes a part of their herd. He is brought back within human confines but ends up in a detention center for the mentally disabled. A rookie psychiatrist is quickly drawn into this ape man and is determined to reach through to him and set him free. Now the story seems out of a run-of-the-mill fiction factory, but what makes me watch it is the clichéd dialogue that strangely seems to work for me.

The undertones of the story that try hard to tip the surface were clearly visible as I begin to dig deep and forget the technical aspects of movie making. The direction is quite second-rate but the intent and the broader subjects that the story hinges on is an appealing aspect of the film. So by now one can unearth the reason for an underrated movie’s existence; it is simply because of a single aspect of the movie that’s overpowering the rest. While in most cases it is the underlying theme of a story (like in instinct), it can vary from camera work to theme tracks where they play a dominant role than the rest in a movie.

Another important observation which argues from the converse side of things is the success of cerebral movies like say a Fountain or a Donnie Darko. These movies, though possessing undertones of lateral meanings, are successful amidst fans and critics because they are deeply rooted in their themes. Any sort of deviation from the theme could have been disastrous for such movies. Instinct on the other hand failed because of this very deviation where in an attempt to reprieve his audiences from a profound story, the director mellowed the characterization with external elements (actors).

Now to refute my own argument and introducing another side of the coin, this is the audience itself, the ultimate judge! Now one ought to clearly understand that a vast audience with huge diversity is not the right judge of a movie and neither is a small group of critics. As cinema assumes different meanings in people’s life’s, the success or failure is highly subjective amongst the masses and only breaks that norm amidst fan boys and redundant movie buffs. And hence the creation of a language that introduces the terms “underrated”, “overrated” and ”gay” et al.

Finally to end on a rather interesting note, I believe that directors making intelligent cinema have the capacity to influence their viewers and change them. While instinct with all the possibility failed in doing so, there are movies out there that are meant to make a difference. The name Micheal Gondry might not seem right to be placed under such a category as change makers, but his innovative direction and his depiction of emotions with sweet surrealism is sure to make a generation of his viewers smart, creative and sensitive. Check out Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless mind, Human Nature, Adaptation all written by Charlie Kaufman.

Peace!

IYCN: Agents of Change

Calling all Climate Crusaders!

www.iycn.in

IYCN’s Agents of Change Program (AoC) is now accepting 2nd round of applications to part of the ‘Agents of Change’ as the Asian subcontinent youth delegation, for the fifteenth session of the Conference of the Parties to the Climate Change Convention and the fifth Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (COP15 and COP/MOP5), which will be held in Copenhagen, Denmark, from December 7-18, 2009.Please find application below. The deadline is 10th July’09.

Visit www.iycn.in for the Application Form

The IYCN Agents of Change program takes the IYCN movement from the grass roots to the international arena. We are proud to be partnering with a reputed organization such as the Centre for Environment Education on this project along with the UNEP’s South Asian Youth Environmental Network. This year, we plan to storm COP15, as an Asian Youth Sub-Continent Delegation with representatives from India, Srilanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan & Burma. We want youth from our neighboring countries, from rural and urban India to be represented at this crucial global forum, where our climate future is decided.

The Agents of Change Program will include both young students and professionals, involved in massive lobbying , campaigning and direct action, at regional and national levels, to influence the political decisions and negotiations leading up to Copenhagen. Delegates will also be required to attend the Indian Youth Summit on Climate Change in July, 2009.

With the single-minded pursuit of DOING SOMETHING CONCRETE and FAST, the voices of the ‘700 million strong youth’ are being sought to build a global consensus.

COP15 will determine the future of international policy on climate change, and youth must make their voices heard. Between now and December, youth from across the globe will come together to bring a sense of urgency and rationality to the meeting. The future of international action to prevent runaway climate change is up for debate. If the UNFCCC cannot respond to the urgent conclusions contained in the IPCCC report, the ability of the international mechanism to respond to global challenges may become irrelevant.

Agents of Change is just the beginning, where the youth will help to evolve a pro-active approach to the multitude of issues that Climate Change raises. Applying academics and grit to effect climate solutions, the Agents of Change envision themselves as the future climate leaders who shall bring about a favorable change, and a better planet for tomorrow.

All the best & hope to see you with us!

Ruchi Jain
Agents of Change Coordinator
Mumbai,
Indian Youth Climate Network
e: agents@iycn.in, ruchijain@iycn.in
m: 9969085224
9322819214
www.iycn.in