Regaining Paradise: towards a fossil fuel free society

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Regaining Paradise

towards a fossil fuel free society

T. Vijayendra

Publishing Collective

Cerana Foundation Sangatya Sahitya Bhandar Permanent Green

Hyderabad Platform Sahitya Chayana Bal Sanskriti Kendra Shishu Milap

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REGAINING PARADISE towards a fossil fuel free societyAuthor: T. Vijayendra

Year: 2009

Price: Rs. 20.00Co!ies: 2000

" Co!y #e$t: All Rights Reversed

Publishing Collective

Cerana %oundation and &yderabad Plat$or'

( 0) &igh Rise A!art'ents) #o*er Tan+ ,und Road)&yderabad -00 00

/angatya /ahitya ,handar

1 P) 3ayadurga Co'!ound) Te'!le Road) 4annar!ady)

5du!i - 06) 4arnata+a

Per'anent 7reen) an i'!rint o$ 8anchi Pusta+a'

Co assan)

2161;-0) /treet <o. ) Tarna+a)

/ecunderabad -00 0

/ahitya Chayana

) /aras*ati Ca'!) R. 4. Pura') /ector 6) ="!!osite 3<5 "ld Ca'!us>

<e* (elhi 0 022

,al /ans+riti 4endra

Co V&AP) /C% ) /ector 01() Chandigarh 0 0

/hishu 8ila!) /rihari A!art'ents) ,ehind ?@!ress &otel) Al+a!uri) ,aroda 690 00

Cover: /till $ro' 4urosa*as $il') BVillage o$ the ater'ills.

Cover Design: 8. 5!endar. Cell: 9 900; ;;96-

Printers: (eccan Press) ADa'abad) &yderabad1-00 020 A. P. Endia

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C"<T?<T/

Pre$ace -

Prologue

PART E: T&? PARTY E/ "V?R

1. ol$ at the (oor

2. hat about Alternative %or's o$ ?nergyF

PART EE: &?R? (" ? A<T T" 7"F

3. The Vision $or a %ossil %uel %ree /ociety 60

;. <egative ?ntro!y and /ustainability 6

5. Cuba *ithout Es's ;-

PART EEE: &AT T&?< /&"5#( ? ("F

. The %ederal Re!ublic o$ Endia --

7. Regional Enitiative

8. Trade 5nion Enitiatives

9. 5rban Enitiatives -

10. Rural Enitiatives 0

11. hat can E doF ;

APP?<(EC?/

. The Gua+er 8ethod

2. A Village o$ the ater'ills 9

R?%?R?<C?/ A<( R?/"5RC?/ 92

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PR?%AC?

The only possible paradise that we know for real is planet Earth. Human species started

the process of losing it by exploiting his own kind and exploiting nature. The former

being conspicuous, met with dissent from time to time. The accumulated scars of thelatter began to appear only in the last couple of centuries. Presently, the extent and

intensity of the phenomenon is such that it now endangers all life on Earth.

This book is about regaining this paradise. Hence it is about ending exploitation of man

by man and exploitation of nature by man. The two being inseparable, neither can be

achieved in isolation.

This book is about humility. It is about humility to accept we are part of all forms that

belong here; to accept coexistence; to accept that science can assist us to live in harmony

with nature, accepting and adapting to her ways.

This book is about struggle. It is about struggles to stop the exploitation of man and of

nature.

And finally this book is about rebuilding communities. Being a social species, our

survival is dependent on cooperation. This is possible only when there is individual

freedom and mutual respect.

There is no co!y right on this little boo+. Et is co!y le$t. You are *elco'e to use it in any*ay you li+e.

En *riting this boo+ E have received hel!) encourage'ent and love $ro' innu'erable$riends. Et is !erha!s not !ossible to than+ the' all and i$ so'e na'es are le$t out it isunintentional.

To begin *ith E 'ust than+ /agar (hara o$ the &yderabad Plat$or'. Et is his +no*ledgeand constant concern on these issues that has ins!ired 'e to *rite this boo+. 5sha /rira')*ho 'anaged the $inances $or the boo+) has been a constant source o$ su!!ort and a goodcritiHue o$ everything E do. <yla Coelho has sho*n enor'ous !atience and a sense o$hu'our in 'a+ing the te@t readable *ith her editing s+ills. /uresh 4osaraju has ta+en theentire res!onsibility o$ !ublishing including the cover design.

E have received valuable co''ents and $eedbac+ $ro': Al+a /araogi) Arun ,idani),inaya+ /en) Elina /en) V. 3anardan) 3as*een 3airath) #ina 4rishnan) 8adhu /arin)8eher ?ngineer) 8ohan 8ani) <agaraj Adve) Prata! Antony) Priti Anand) 4. /ahadevan)/anjeev 7hotge) /atya) /hree+u'ar) /ou'ya (utta) /uyodh Rao) 5sha Rao) Vasant,a*a) Ven+at and Vinod Raina.

Ti'ir ,asu o$ Frontier) 4ol+ata) /. /rivnasan o$ Medico Friends Circle and 8.R.

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Rajago!alan o$ 7andhigra' have !ublished so'e o$ the !a!ers that have ended u! ascha!ters in this boo+.

The boo+ has been co1!ublished by a !ublishing collective o$ seven organisations *ho in

their goodness have ta+en the botherso'e business o$ raising $unds and boo+ distributiono$$ 'y hands. E ac+no*ledge their +indness *ith all hu'ility.

8ajor !art o$ the *or+ on the boo+ *as done at Cerana %oundaton) &yderabad. E a'grate$ul $or the hel! and su!!ort received $ro' /agar) Radhi+a and <avaneetha. hile*or+ing on this boo+) in its $inal stages) E have stayed at an organic $ar' collective on the$oothills o$ the estern 7hats. E a' grate$ul to the 'e'bers o$ the co''une 1 8anna)8ilan) /vetlana) /andhya) Ranjana) ,inu) /ahadevan) Vinay and /hree+u'ar $or thesu!!ort and love they have given 'e.

E than+ the' all.

T. Vijayendra <ove'ber ) 2009

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<e* ?cological 5nderstandings

Circumstance the age of e!uberance is o"er# population has already o"ershot carryingcapacity# and prodigal Homo sapiens ha"e drawn down the world$s sa"ings deposits%

Conse&uence all forms of human organisation and beha"iour that are based on theassumption of limitlessness must change to forms that accord with finite limits%

illia' R. Catton

'"ershoot the ecological basis of re"olutionary change# ()*+

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E<TR"(5CTE"<

The *orld is going through a 'ajor crisis. 8any have called it the biggest crisis a$ter the929 de!ression. Several factors have come together to herald this crisis. First is

environment degradation that has now reached a crisis point in the shape of global

warming. Every one agrees that it is a very serious crisis. If carbon emissions continue atpresent levels, then the time will arrive when the tipping point will occur. That is,

reversals will not be possible, that global warming itself will create more global warming.

No one knows when such a point may be reached. Some say it has already occurred;

some give it 10, 20, 50 or 100 years. The second factor is peak oil, peak gas and peaking

of several mineral resources. Peaking means that after the particular point has been

reached, production will not rise, but will fall. The reason is that there is only a finite

quantity of these minerals and when half of it is taken out, the production starts falling.

Of ten because) the cost o$ e@tracting $ro' le$tover) lo*er grade) re'nant sources) is

'uch higher in ter's o$ energy and 'oney. The third is the economic crisis which began

in the U.S.A. with the housing crisis in September 2007 and got full blown in the

financial melt down of September 2008. Broadly, there is no disagreement on these facts.

The differences are in the response to these crises.

The res!onse o$ the govern'ent and the ruling class $ollo* a !articular trend. Pri'arilyall these crises are not considered together. ?ach is treated se!arately. The $inancial crisisis tac+led by a bail out +ind o$ res!onse. 7lobal *ar'ing is treated by internationalagree'ents o$ reducing e'issions. The res!onse to Pea+ oil and !ea+ gas is to o!t $orcoal and nuclear energy) su!!le'ented by alternatives li+e solar) *ind) bio $uel etc.

8ost !eo!le are a*are o$ the di$$erent as!ects o$ this crisis in a !iece'eal 'anner. Thus$or the econo'ic crisis !eo!le *ant job security. Peo!le ho!e that these internationalagree'ents *ill 'anage to tac+le global *ar'ing. hile 'any o!!ose coal and nuclearbased energy sources) they all ho!e that either alternatives li+e solar) *ind etc. *illha!!en or so'e ne* technological innovation *ill solve the entire !roble'.

This boo+ addresses these issues in a di$$erent 'anner. "ne cannot rule out the!ossibility that this a!!roach is *rongI that any o$ the above a!!roaches 'ay !rove rightIor that) the $uture being un!redictable) !roble's 'ay be addressed in an altogether ne*'anner.

All the sa'e) based on study and concern $or the $uture) this boo+ outlines a di$$erenta!!roach. %irst) in the o!inion o$ the author) this is the 'ost un!recedented crisis inhu'an history. %or the last 0)000 years or so) hu'an society has e@!erienced anincrease in available energy through technological innovations and e@!loitation o$ 'anby 'an and e@!loitation o$ nature. This energy availability +e!t on increasing. And) inthe last 200 years o$ industrial revolution it has increased enor'ously. The authorbelieves that $or the $irst ti'e in hu'an history *e *ill $ace a decrease in availableenergy.

Et is ta+en as a given that it is not !ossible to esti'ate *hen global *ar'ing *ill reach a

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ti!!ing !oint. &o*ever) !ea+ oil and the related econo'ic crisis 'ay actually reducee'issionI it is !ossible that global *ar'ing *ill be arrested) even though e$$ects o$ !ast*ar'ing *ill continue to create !roble's. The real solution then *ill be to learn to live*ith reduced levels o$ energy.

There are t*o +inds o$ challenges involved. /ociety cannot go bac+ in ti'e $ro' its'odern or !resent sensibilities. The challenge is ho* to have a 'odern society *ithreduced energy. A $ossil $uel $ree society i'!lies a drastic reduction o$ available energy$or 'an+ind. This 'a+es the !resent social syste' o$ ca!italis' unviable. &o*ever thisdoes not 'ean that hu'ans are going bac+ to the /tone AgeJ 8ore than hal$ the energyused in the !resent syste' is irrational. The *ar industry) tobacco) narcotics) alcohol)'uch o$ the 'edical industry) a lot o$ the $inance industry) bureaucracy etc are totallyunnecessary. The alternative sources o$ energy *ould be su$$icient $or this reduced needo$ energy and still allo* 'an to live co'$ortably *ith 'odern sensibilities and'odi$iedi'!roved 'odern technologies.

The second and 'ore i''ediate !roble' is that the ruling classes are not going to giveu! voluntarily. Peo!le all over the *orld are struggling to save their livelihood) land)*ater and air $ro' the shar+s o$ the industry. The agents o$ change) there$ore) *ill beorganised !eo!le *ho are carrying out these struggles. Peo!le *ill not agree to a solution*here they *ill continue to be !oor) o!!ressed and e@!loited. /o the $inal solution 'aylie in reduced and eHuitable access to energy $or all. %inally) hu'an society hasencroached on nature 'uch beyond its share at the cost o$ other living beings. &u'ansociety *ill have to restore these resources so that all $or's o$ li$e can survive."ther*ise) hu'an society itsel$ *ill not survive.

This boo+ is in three !arts. The $irst) BThe !arty is over describes the nature o$ the

!roble'I the second) Bhere do *e *ant to goF describes a vision o$ the $utureI and thethird is) Bhat then should *e doF En it the strategy !ro!osed is: 1. Halt the juggernaut

of dying capitalism - coal based power plants, huge hydro-power plants, sponge iron

plants, new mining leases etc. This can be done only through local people's organisations.

2. Build regional coalitions of people's organisation to plan and build a new society. To

begin with, work towards assured alternative fossil fuel free livelihoods for every one.

En the a!!endices) a brie$ descri!tion o$ the Gua+er 'ethod o$ dialogue and con$lictresolution has been included. Also the scri!t o$ BVillage *ith the ater'ills ) *hich isan e!isode $ro' 4urosa*as $il' B(rea's) has been included as an artistic and !oetic!ers!ective o$ a $ossil $uel $ree society.

The objective o$ the boo+ is !ri'arily to !rovide educational 'aterial $or activists andnon1!ro$essionals. The boo+ !uts $or*ard the vie*s and action !lans in a straight$or*ard)si'!le and cogent $or') *ithout 'eandering into acade'ic debates. hile E chec+ed*ith !ro$essional colleagues that no gross error has occurred in the data !resented E haveavoided giving re$erences. The re$erences !rovided at the end o$ the boo+ are 'ore in thenature o$ resources.

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T&? PARTY E/ "V?R

&u'an history has 'oved through several stages designated as !ri'itive co''unis')slavery) $eudalis' and ca!italis') each era successively having shorter !eriods. "$course di$$erent regions have had regional variations o$ this general sche'e. The currentstage) the industrial societyca!italis' that began at the end o$ the th century is alsoco'ing to end) as the title o$ this section indicates. Various contributing $actors andevents are dealt *ith) the !rinci!al a'ong *hich is the beginning o$ the end o$availability o$ concentrated $or' o$ energy li+e oil. The cha!ter on alternative energydiscusses that technological solutions alone cannot solve the !resent crisis and !ro!oses

that the real solution lies in a socio1!olitical change based on scaling do*n o$ energy useand eHuity.

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"#% AT T&? (""R

the imminent crisis of capitalism

The ,ell is Tolling

En the !ast) #e$tists all over the *orld have !redicted the de'ise o$ ca!italis' 'any ti'esand have been !roved *rong. <o* that the de'ise is i''inent 1 the *ol$ is actually atthe door K the le$tists are the last to believe it.

hat 'a+es the end o$ ca!italis' so i''inent is that) there are several crises that have

co'e si'ultaneously) interacting and rein$orcing each other) that have 'ade the !resentcrisis o$ ca!italis' !robably the last and $inal crisis o$ ca!italis'.

/o'e o$ these crises are *ell +no*n) such as the EraH *ar) global *ar'ing) the ongoing*orld *ide recession... "thers such as !ea+ oil or !ea+ing o$ *orld $ood !roduction areless discussed in ne*s!a!ers and !o!ular 'ass 'edia. En Endia) violence in 4ash'ir)insurgency in the <orth ?ast and the <a@alite 'ove'ent has !osed a 'ajor threat to la*and order. ?very one o$ these is related to ca!italis' and each has reached its $lash !oint."rdinary !eo!le in every *al+ o$ li$e are dee!ly conscious that all is not *ell *ith the*orld. 8ajority o$ the !eo!le are in dee! econo'ic crisis) in their !ersonal lives. En Endiaa third o$ the !o!ulation is living belo* !overty line and is $orced to deal *ith $oodshortage) illnesses and distress in the course o$ day to day e@istence. /everal thousands o$$ar'ers and urban !oor have co''itted suicide. /yste's are $alling a!art. Patients areattac+ing doctorsI students are attac+ing teachers) and even going to the e@tent o$ +illingeach otherJ A crisis o$ this !ro!ortion does not e'anate $ro' one single cause. henseveral issues converge in a negative synergistic 'anner it causes colla!se in a syste'.

/o'e o$ these causes are being e@a'ined belo*) $ollo*ed by an atte'!t to establish theirinterconnectedness.

7lobal ar'ing

The 'ain cause o$ global *ar'ing is burning o$ $ossil $uels in astrono'ical Huantities bythe auto'obile industry and coal based ther'al !o*er !lants. The conseHuent release o$green house gases =7&7> is so huge that it $ar e@ceeds the earths ca!acity to absorbthe'.

This consu'!tion o$ $ossil $uel is not evenly distributed across the globe or a'ong the!eo!le *ithin a country. An average A'erican !uts into the at'os!here .- tons o$ C"2

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e'ission !er year as co'!ared to a 'ere . tons by an average Endian. These averageshide the $act that 'ost o$ the carbon out!ut is contributed by the 20L rich o$ thesecountries and that the !oor consu'e $ar less energy. Thus) even here) there are e@tre'eineHualities in 7&7 out!ut *ithin and across countries.

This level o$ release o$ 7&7 is relatively a ne* !heno'enon. %or tens o$ thousands o$years) hu'anity has e@isted) slo*ly changing the natural environ'ent and ecology to'eet its e@istential reHuire'ents. &o*ever) hu'an activities o$ the !resent day that leadto increase in greenhouse gases are very s!eci$ic. They do not !ertain to the tribal orco''unity based village li$e that hu'anity led in the !ast and *hich even today billionso$ !oor !eo!le lead. 7&7 is the direct conseHuence o$ coal1based stea' technology thatsa* the creation o$ the industrial revolution and 'ass !roduction !atterns. En the 20thcentury oil re!laced as *ell as su!!le'ented coal causing $urther !ollution and global*ar'ing.

hy does ca!italis' need continuous increase in energy consu'!tionF The logic o$

ca!italis' is !roduction $or sale and !ro$it and not necessarily $or reHuire'ents. Et$ollo*s that) to increase !ro$its) one should go on !roducing 'ore and 'ore createarti$icial needs and de'ands through !ublic 'ind control. All o$ *hich necessarilyreHuires consu'!tion o$ energy.

Thus) global *ar'ing is a s!eci$ic historical !heno'enon. Et is *ith the ascendancy o$industrial1based ca!italis' in the !ast one hundred and $i$ty years that global *ar'inghas occurred in a dra'atic 'anner and increased to a !oint that threatens to alter theearths cli'ate and ecology irreversibly.

En recent years) global *ar'ing has reached crisis levels because it is e@ceeding thebiological carrying ca!acity o$ the earth. "ne and hal$ earths are reHuired to 'eet theneeds and balance the de'ands o$ current hu'an consu'!tion levels. This is inevitablyleading to the ti!!ing !oint) 'eaning) that *e have reached a !oint in ti'e *hen global*ar'ing cannot be reversed. That is) *e have entered a vicious cycle *here global*ar'ing itsel$ leads to $urther global *ar'ing and no one can do anything about it.

"ne cannot !oint *ith certainty as to *hen the ti!!ing !oint *ill occur. /o'e even clai'that it has already occurred and that hu'anity *ill see and $eel its conseHuences inco'ing years. The assu'!tion here is) it has not yet occurred and *e have) say) a *indo*o$ ten years le$t do so'ething about it. The reason $or this assu'!tion is that changes inhu'an society occur $aster than changes in nature.

8any !eo!le believe that ca!italis' can re$or'. Et is true that no big changes occur tillall the e@isting alternatives are tried out. ,ut today) the very 'aterial basis o$ ca!italis')i.e.) the concentrated $or' o$ energy 1 oil 1 is co'ing to an end or is beco'ingecono'ically unviable. Although coal is still available) as *ill be seen later) it is the 'ostundesirable source o$ energy and cannot easily dis!lace oil.

Then) *hat about alternative $or's o$ energy that donMt release 7&7 to this e@tentF This

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*ill be dealt *ith) in greater detail) in section EE o$ this boo+. Can all o$ us individually doso'ethingF Certainly yesJ Et *ill not be to save ca!italis' but to *or+ to*ards buildingan alternative along *ith 'ajor social and !olitical changes. Et 'ust not be $orgotten thatin order to solve the !roble' the essential need is to roll bac+ energy consu'!tion to atleast !re 9- levelsI !re$erable even earlier to say 960 levels. E have yet to co'e across

a road'a! that can do it *ithin the ca!italist syste'. E $ir'ly believe that this !roble'can only be solved by the de'ise o$ ca!italis'. E$ this does not ha!!en) E have no doubtthat *e *ill reach the ti!!ing !oint in the near $uture. So it is imperati"e that capitalismshould collapse within (, years or so# so that life on earth has a chance to sur"i"e%There$ore one should loo+ at the tendencies that *ill lead to such an event. "ne such'ajor tendency is Pea+ "il.

Pea+ "il

/o *hat e@actly is BPea+ "il1 *hich is li+ely to lead to the end o$ the industrial eraF Atthe !resent rate o$ consu'!tion) all available oil *ill be used u! *ithin this century. ,ut

!ea+ oil is not about *hen *e run out o$ oil) but rather) *hen the !roduction o$ oil startsto decline) and this is 'uch closer. Et 'ay be as close as 200. 8any observers believethat it has already occurred and *e are *itnessing the e$$ects in the global crash o$ca!italis'J "n the other hand) 'any !eo!le believe that Pea+ "il is a $e* years ordecades a*ay. This does not change the 'ain argu'ent that $ollo*s belo* as *ell as the$act that the consu'!tion o$ $ossil $uel is causing global *ar'ing and environ'entdegradation in signi$icant *ays and there$ore its use 'ust be reduced as soon as !ossible.

&o* does one !redict) B*hen Pea+ "il *ill occurF En 9- a 5/ scientist) 8. 4ing&ubbert correctly !redicted that 5/ oil !roduction *ould !ea+ in 90. /ince then) his'ethods o$ accurate !redictions have been re$ined $urther. ?ssentially it is based on the

$act that all locations o$ 'ajor de!osits o$ oil are +no*n) because) it is easier to locatelarge de!osits. There$ore no ne* discoveries o$ large oil de!osits are li+ely to occur./econdly) since the consu'!tion !attern is +no*n it enables one to 'a+e $airly accurate!redictions. The dates) ho*ever) 'ay be advanced due to several $actors. %or e@a'!le)consu'!tion has increased dra'atically in China and Endia. The oil1!roducing countriesin est Asia are using 'ore oil to s!end their inco'e $ro' rising oil !rices. %inally) the*ars being *aged !ri'arily to gain control over oil resources 1 li+e the EraH *ar 1 are notonly consu'ing 'ore oil but are also !roving counter!roductive.

Pea+ "il crisis starts *ith rise in !etroleu' !rices. %or so'e ti'e the $igure o$ 5/( 00!er barrel o$ crude has been considered to be the turning !oint. "n <ove'ber 2) 200

oil !rice hit 5/( 99. En 200 it reached 5/( ;) ushering in an econo'ic crisisI arecession in <orth A'erica) ?uro!e and 3a!an. 8any believe that in the 5/A theecono'ic crisis started *ith the housing crisis in August 200. This econo'ic crisis) as*e +no*) is leading to a *orld*ide colla!se o$ the syste'.

Trans!ort and !o*er are the bac+bone o$ an industrial society and a crisis in either orboth can lead to a general brea+do*n. The rise in trans!ort costs increases all co''odity!rices. Che'ical $ertilisers and !esticides are !etroleu' based !roducts. A rise in their

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!rices 'ay reduce $ood !roduction leading to increase in $ood !rices. =En $act) so'e saythe *orld $ood !roduction has !ea+ed in 200 and that there *ill not be any $urther risein *orld $ood !roductionJ> These !rocesses lead to decrease in relative !urchasing !o*er)$all in de'and) and recession. The 7overn'ent o$ Endia is trying hard to 'aintain thesubsidy on C<7) #P7 and +erosene. ithout the subsidy) the !rice o$ these co''odities

*ould be 'uch higher) 'a+ing the' out o$ reach o$ 'any !oor and 'iddle class users."ne *ay to overco'e short$all is to issue !etroleu' bonds. ,ut this only distributes theris+ to a *ider range o$ gullible !eo!leI 'anaging only to buy ti'e $or a short !eriod.Very si'!ly !ut) there is no solution to this crisis.

The EraH ar

As is *ell +no*n) the *ar in EraH is $or control over oil. A$ter /audi Arabia) EraH has thesecond largest reserve o$ oil. 5/A) *ith about -L o$ the *orlds !o!ulation consu'es2-L o$ the *orlds !roduction o$ oil. Ets o*n reserve is only 6L o$ the *orlds !roven oilreserves. 5/A i'!orts -L o$ the oil it consu'es) 6L o$ *hich co'es $ro' /audi

Arabia) *hich has 2-L o$ the *orlds !roven reserves.

%or 5/A) the ai' o$ the *ar *as to control the gro*ing !o*er o$ /adda' &ussein and tohave access to EraHs oil on its o*n ter's) as *ith /audi Arabia and 8e@ico. hile the*ar caused untold 'iseries and deaths to the EraHi !eo!le) 5/A did not $ully succeed inits *ar ai's. Et controlled EraHs gro*ing !o*er) but the oil !roduction dro!!ed duringthe *ar. En $act it is Eran *hich has bene$ited $ro' the *ar. Ets arch ene'y) /adda' hasbeen eli'inated and in his !lace is the /hia co''unity do'inated govern'ent) *hich ison $riendly ter's *ith Eran. As other global events have un$olded) 5/A has in $actbeco'e *ea+erI going do*nhill steadily since 3uly 200. Today) 5/A is e@tre'elyvulnerable and is in the gri!s o$ a 'ajor recession.

%ood Production Pea+ing

A basic essential $or 'an+ind is $ood. The *orld !o!ulation has gro*n three$old in thelast 00 years and so has the reHuire'ent $or $ood. %ood !roduction is increased byincreasing the area under cultivation and increasing !roductivity by utilising irrigation)$ertilisers and !esticides.

The increase in land area $or $ood has a $inite li'it and it has co'e no*. En $act 'anynon $ood cro!s are ta+ing u! agricultural land. &istorically it *as sugar) cotton andtobaccoI today $loriculture) bio1$uels and ethanol !roduction is eating u! e@isting cro!

areas as *ell as $orests.

/i'ilarly) increase in !roductivity also has its li'its. A$ter so'e ti'e) ty!ically a$terabout 60 years or so) land degradation and reduced $ertility occur. As a result) 'ore and'ore che'ical $ertilisers and che'ical !esticides are reHuired to 'aintain !roductivity./alinity o$ land increases. ith oil !ea+ing) costs o$ che'ical in!uts also start increasing.En the absence o$ social su!!ort structures and subsidies) $ar'ing beco'es increasinglyunviable. En Endia) this has led to tens o$ thousands o$ $ar'ers co''itting suicide.

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All these $actors have led to decrease in rate o$ gro*th o$ !roductionI no* that!roduction has reached its !ea+) it *ill start to decrease. En Endia) $or the last years!roduction o$ *heat) dals and 'illets have $allen steadily. The !er ca!ita availability o$$ood also has been decreasing. The !oor having relatively less !urchasing !o*er are

starving) dying or ta+ing the e@tre'e ste! o$ co''itting suicide. The *orld $ood!roduction has in $act $allen this year =2009>. ConseHuently a billion !eo!le are !resently$acing hunger and starvation.

Enter1i'!erialist Contradiction

ith the de!letion and scarcity o$ resources) ca!italist !o*ers are in shar! contradictions*ith one another over resource control. Russia *ith large natural resources o$ gas and!etrol and 'ilitary !o*er is able to con$ront ?uro!e and the 5/A. China *ith its hugeecono'ic !o*er is able to !urchase reserves o$ non rene*able resources =that is gas and!etrol> all over the *orld and also buy the co'!anies that control the'. The 5/A o*es

so 'uch 'oney to China that China is converting its dollar reserves into 'ar+et shares o$5/ co'!anies. /o'e even say that the 5/ econo'y is integrating into Chinese econo'yin the sa'e *ay as the ,ritish econo'y integrated *ith the 5/ econo'y a$ter the /econdorld ar.

En the 20th century) this +ind o$ a situation led to the t*o *orld *ars. Today a *ar o$ thatnature is too dangerous because o$ nuclear *ea!onry. &ence *ars are being *aged by the5/A directly over countries *ith resources that are not under its control. /till 'ajorcon$rontations cannot be ruled out. The Pug*ash cloc+ *hich sy'bolically indicates ho*close *e are to a global disaster has been 'oved u! by 2 'inutesI that +ee!s us only -'inutes a*ay $ro' such a disaster.

The /outh versus the <orth

These ter's have co'e to i'!ly the under develo!ed and the develo!ing countries =the/outh> and the develo!ed countries =the <orth>) because) as it ha!!ens) al'ost all thedevelo!ed countries) e@ce!t Australia) lie in the <orthern he'is!here. <o* in variousinternational bodies) li+e the 5< agencies) T") orld ,an+ and E8%) the /outh istrying to act as a bloc+ to reduce the e@!loitation by the <orth. A'ong the 'ost vocal areleaders $ro' Cuba) VeneDuela and 8alaysia. /o'e o$ the Arab countries li+e /yria)#ebanon and Palestine are also e@tre'ely vocal in their conde'nation o$ the 5/A. /o'eo$ these countries are $ollo*ing e@tre'ely innovative !olicies *ithin their countries.

/o'e o$ *hich 'ay hel! the' !re!are $or the crisis o$ ca!italis' and reduce theirvulnerability. Alongside) they are also trying to increase their share o$ holdings o$ the*orlds non rene*able resources) thus dee!ening the crisis $urther.

Anti1i'!erialist 8ove'ents

There are several +inds o$ these 'ove'ents.

14



. "rganised !olitical 'ove'ents: These are 'ainly 8aoist sort o$ 'ove'ents. En <e!althey have *on a 'ajor victory. En Endia the 8aoist<a@alites are the 'ost signi$icant antistate organised 'ove'ent. ,esides *hich) in several countries) co''unist 'ove'entse@ist and they organise trade unions and !easant organisations. Endividual co''unistsalso *or+ in several other organisations concerning civil liberties) *o'ens 'ove'ents)

tribal and dalit 'ove'ents and so on.

2. Another organised 'ove'ent is Al Gaeda sort o$ grou!s. Et has a 'ass basis as a resulto$ atrocities co''itted by the 5/ ar'y against the !eo!le o$ est Asia and thedesecration o$ their religious sites. The 'ove'ent has tre'endous 'ass su!!ort and theability to hit the 5/ in its vulnerable !ositions. &o*ever) 'any !eo!le in the antii'!erialist 'ove'ent disagree *ith these organisations clai'ing they do 'ore har'.?ven *ithin the Esla'ic nations) their su!!ort to Taliban +ind o$ Esla'ic $unda'entalis'is o!!osed by 'any !eo!le. &istorically) these organised grou!s had su!!ort $ro' the 5/govern'ent) so also $ro' the ar'y and intelligence $orces in Pa+istan. They *ere astrong $orce against the Russians in A$ghanistan.

6. There are large !eo!les 'ove'ents against 'ajor !rojects o$ ca!italis' such as largeda's) large coal based !o*er !lants) s!onge iron !lants) nuclear !o*er !lants) s!ecialecono'ic Dones =/?Ns> and so on. They co'!rise o$ !easants *hose land is at sta+e)environ'entalists and naturalists *ho $ear that these !rojects *ill da'age ecosyste'sand citiDens grou!s. They also have the sy'!athy) su!!ort and involve'ent o$ radicalacade'ia $ro' a'ong the science and hu'anities strea's as also activists $ro' the!eo!les science 'ove'ents.

;. %inally) there are innu'erable locally organised s'all grou!s all over the *orldaddressing location s!eci$ic or larger concerns *ithin their li'ited s!here o$ o!eration.The o$t Huoted rationale has been BThin+ 7lobally Act #ocally. Politically) they range$ro' anarchists o$ various hues) socialists) civil rights activists) *o'en) blac+ and dalitgrou!s so also so'e religious grou!s. hile their i'!act on ca!italis' and the dee!eningcrisis 'ay not be very signi$icant) their role in contributing to*ards a !ossible $uturevision is very critical.

hy does no one A!!ear to be botheredF

<o ruling class in history ever a!!eared to be a*are o$ their i''inent $all. They are a+into drun+en drivers do*n a slo!e di'ly a*are that there is danger luring ahead butnevertheless con$ident that they *ill carry through this ti'eJ &o*ever there are

variations) !articularly) in M'ar+etM circles and a'ong !ro$essionals. 8ar+ets in the 5/Ahave been jittery over the last t*o years) ever since the housing bubble burst and 'ore sosince the $inancial 'elt do*n o$ /e!te'ber 200. Pro$essionals in their journals havebeen giving *arnings. ,ut on the *hole) the ruling class co'es across as con$ident. TheEndian crisis has not yet reached such a serious level) so the Endian ruling classes and thestate a!!ear very con$ident.

hat about the le$t and leaders o$ the !eo!les 'ove'entsF The !arlia'entary le$t)

15



!articularly CPE18) being in !o*er) is totally co''itted to ca!italis'. Their veteranleader) 3yoti ,asu) even said on 3anuary -) 200 that in the near $uture there is noalternative to ca!italis' and that socialis' is not !ossible in the near $uture.

"n the other hand) !eo!les leaders have been so busy assisting their !eo!le in their

struggles $or sheer survival against o!!ression and e@!loitation by the ruling classes andthe /tate that they have little breathing s!ace to ta+e stoc+. Then) there are 'any *ho area*are o$ the dee!ening crisis o$ ca!italis') but $eel hel!less. The sincere a'ong the'continue to *or+ *ith !eo!les struggles in various ca!acities. And $inally) there could!ossibly be a dee!er reason. ?ric %ro'' called it M%ear o$ %reedo'M. hen one has beena slave so long) it is di$$icult to i'agine and !lan $or a day *hen you *ill be $ree to !lanyour o*n li$e. The !heno'enon is evident in retired !eo!leI on retire'ent) in s!ite o$adeHuate 'eans o$ survival) they are unable to live on their o*n. /o'e get de!ressedI a$e* go to the e@tent o$ ending their o*n li$e.

,ut this need not be so. There have been drea'ers in the !ast and revolutions too have

occurred in the !ast. A$ter all) *e have nothing to lose but our shac+lesJ

"nce *e are convinced about the i''inence o$ the crisisI its +no*ledge should enable usto collectively evolve a viable) $ossil $uel inde!endent) lo* energy usage $uture *itheHuity a'ong hu'an beings and har'ony *ith nature as the nor'.

/uch a vision should also hel! in evolving a !ractical road'a! $or an ordered transition.This ordered transition 'ay necessitate violent con$rontations *ith the ruling classes. The!rogra''e could !rovide guidance to !eo!les 'ove'ents) organisations) trade unions)<7"s) volunteer grou!s and even to individuals. /uch a !rogra''e *ill hel! dis!el thehel!lessness and de$eatis'I the sense o$ $ighting a losing battle. Et *ill energise !eo!le to*or+ to*ards a sustainable $uture) i$ not $or ourselves) at least $or the $uture generations.A$ter all *e o*e the' a legacy o$ res!onsible behaviour to*ards the !lanet.

16



hat about Alternative

%or's o$ ?nergyF

Today) 'any are ready to acce!t) devoid 'uch understanding) that the era o$ coal) !etroland gas is co'ing to an end. Coal) though available in !lenty in China) Endia and 'anyother !arts o$ the *orld) is beco'ing unacce!table because o$ greater C"2 e'issions andglobal *ar'ing. "n the other hand) oil and gas are !ea+ing) that is) their !roduction hasreached its 'a@i'u' =!ea+ed> and hence$orth *ill +ee! on $alling. The thought)ho*ever) that al*ays $ollo*s is: *hat about alternativesF hat about nuclear) hydro)solar) *ind) bio1$uel and so onF There is a genuine lac+ o$ +no*ledge and understandingregarding the nature o$ alternative sources o$ energyI o$ *hat is !ossible and *hat is not.An atte'!t to deal *ith this as!ect o$ the Huestion reveals that there are no realalternatives to the !resent level o$ energy consu'!tion and that the only viablealternative is to reduce energy consu'!tions. E'!lied *ithin this argu'ent is that the!resent !o*er structure *ill cru'bleI that the days o$ ca!italis' and industrial societyare over.

The above argu'ent 'ay not necessitate going bac+ to the /tone Age. Alternative sourceso$ energy *ould be su$$icient to 'eet reduced energy needsI *ill still allo* $or a li$e o$co'$ort given our evolved sensibilities and i'!roved lo* energy technologies. 8ost!eo!le today $ind it di$$icult to acce!t this argu'ent because o$ rationales based one@!eriential 'e'ory.

The $irst being) 'any !eo!le believe the !o*er$ul *ill al*ays $ind a *ay to re'ain in!o*erI $or e@a'!le) during the ?'ergency in Endia 1 9) !eo!le $elt that the then Pri'e8inster 8s. Endira 7andhi *ould continue to stay in !o*er.

The history o$ the last 0)000 years or so sho*s that 'an+ind has increased its access to!o*er through syste'atic Be@!loitation o$ nature through science) technology) social!o*er) e@!loitation o$ 'an by 'an etc. &ence it is di$$icult to i'agine or believe that theavailability o$ energy at !resent levels *ill decrease.

17



8ore i'!ortantly) !eo!le are not ready to acce!t a drastic change in their lives. Et is a+into acce!ting a !ersonal tragedyI sudden loss o$ jobI death o$ a childI sel$ ad'ission o$co'!ulsive addictions etc. /i'ilarly) having got used to a certain li$e style or as 7eorge,ush said) B*e are addicted to oil. it is di$$icult to acce!t that !resent li$estyles *ill have

to changeI that the era o$ industrialisation is overI and that one *ill have to live at a 'uchlo*er level o$ energy utilisation. Psychologists use the ter' (A,(A 1 (isbelie$ and(enial) Anger) ,argaining) (e!ression and $inally Acce!tance to describe the !rocess o$acce!ting the unacce!table. (ra*ing an analogy 1 today the *orld is 'ainly goingthrough Odenial. /o'e are angry because o$ loss o$ job) scaling do*n $ro' set li$e stylesetc. Those *ho are secure today are going through a !rocess o$ Obargaining. Et is they*ho are as+ing the Huestion) but *hat about alternative sources o$ energyF

Acce!ting change is relative to !revious e@!eriences. Peo!le *ho have never been insidean air!lane are ready to acce!t a *orld *ithout aviation. Peo!le *ho have never o*ned acar are ha!!y to have bicycles and !ublic trans!ort. Thousands o$ !oor or rural d*ellers

have only seen such conveniences $ro' a distance. hen told about it) they are 'oreli+ely to say: BEs that so) *ell) *e can surviveJ

?nergy 7eneration

To begin *ith) the !roduction or generation o$ any $or' o$ energy resource $ro' $ossil$uel de!osits or $ro' other sources reHuires an initial e@!enditure o$ the sa'e 1 also+no*n as energy invest'ent. To !roduce) !rocure or e@tract any energy resource *hetherit is !u'!ing oil out o$ the ground or building and o!erating a *ind turbine it reHuirese@!ending so'e a'ount o$ energy. /i'!listically co''unicated it 'eans) energy isreHuired to !roduce) trans!ort) store and use energy. E$ the energy return is less than the

energy used to !roduce it) then) it is generally not *orth the botherJ This signi$icantele'ent 1 hardly ever considered in !o!ular debate 1 in the generation o$ energy goes bythe acrony' ?R"E K ?nergy Returned on Envest'ent.

Co'!aring di$$erent ?nergy Processes

7iven in the table are ?R"E values $or various energy !roduction !rocesses. The brea+even $or ?R"E being .0) any $igure less than .0) in$ers a net QlossQ. The value 0.) $ore@a'!le *ould 'ean a net energy loss o$ 20L. That is) it *ould ta+e 20L 'ore toacHuire) generate or !roduce a given Huantu') than the energy available $or use."b"iously not a good deal- En !ractice) an ?R"E o$ .; is generally considered 'ini'u'

acce!table as there are other losses in using that energy. This is so because all real1li$e!rocesses are irreversible.

The ?R"E value in the 9;0Ms $or oil and gas stands at greater than 00 $or discoveries.8eaning) at the *ellhead i.e.) *here the oilgas s!rings out o$ the ground) the energyreturned is 'ore than 00 ti'es the energy utiliDed $or its [email protected] "ery good deal-

18



Table o$ co'!arative ?R"E values.

PR"C?// ?R"E

.onrenewable /esources

"il and gas =do'estic *ell head>

9;0s (iscoveriesS 00.090s Production26.0

(iscoveries.0

2000 Production .0Coal (mine mouth)

9-0s 0.0

90s2000

60.0.0

Oil shale 0. to 6.6

Coal liquefaction 0.- to .2

Geopressured gas .0 to -.0

Renewable Resources

?thanol =sugarcane> 0. to .

?thanol =corn> .6

?thanol =corn residues> 0. to .

8ethanol =*ood> 2.

/olar: %lat1 !late collector .9

/olar: Concentrating collector .

0lectricity ProductionCoal: 5/A Average 9.0

&ydro!o*er .2

<uclear =lightK*ater reactor> ;.0

/olar

Po*er satellite 2.0

Po*er to*er ;.2

Photovoltaic . to 0.0

7eother'al:#iHuid do'inated ;.0

7eother'al:&ot dry roc+ .9 to 6.0

*/ource: ?nergy and the 5./. ?cono'y: A ,io!hysical Pers!ectiveCutler 3. ClevelandI Robert CostanDaI Charles A. /. &allI Robert 4au$'ann/cience) <e* /eries) Vol. 22-) <o. ;- =Aug. 6) 9;>) 9019.%igures $or the year 2000 are $ro' the internet.

"n e@a'ining the table) a $e* things beco'e clear. %or both coal and oil the ?R"Edecreases as resources de!lete. Translated into econo'ics this 'eans a dro! in viability

19



and !roduction. ,eing a nonrene*able resource) a stage is bound to co'e *hen it is nolonger econo'ical to e@tract or 'ine the t*o. En case o$ oil) *e are very near it. The stageis also +no*n as BPea+ "il. #iHuid 7as 'ay ta+e another decade or so to !ea+. Coal isbeco'ing unacce!table even be$ore !ea+ing occurs because it is the dirtiest o$ all $uels1causing !ollution. Et contributes to global *ar'ing 'ore than oil or gas. Thus) !roducing

electricity $ro' coal instead o$ $ro' natural gas causes nearly 0L 'ore carbon dio@idee'issionsI a!art $ro' the conseHuent !ollution and cleansing costs. &o*ever) being 0 to60 ti'es 'ore e$$icient) no other $or' o$ energy is any*here near as e$$icient or!ro$itable as coal and oil. &ence) none can re!lace coal and oil to the !resent level o$consu'!tion.

7enerating electricity *ill reduce ?R"E $urther $or coal and gas because energy isreHuired to run the !o*er !lant. ?@ce!t hydro electric !o*er) in all other cases the ?R"Eis not very good and there$ore their use *ill be li'ited.

"ther !roble's *ith Alternatives

/o'e other !roble's *ith alternatives to oil and gas are: That they are generally only o$ use in the !roduction o$ heat and electricity and not the

'ultitude o$ uses that oil in !articular is !ut to $ro' trans!ort to !lastics. "$ course*ind and $lo*ing *ater has been used $or 'illennia $or trans!ortI $or !u'!ingI $orgrindingI $or cooling and ice1'a+ingI in agriculture as energy. /olar heat has beenused $or all +inds o$ drying.

?ach is acco'!anied by its o*n $or' o$ !ollution ?ven *ith increasing their harnessing to 'a@i'u' !otential) it *ould be hard to 'eet

!resent day reHuire'ents.

%uel /ource and Pollution Proble's

Pollution !roble's o$ di$$erent $uel sources 'ay be su''arised as $ollo*s:

"il: global *ar'ing) air !ollution by vehicles) acid rain) oil s!ills) oil rig accidents.<atural gas: global *ar'ing) !i!e lea+age) 'ethane e@!losions.Coal: global *ar'ing) environ'ent degradation due to o!encast 'ining) land subsidencedue to dee! 'ining) s!oil hea!s) ground*ater !ollution) acid rain.<uclear !o*er: global *ar'ing =des!ite *hat they say>) radioactivity =routine release)ris+ o$ accident) *aste dis!osal>) 'isuse o$ $issile 'aterial by terrorists) s!read o$ nuclear*ea!ons.,io1$uels: e$$ect on landsca!e and biodiversity) ground*ater !ollution due to $ertilisers)use o$ scarce *ater resources) co'!etition *ith $ood !roduction.&ydroelectric: dis!lace'ent o$ !o!ulations) e$$ect on rivers and ground*ater) da's=visual intrusion and ris+ o$ accident>) seis'ic e$$ects) e$$ects on agriculture do*nstrea'.ind !o*er: noise) visual intrusion in sensitive landsca!es) bird stri+es) TV inter$erence./olar energy: seHuestration o$ large land areas) use o$ to@ic 'aterials in 'anu$acture o$PV cells) visual intrusion in both rural and urban environ'ents.

20



A closer loo+ at so'e o$ the alternatives

<uclear Po*er

"$ all the alternativesI ins!ite o$ being advertised 'ost) the nuclear o!tion is not

acce!table at allJ The Endian govern'ent is hell bent on getting nuclear energy in s!ite o$o!!osition $ro' all sides o$ the debate. &ere) E *ould li+e to introduce a !ersonale@!erience.

En the nineteen $i$ties E *as in school. At that ti'e) the 5./. govern'ent launched the!rogra''e) Ato's $or Peace. Et used ?insteins $a'ous eHuation bet*een 'ass andenergy) *hich i'!lied) one could get enor'ous energy $ro' s!litting the ato' asde'onstrated by the ato'ic bo'b. Et also said that energy *ould be so chea! that it *illnot be *orth*hile billing it. e *ere all i'!ressed. And E even decided to *or+ $or itJ

8any years later =91> E actually *or+ed at the /aha Enstitute o$ <uclear Physics)

Calcutta. &ere E ca'e across the Bulletin of 1tomic Scientists. ?stablished in 9;- byscientists *ho $elt guilty about having hel!ed to !roduce the ato' bo'b) it ai'ed at thescienti$ic co''unity readershi! to in$or' the' about the 'isuse o$ science. Thecontributors to the bulletin *ere several i'!ortant !hysicists and other scientists) 'any o$the' <obel #aureates including ?instein. En 9) E *as a $resh graduate in ?lectronics?ngineering and *as naturally i'!ressed by these B7urus o$ 'y 7urus. The ,ulletin'ade it a'!ly clear that the nuclear energy !rogra''e *as essentially a civilian $ront $orthe *ea!on !rogra''e and that on its o*n it is not at all a viable energy !rogra''e. /oE as+ed 'ysel$) *hat a' E doing hereF /oon) E le$t the Enstitute and vo*ed E *ould neverallo* 'y +no*ledge o$ science and technology to be used against 'an+ind and nature.

Today no one s!ea+s o$ BAto's $or Peace as it has been de'onstrated to be a total lie.There have been ca'!aigns against nuclear ar's and energy $or decades) the 'ost$a'ous being) Campaign for .uclear 2isarmament (C<(> in ?ngland. There is also acha!ter o$ C<( in Endia. They have !ublished enor'ous literature on the subject andestablished beyond doubt that:

• En s!ite all the hy!e about nuclear energy) the total contribution to electricity

generation $ro' nuclear energy to the *orld is only - L and to any countryselectricity su!!ly it has never e@ceeded 20L e@ce!t in %rance =L>) ,elgiu'=-;L>) /outh 4orea =69>) /*itDerland =6L> and 3a!an =60L>. <ot even in the 5/A *here the $irst nuclear chain reaction *as !er$or'edJ 5/A *ent on to 'a+e

the $irst ato'ic bo'b and used it on &iroshi'a and <agasa+i in 3a!an.

• <uclear !o*er stations have a li$e o$ ;0 years or so) a$ter *hich) they have to be

deco''issioned. The nuclear *aste and the old !lant have to be then !rotected$ro' causing radiation da'age $or the ne@t thousands o$ years. The 'yth o$electricity !roduced $ro' nuclear !o*er being chea! holds true to the e@tent o$o!erating costs only. ?ven then) the ?R"E is only ; as co'!ared to oil) coal andhydro!o*er) *hich are in the range o$ 0. hen the cost o$ research)

21



develo!'ent) construction) deco''issioning) storage and dis!osal o$ *aste areincluded) nuclear turns out to be the 'ost e@!ensive conventional energy source.

• 8any countries that have a nuclear energy !rogra''e also have a *ea!on

!rogra''e including Endia and Pa+istan. /o'e have hidden !rogra''es li+e

Esrael and Eran. Countries that do not have a *ea!on !rogra''e but have nuclearenergy !rogra''es are deco''issioning their !lants and are not building ne*ones. Countries that have a good stoc+!ile o$ *ea!ons) li+e the 5/A have notco''issioned a ne* !lant $or decades. Accidents at Three 8iles Esland andChernobyl have also acted as a deterrent.

• %rance has a *ea!on !rogra''e and a real energy !rogra''e) *hich contributes

so'e L to its electricity reHuire'ents. The reason is) %rance has no coal and oiland it is $orced to build nuclear !o*er stations *ith huge subsidies culled $ro'ta@!ayers 'oney. ,elgiu') /outh 4orea) /*itDerland and 3a!an have a si'ilar!roble'. &o*ever) these countries are rich) have trade sur!luses and can a$$ord

itJ

• En all other cases) nuclear !o*er stations have only i$ ever) been built *ith huge

subsidies. ,ritish nuclear !o*er industry has cost tens o$ billions o$ !ounds overthe last -0 years. (eco''issioning old nuclear !o*er stations is costing over U0billion and rising.

• hat it i'!lies isI in all the countries that have *ea!on !rogra''e 1 o!en)

hidden or !otential 1 nuclear !o*er stations have been built as a civilian $ront $orthe *ea!on !rogra''e. <uclear *ea!ons and nuclear !o*er share a co''ontechnological basis. /+illed *or+ers and continuing research are bene$icial $or

both industries. The !rocess o$ enriching uraniu' to 'a+e it into $uel $or nuclear!o*er stations can be a ste! to*ards $urther enriching it to 'a+e nuclear*ea!ons. 5sed $uel =s!ent nuclear $uel> $ro' nuclear !o*er stations can bese!arated out to recover any usable ele'ents such as uraniu' and !lutoniu'through a 'ethod called re!rocessing. Plutoniu' is a by1!roduct o$ the nuclear$uel cycle and can also be used to 'a+e nuclear *ea!ons.

• Endias nuclear !rogra''e) including the deal *ith the 5/ is !roble'atic. Et

see's that it *ill give Endia the energy at enor'ous costs and 'ay not give the*ea!ons. 5nli+e 3a!an) Endia cannot a$$ord it. The !rogra''e essentially bailsout the nuclear !o*er !lant industry in the 5/) %rance) Russia) their Endian

collaborators li+e the ,&?#) and hel!s the building industry. ?ven then) its!ros!ect o$ adding to Endias !o*er generation is negligible because the !lantshave a gestation o$ - years and they end u! only re!lacing old !lants *hich *illthen be ready $or deco''issioningJ

22



,io$uels

,io1$uel is 'ade by converting bio'ass into a $uel. Et is used $or running 'achinery and

'otor vehiclesI and is the only alternative $uel that can al'ost directly re!lace oil andgas. The diesel engine a$ter all) *as originally designed to run on a variety o$ $uels and itcan be o!erated using bio1$uels *ith little or no adjust'ent.

,io1diesel is a che'ically altered vegetable oil *hile ethanol 1 another co''on $uel 1 is a$uel1grade $or' o$ alcohol !roduced by grain $er'entation and as a !ro$itable by!roducto$ the sugar industry. &o*ever) bio1$uels co'e *ith their o*n set o$ deterrentsIes!ecially *here $ar'ing is carried out s!eci$ically $or the !ur!ose.

• ,io1$uels are not chea!. The ?R"E is less than 2 and can even be less than in

*hich case it is not even *orth !roducing. 7ro*ing 'aiDe used to create ethanol

in the 5/AW a!!ears to consu'e 60L 'ore energy than the end !roductI leavingeroded soils and !olluted *aters behind.

• ith li'ited land available it 'ay be !rudent to use it $or $ar'ing or $orestry. The

grain reHuired to $ill the !etrol tan+ o$ a Range Rover *ith ethanol is su$$icient to$eed one !erson $or a year. Assu'ing the !etrol tan+ is re$illed every t*o *ee+s)the a'ount o$ grain reHuired could +ee! a $e* $a'ilies *ell $ed $or a year.

• The irres!onsible gro*ing o$ bio1cro!s can do tre'endous har'. The rise in the

!roduction o$ !al' oil $or bio1diesel could turn out to be catastro!hicI threateningto !ut 'ore carbon dio@ide into the at'os!here than it could save. This is becausecountries li+e 8alaysia are cutting do*n vast tracts o$ rain$orests to gro* thecro!I not only endangering the $lora and $auna) but also releasing vast a'ounts o$carbon dio@ide tra!!ed *ithin trees.

En light o$ the above) bio1diesel should not be loo+ed u!on as a re!lace'ent $or oil) but at'ost) as a te'!orary 'easure $or a tide over to a 'ore sustainable $uture. 5lti'ately *eneed to travel $ar less than *e !resently do i$ *e are to e@orcise the t*in de'ons o$cli'ate change and !ea+ oil.

&ydroelectricity

%lo*ing *ater has been used to generate electricity since the 0s and has been used tocreate 'echanical !o*er $or centuries be$ore that. Et is the 'ost advanced) e$$icient andi'!ortant rene*able source at the 'o'ent contributing to about 9L o$ the *orldMselectricity su!!ly. Et has a !otential o$ nearly $ive ti'es that $igure 1 including areas inAsia and A$rica. Although e@!ensive to construct) it is very chea! to 'aintain) store andrelease Huic+ly on de'and 1 a Huality $e* other energy sources have. The largest !o*erstation today is the Etai!u !lant bet*een ,raDil and Paraguay) *ith a ca!acity o$ 2 71

23



ten ti'es that o$ a coal or nuclear station.

Et is ho*ever not all1good ne*s.

• The da''ing o$ rivers can create 'any serious environ'ental !roble's and

destroy valuable $ar'land) *hich is o$ten $ound in valleys. ?@isting inhabitantsare o$ten $orced to 'ove and the colla!se o$ a da' or even release o$ *ater duringheavy 'onsoon can !rove catastro!hic $or those living do*nstrea'.

• (a's too have a $inite li$eI their !er$or'ance begins to do*nslide in about 60

years caused by silting o$ the reservoir. This raises the reservoir bed) increases itsarea and inundates 'ore $ertile land. Rise in the bed level also reduces its ca!acityto hold *ater. ater 'ay then have to be released during the 'onsoons) causingheavy $loods do*nstrea'. &ence) instead o$ controlling $loods) it 'ay beco'e thecause o$ 'ore $loodsJ Endian scientists in the 9-0s cautioned about this!ossibility *hen the $irst da's under (a'odar Valley Cor!oration =(VC> *ere

!ro!osed.

• Today) 'any studies are available *hich !rove that the har' done by da's $ar

e@ceed its bene$its. The actual !er$or'ances o$ 'ost da's are $ar belo* theirdesigned ca!acities.

• Thus) *hile Endia is su!!osed to have huge !otential $or hydro electricity) there is

*ides!read o!!osition to it. The <ar'ada ,achao Andolan =/ave <ar'ada8ove'ent> is one such resistance. hile a large nu'ber o$ da's are !ro!osed inthe <orth ?ast and in 5ttara+hand) in the $ace o$ o!!osition and the econo'iccrisis) it is unli+ely any o$ these da's *ill ever be built.

ind Po*er

ind !o*er has seen the largest gro*th as an energy source in recent years. There are'any advantages to *ind !o*er. 8ost countries have large areas *here *ind blo*s$airly reliably and stronger *inds can usually be harnessed by si'!ly building higher.They do not ta+e u! 'uch s!ace as the land beneath the turbines can be used $or $ar'ingor storage. The $uel $or the turbine is $ree and the environ'ental ill e$$ects li'ited *hen!laced in areas o$ lo* bird 'ove'ent.

ith a ty!ical 'odern *ind turbine) electricity *ould begin to be generated at a starting

*ind s!eed o$ 'aybe 6.- 's and the !o*er out!ut *ould increase *ith *ind s!eed untilit reaches a 'a@i'u' o$ say 22- + at 6 's. Any $urther increase in the *ind s!eedsbeyond that *ould not !roduce any greater out!ut. %inally) there *ould be a 'a@i'u's!eed) *here a$ter) the turbine *ould need to be !rotected to sto! it $ro' s!inning atdangerously high s!eeds. This 'ight be at about 2- 's.) these high s!eeds are rarelyreached.

&o*ever) *ith 'a@i'u' ?R"E o$ only 2) *ind !o*er is neither chea! nor e$$icient.

24



Also s!ace reHuired $or generating !o*er $ro' *ind is very high. Et has li'ited use ins!eci$ic areas and its contribution to the total energy resource *ill be less than 0L. EnEndia *hile the installed ca!acity o$ *ind !o*er has already e@ceeded nuclear !o*er) theactual out!ut a!!ears to be 'uch belo* design ca!acity.

/olar ?nergy

/olar energy is the acHuisition o$ heat or !o*er directly $ro' the rays o$ the /un) unli+ebio'ass and ground source heating *hich use the /un indirectly. =En the long ter') thisindirect harvesting o$ the /un is the 'ost sustainable $or'>. The a'ount o$ sunlight$alling on any area o$ ground obviously de!ends on its location and the ti'e o$ year. Asthe /un does not shine at all at night in Endia and is 'uch *ea+er in the *inter *hende'and is higher) 'assive batteries *ould be needed $or storage. Again s!ace reHuired$or solar !o*er generation is very high. <evertheless) solar can contribute signi$icantly toreducing energy needs and should not be overloo+ed.

There are t*o *ays o$ using solar energy: solar heating and !hotovoltaic =PV>.

Solar Heating

The si'!lest and !ractical use o$ solar !o*er is the solar bo@ coo+er. ith coo+ing gassu!!ly decreasing there *ill be tre'endous !ressure on the already delicate state o$$ire*ood su!!ly. /olar coo+ers can su!!ly at least hal$ the energy reHuired $or coo+ing.Another si'ilar a!!lication is solar driers. They can be used $or drying a large variety o$household necessities. #arger ones can be used $or drying *ood.

/olar *ater heaters are another !o!ular use o$ solar heating. This usually involves !i!ing

*ater through insulated bo@es) *hich have glass covers and the insides !ainted blac+.These act li+e M'ini1greenhousesMI heating *ater as it is !u'!ed through the bo@ =+no*nas a McollectorM>. This *ater is then used either directly or trans$ers its heat to the do'esticsu!!ly. The heat generated is not li+ely to do a*ay *ith the need to use other $uels toheat *ater) es!ecially as there *ould be no solar in!ut during the night and !art o$ thedayti'e. <evertheless) it could be used to !re1heat do'estic *ater to a te'!erature o$6-XC or so) thereby reducing overall do'estic $uel bills.

"n a larger scale) it is !ossible to use this !rinci!le to create a solar !o*er station. This*ould involve !ositioning hundreds o$ 'irrors to re$lect their radiation onto a boiler atthe to! o$ a to*er. The liHuid in here is heated enough to generate stea' and turn turbines

to generate electricity. Another o!tion is to create a tall hollo* to*er in the centre o$ avast greenhouse. As the sun *ar's the air) it rises and turns turbines.

These large1scale !o*er stations are still a rarity as they su$$er $ro' the sa'e !roble'so$ no /un at the night and little sun in the *inter. &o*ever) in sunnier cli'ates li+e Endia)Australia or Cali$ornia) they are li+ely to be 'ore use$ul.

25



Photo"oltaic 3P45

Photovoltaic +no*n to everybody $ro' solar cells in calculators turns the light o$ the/un directly into electricity rather than via heat. &o*ever) a calculator uses very little

!o*er. 7enerating enough electricity to 'a+e a signi$icant contribution to*ardsillu'inating a house or o$$ice is another 'atter altogether.

Enitial solar cells *ere only ;.-L e$$icient. They gre* to about -L in the 90s and areabout 20L e$$icient no*. A sHuare 'eter on a sunny day *ould +ee! a 001*att lightbulb going. At the 'o'ent) PV electricity is one o$ the 'ost e@!ensive o$ the rene*ables.Research on PV is long dra*nI solar cells reHuire !ure /ilicon *hich is e@!ensive to!roduce. #and reHuire'ent $or the !o*er !lants is large. <o doubt it *ill beco'e chea!eras !roduction increases and ne* cells are develo!ed. Et re'ains to be seen ho*signi$icant the contribution o$ this energy source *ill be.

"n the *hole) !assive use o$ solar energy =solar coo+ers) driers and solar *ater heaters>*ill certainly gro*) *hereas generation o$ electricity *ill be li'ited. "ne reason being)the $or'er is a lo* technology !roduct and can be 'anu$actured locally. ?R"E $or solar!o*er generation is also belo* 2 and de'ands su!erior technology.

"ther /ources

Et is not !ossible to discus all the sources o$ alternatives. En general one can say threethings about the'.

1. There 'ay be so'e *hich have real !otential. %or the' to beco'e viable ta+es

about t*o decades. There are none such that are ready or in the !i!e line.2. /o'e $all 'ore into the science $iction category. That is) a co'!etent grou! o$

scientists can sho* that such sources are unviable.3. /o'e are !ure blu$$s or lies. These are used by B$ly by night o!erators to $ool the

!ublic *ith the connivance o$ govern'ent o$$icials to raise 'oney) and then *al+a*ay *ith the 'oney by declaring that it *as not a viable !roject.

The case o$ hydrogen $uel cells illustrates this very *ell. A $uel cell co'bines hydrogenand o@ygen and !roduces electricity and *ater. %or the last $e* decades this e'ission1$ree hydrogen $uel cell *as held to be the solution. And yet today the verdict is B<eithergovern'ent !olicy nor business invest'ent should be based on the belie$ that hydrogen

cars *ill have 'eaning$ul co''ercial success in the near or 'ediu'1ter'. And) B$uelcells !rovide a 'ulti1decade lesson in high1tech hu'ility. The !roble' that never gotsolved *as to evolve a !ollution $ree source $or hydrogen itsel$. 8ost hydrogen today isobtained $ro' $ossil $uels. And yet) there are 'any co'!anies in the *orld that aresurviving on govern'ent subsidies through $alse !ro'ises.

26



e began by saying that) ‘*e are used to a certain li$e style or as 7eorge ,ush said) B*eare addicted to oil. Et is di$$icult to acce!t that all this *ill changeI that the era o$industrialisation is over) and that) *e *ill have to live at a 'uch lo*er level o$ energy.&o*ever) i$ *e re'ove the irrational use o$ energy then it is entirely !ossible to continueto have 'odern sensibilities and even Bco'$orts *ith alternative $or's o$ energy along

*ith a judicious 'i@ o$ $ossil $uels in s'all Huantities.

The 'ain !ur!ose o$ this essay is to !re!are a basis to acce!t the inevitability o$ thechange. "nce *e acce!t thisI it 'ay be !ossible to !lan a transition that *ill be s'oothand 'ay even be e@hilarating 1 as *e have seen in Cuba.

%or a s'oother transition) one basic rule is that the transition be incre'ental. As a general!olicy *e can

1. /ay B<o to every ne* coal) gas and nuclear energy !roject.

2. Reduce energy consu'!tion through energy auditing.

3. Reduce *aste due to BTrans'ission and (istribution losses.4. (evelo! the alternatives K solar) *ind) *ood gassi$iers) 'icro hydel etc. to their

$ull ca!acity. Concentrate on lo* !o*er local !rojects.5. Reduce consu'!tion o$ !etroleu' by using 'ore !ublic trans!ort and reducing

!ersonal auto'obile trans!ort vehicles.6. Reduce use o$ $ossil $uel =#P7> in coo+ing by using solar coo+ers) bio gas and

even *ood $uel.7. Change over to organic $ar'ing to reduce use o$ che'ical $ertiliDers and

!esticides.8. "n the *hole 'ove to*ards using 'uch less net energy in a 'ore eHuitable

$ashion.

7iven the !resent social syste') the rich and !o*er$ul have a greater resistance to changeand they *ill continue to carry on the irrational social) !olitical and econo'ic syste'.The reality ho*ever is that) technological $i@es alone do not solve !roble's. The solution*ill have to be holistic and *ill be carried out by the victi's o$ the !resent syste') thatis) the *or+ing !eo!le. "nly the organised *or+ing !eo!le *ith a rational !lan can bringabout such a transition. %or this) !eo!les struggles against ineHuity and injustice *illhave to continue and at the sa'e ti'e an i'!le'entable !lan $or a rational $ossil $uel $reesociety *ill have to be e@ecuted. The incre'ental changes 'entioned !reviously can onlybe carried out in the conte@t o$ such struggles and !lans.

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&?R? (" ? A<T T" 7"F

hat *ill be the alternative vision $or a !ost industrialca!italist societyF Thedo'inant alternative in the 20th century *as 8ar@is'. Today it !robably *ill be asynthesis o$ 8ar@ist and Anarchist visions enriched by ecological) $e'inist) regional)ethnic and host o$ conte'!orary !eo!les 'ove'ent. The technological basis $or sucha society *ill be based on 'ainly harvesting the /uns energy biologically. To dayCuba !rovides a living e@a'!le o$ the transition to such a society.

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T&? VE/E"< %"R A %"//E#

%5?# %R?? /"CE?TY

Critics o$ Ca!italis'

The events o$ the !ast have sho*n that ca!italis') as a syste') is the 'ain cause o$ the!resent crisis o$ global *ar'ing and other related crises. Et is also e'!irically evidentthat *ithin ca!italis' no alternatives *ill *or+.

E$ the burning o$ $ossil $uels causes global *ar'ing) then the alternative 'ust be a $ossil$uel $ree society. &o* does one go about itF As Albert ?instein once said) OYou cannotsolve a !roble' *ith the sa'e 'indset that caused it.

The 'indset that caused global *ar'ing is ca!italis' or 'ore generally industrialis'.This 'indset is a !roduct o$ the Endustrial Revolution) *hich a'ong other things)believed in conHuest o$ nature. /o any solution o$$ered *ithin this syste' *ill $ail. &encethere cannot be a solution *ithin the ca!italist syste'.

%ro' the very beginning there have been critics o$ ca!italis') both *ithin the EndustrialRevolution 'indset as *ell as outside o$ it. A'ong the $or'er the 'ost i'!ortant o$course is the 8ar@ist tradition. Although both 8ar@ and ?ngels had 'any dee! insightsinto the ecological da'age done by ca!italis') they *ere not o!!osed to industrialis'and B!rogress as such. hile their vie* 'ay not hel! us $or an alternative vision) their

vie* on *ho *ill carry out the change) na'ely the !roletariat) cannot be rejected. Et is thevicti's *ho have a 'a@i'u' sta+e in change and there$ore the victi's o$ global*ar'ing) the !oor and o!!ressed o$ the *orld) through their organisations li+e tradeunions) !easant associations and a *ide variety o$ !eo!les organisations *ill !lay acrucial role in bringing about a trans$or'ation.

The Visionaries

%or the vision $or a $ossil $uel $ree society) *e 'ay need to loo+ at other traditions. Thesevisionaries *ere not so'e *ooly headed !eo!le living in a drea' *orld) 'oving around*ith long beards and living an undisci!lined li$e *ithout care. They *ere highly re!uted

!ro$essionals) *ell established in the 'ainstrea' and through their !ractice $ound acritiHue o$ their $ields and established ne* and alternative disci!lines. Their vision doesnot actually use the *ords B$ossil $uel $ree society. This is a *ider vision o$ analternative society) *hich a'ong other things) *ill be based on lo* energy consu'!tion.

/uch a tradition *ould include Thoreau =alden>) Tolstoy =The 4ingdo' o$ 7od isithin You> 4ro!ot+in =%ields) %actories and or+sho!s>) 7andhi =&ind /*araj>) Albert&o*ard =An Agricultural Testa'ent>) 8asanobu %u+uo+a ="ne /tra* Revolution>)

29



/chu'acher =/'all is ,eauti$ul> and Patric+ 7eddes =Patric+ 7eddes in Endia>. Theirboo+s 'entioned in brac+ets are e@tre'ely i'!ortant !ath brea+ing *or+s. A brie$descri!tion o$ these boo+s and authors is !rovided in the a!!endi@.

8ainstrea' critics call this tradition as Bro'antic and in $act) Tolstoy did say) &o* can

there be ro'ance *ith electricityF ,ut !robably) a 'ore accurate descri!tion o$ thistradition is BPaci$ist Anarchis') though !robably e@ce!t 4ro!ot+in none o$ the' calledthe'selves OanarchistI but then) 4ro!ot+in *as not a !aci$istJ Anarchis' has a largenu'ber o$ di$$erent variations and it is di$$icult to de$ine it. &o*ever in general:

. They are anti state. BThe /tate has never been good to !oor and never *ill be. At bestthey *ould consent to having a 'ini'al s'all state *ielding lo* !olitical !o*er.2. They believed in $reedo') co1o!eration and 'utual aid rather than co'!etition. Their'otto: a $ree association o$ $ree !eo!le. They believed in s'all co''unities $ederated*ith other si'ilar co''unities.6. As a rule they believed in BRes!ect $or <ature and not in BConHuest o$ <ature. Their

a!!roach *as dee!ly ecological.

Thoreau) 4ro!ot+in and Tolstoy laid the $oundation o$ a !o*er$ul critic o$ ca!italist andindustrial society and *ere the !rinci!al visionaries $or an alternative anarchist society.?ach re!resented a di$$erent !ers!ective. Thoreau e'!hasiDed the i'!ortance o$ sel$1reliance) solitude) conte'!lation and closeness to nature in transcending the crasse@istence that is su!!osedly the lot o$ 'ost hu'ans. 4ro!ot+inMs e'!hasis *as on localorganisation) local !roduction) obviating the need $or central govern'ent. 4ro!ot+inMse'!hasis is also on agriculture and rural li$e. Tolstoy s!ea+s o$ the !rinci!le o$ non1resistance *hen con$ronted by violence and advocates non1violence as a solution tonationalist *oes.

&o*ever it *as 7andhi *ho translated 'any o$ these conce!ts into action $irst in /outhA$rica and later in Endia. &is in$luence s!read $ar and *ide. 8artin #uther 4ing and<elson 8andela are so'e o$ the i'!ortant e@a'!les o$ his reach beyond Endian shores.7andhi *as *ell a*are o$ the *ritings o$ Thoreau) 4ro!ot+in and Tolstoy and evencorres!onded *ith Tolstoy. &e blended his o*n uniHue vision in the boo+let &ind/*araj. /*araj is a +ind o$ Endividualist Anarchis'. Et *arrants a /tateless society) asaccording to 7andhi the overall i'!act o$ the /tate on the !eo!le is har'$ul. &e calledthe /tate a Qsoulless 'achineQ *hich) ulti'ately) does the greatest har' to 'an+ind. QEt is/*araj *hen *e learn to rule ourselves.Q The boo+let is a severe conde'nation o$B'odern civilisation. &e *as eHually critical o$ 'odern technology and its BcraDe $orlabour saving 'achinery1 the i'!etus behind *hich is not !hilanthro!y to save labourbut greed. &e advocated sel$1su$$icient villages based on rural industry. &e had anintegral and holistic vie* o$ agriculture) ani'al !o*er) industry) education and healthcare. Today the !roble's arising $ro' industrialisation and its reliance on $ossil $uelshave sho*n his ideas to be $ar sighted and !ossibly a!!ro!riate $or the !ost $ossil $uelage.

Around the sa'e ti'e) there *ere others *ho *ere also e@!ounding si'ilar ideas in

30



s!eci$ic $ields both in theory and !ractice. En agriculture) it *as /ir Albert &o*ard) the$ather o$ organic $ar'ing 'ove'ent) 8asanobu %u+uo+a o$ B<atural %ar'ing $a'e andPatric+ 7eddes in to*n !lanning. ?. %. /chu'acher gave a critiHue o$ econo'ics and7ross <ational Product =7<P> and develo!ed conce!ts o$ hu'an level s'all anda!!ro!riate technologies.

The Vision

E$ *e ta+e all these authors collectively) their *or+ and ideas o$$er a !o*er$ul critiHue o$industrialis' and ca!italis' and !rovide an alternate vision. 4ro!ot+in) 7andhi) &o*ardand %u+uo+a also o$$er a very concrete *ay o$ ho* to go about things. "ne co''onthread that runs through all o$ the' is a strong ethical attitude. 4ro!ot+in *as called BAnatheist saint. 7andhi is $a'ous $or his) BThe earth can !rovide $or everybodys needs butnot $or their greed and so on. <eedless to say) they had countless $ollo*ers both a'ong*or+ing !eo!le as *ell as !ro$essionals) social scientists and artists.

/o *hy did they not succeed or *hy did ca!italis' triu'!h in s!ite o$ the'F A shortans*er is: they *ere ahead o$ their ti'es. The 'aterial basis o$ ca!italis' i.e.concentrated source o$ energy resource li+e coal and oil a!!eared ine@haustible. Thetrade union 'ove'ent *as able to *rest so'e bene$its $or itsel$ in the 'idst o$ this!hase. Today several crises o$ ca!italis' have co'e together and are $eeding into eachother. These are global *ar'ing) !ea+ oil) $ood !roduction !ea+ing) inter1i'!erialistcontradictions escalating) and the anti1i'!erialists struggles 1 both at organised level as*ell as large s'all scale 'ove'ents all over the *orld. The era o$ industrialis' isco'ing to an end.

The colla!se o$ the ca!italist syste' does not auto'atically bring a ne* society. %or

e@a'!le in 8yan'ar =$or'erly ,ur'a> ,ur'a /hell too+ its last dro! o$ oil 'ore thansi@ty years ago leaving an e'!ty /hell behind. ,ut even today) ,ur'a is in *ilderness.<earer ho'e) ca!ital $le* $ro' est ,engal in the 0s and 0s. The #e$t %ront instead o$$ollo*ing Cubas e@a'!le) *hich it ad'ires) is bent on bringing ca!italis' bac+ at anycostJ

Today *e $ace three tas+s. %irst) is to articulate clearly the vision $or a $ossil $uel $reesociety in its entirety. Then engage *ith *or+ers unions and other 'ass organisations toevolve a concrete !rogra''e. 5nless the ideas are gri!!ed by the 'asses) they *ill not)as 8ao has said) beco'e a 'aterial $orce. The !rogra''e should give a concrete activityat the organised level as *ell as an ethical base $or an individual and a s'all grou! to live

and act. Thirdly *e have to continue the struggle against da'ages ca!italis' continuescause) such as big da's) ther'al !o*er !lants) ne* 'ining leases $or coal and iron) /?Nsand so on. These struggles *ill be e'!o*ered by a !ositive vision o$ the $uture.

hat *ould a %ossil %uel %ree /ociety loo+ li+eF

Et is neither !ossible nor desirable to synthesiDe the vie*s o$ these great !eo!le'entioned above. Et is best that *e read the' in their o*n *ords and absorb *hat *e

31



need. #et there be diversity. &o*ever they do !rovide a basis $or a $e* !rinci!les andhel! us to visualiDe *hat the $uture society 'ay loo+ li+e.

Et is o$ course di$$icult to !redict the $uture. e can only have drea's and visions aboutit. "ne *ay to begin is by addressing the Huestion: *hat *ould *e li+e it to beF And then

ta+e the discussion to*ards *hat its i'!lications *ould be $or todays society. A $e* nonnegotiable guide lines to build on could be:

. &u'an beings are a !art o$ natureI they have to live *ith it and not o$$ it.2. ithin hu'an societies there should be eHuity.6. Resist the sche'e o$ centralised !olitical !o*er being in the hands o$ a $e*I!articularly that o$ the state and govern'ent. At best) a 'ini'al s'all state.;. /'all sel$1'anaged societies based on the !rinci!le o$ Ba $ree association o$ $ree!eo!le.-. The technological base o$ such a society *ill be to 'ove to*ards ecologically sound!rocesses li+e organic $ar'ing) hu'ane use o$ do'esticated ani'als in $ar'ing !ractices)

leather and *ood as 'ain ra* 'aterials etc. 1 not at all i'!lying the co'!lete abandon o$'odern sensibilities) scienti$ic and technological advances.. The 'ain agenda $or hu'anity $or the ne@t thirty years or so *ill be to restore theearths ecological health that has been so severely da'aged by ca!italistic a!!roaches.. A holistic a!!roach to health) education) culture and sciences. They should beintegrated *ith the 'ain agenda o$ the society *hile 'aintaining a creative diversity o$a!!roaches.

Possible Reorientations

. Ad'inistratively 'anageable regional reorientation on the basis o$ ecologicalbio1

geogra!hic) cultural and linguistic =dialect> considerations such as Telengana) Vidarbha)8al*a) ,undel+hand) A*adh) ,hoj!ur etc. As an e@ercise) one can list nearly 00 suchregions *ithin the Endian subcontinent.

2. The above could be $ederated regionally) again) as large bio1geogra!hic regions suchas the (eccan) estern 7hats) 7angetic Plains) <orth1?ast Endia etc. These 'ay be$urther $ederated *ithin even larger land'asses such as /outh Asia. There are already!recedents in this direction 1 the /ARCC countries) ?uro!ean 5nion etc. 1 *ithcoo!erative and collaborative endeavoursI even though ecological concerns andsustainability 'ay not have been their co''on starting !oint.

6. hile there *ill be rural and urban centers) there *ill be continuity. Rural regions *illhave urban $acilities and urban areas *ill not be just concrete jungles. Et *ill beso'ething li+e !arts o$ !resent day 4erala.

;. 5rban Centres: ?ach o$ these ad'inistratively inde!endent entities *ould have a $e*large and s'all urban centers *ith a !o!ulation o$ 0)000 to - la+hs. They *ill haveinstitutions $or acade'ic !ursuits) research) so!histicated health services) art and culturalcenters) in$rastructure $acility $or s'all industrial enter!rises related to $ood !rocessing)

32



housing) clothing) building 'aterial etc. 8uch o$ the industrial activity *ould be relatedto recycling and 'aintenance. "ne o$ the 'ain activities *ould be segregating *aste atsource and recycling o$ urban solid *aste. The bul+ o$ *hich) being biodegradable *ouldbe 'ade into co'!ost to $eed into urban vegetable and $ruit gro*ing $ar's and gardens.Thus the cities *ould be Bgarden cities !roducing their o*n vegetables and $ruits. 8any

'odern as!ects o$ li$e *ill re'ain) such as !hones and internet) o!erating on e$$icient useo$ energy $ro' rene*able sources.

-. ,ul+ o$ the co''unity *ould co'!rise o$ sel$1su$$icient naturalorganic $ar'ers)artisans and s+illed !ersonnel !roviding ancillary services to a $ar' based econo'y.Endustry and services *ould be in the areas o$ health care) education) $ood !rocessing)ani'al husbandry) leather *or+) car!entry) s'ithy) 'etal cra$ts) te@tiles) tailoring) hairdressing) s!orts) entertain'ent the arts etc. /chool) library and cultural centers *ould be a$acility $or all children and adults. They *ill be geared to the i''ediate agenda o$restoring ecological stability.

. There *ould be a 'ajor *orld*ide conservation !roject to save the $lora and $aunathat has been on the verge o$ e@tinction. This *ould be done !rinci!ally throughrestoration o$ habitat by releasing 'ore land to $orests.

Changes that 'ay occur

8any things that *e ta+e today as given 'ay not be there in a $ossil $uel $ree society.(e'ands have been 'ade in the !ast and the !resent by individuals and 'ass 'ove'ents$or such a change. Ta+en together) it 'ay be di$$icult to acce!t the' allI also) there isal*ays a Huantu' o$ resistance to change.

. To begin *ith) one can see 'ove'ents) negotiations) ca'!aigns) agitations) de'andsetc. $or s'aller less !o*er$ul states. "n the other hand are continued instances o$resistance and o!!osition to 'ega states *ith !o*er$ul ar'ies) *ea!onry) ca!italisticecono'ies etc. ,y i'!lication) there is an o!!osition to ar'a'ent industry and *ea!onso$ nuclear *ar$are.

2. #i+e*ise) *ith $ossil $uels de!leting) the auto'obile industry *ould have to scaledo*n) $or) there is really no e$$ective solution $or auto'obiles. Enstead) !ublic trans!ortsuch as buses) tra's and rail*ays *ould gain !ractical signi$icance. This *ould becou!led *ith bicycles) cycle ric+sha*s) horse and don+ey carts etc. "ne great bene$it*ould be that) air !ollution *ill reduce drastically.

6. &o!e$ully) alcoholis') use o$ narcotics and tobacco *ould beco'e negligible since!art o$ the reason $or large1scale addiction is alienation in a ca!italist society.

;. ith better and healthier $ood) cleaner environ'ent and a less stress$ul li$eI the need$or health care services 1 *hich is the second largest industry today 1 *ould reducedrastically.

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-. As a co'bined e$$ect o$ $ar'ing *ith organic 'ethods and reduced availability o$!etroche'icals) the che'ical $ertiliser and !esticide industry *ould di'inishsigni$icantly. ,io1$ertilisers and bio1!est controllers *ill beco'e 'ore !o!ular. "n the*hole less o$ even these *ould be reHuired.

. Co''ercial agriculture *ould be reduced and 'ore land *ill be released $or $orestryand co''unity co''on use. Cotton *ould be the 'ain non1$ood cro! and sugarcanecultivation *ill decrease.

. Petroche'ical industry as a *hole *ill be reduced considerably and *e *ill be rid o$the 'enace o$ !lastic bags all across the urban landsca!e.

. The need $or !o*er industry *ould reduce as ar'a'ent and large govern'entsconsu'e a lot o$ irrational !o*er. The reduced !o*er need could be 'et *ith largely bydecentralised !o*er sources such as solar) *ind and 'ini1hydel !rojects. They could)ho*ever be cou!led *ith a s'all 'i@ o$ coal and oil energy. #arge 'ega !o*er !rojects)

*hich are dangerous to ecosyste' and are very heavily !olluting *ould gradually vanish.

9. The de'and $or iron and steel industry *ould also co'e do*n. A lot o$ recycling o$e@isting but no longer use$ul iron and steel eHui!'ent and 'achinery *ill beco'ei'!ortant.

0. The de'and $or 'inerals *ould also decrease. <o 'ajor ne* 'ining !rojects *ouldco'e and so'e o$ the e@isting 'ines *ould be e@hausted and close do*n. 8ining *aterthrough dee! tube *ells *ould co'e do*n drastically. ater conservation and rain *aterharvesting *ill beco'e i'!ortant.

0. &igher education and research *ould be ai'ed at restoring ecological balances. Thusthere *ould be e@tensive good research in soil $ertility) bio !est controllers) $orestry) riversyste's) ecology) air strea's etc. Research and develo!'ent o$ alternative rene*ablesources o$ energy and lo* energy nano technology *ould also !lay a very crucial role.%unda'ental research in sciences as *ell as in hu'anities *ould $acilitate in thedevelo!'ent o$ these conce!ts.

Resistance to change

<or'ally resistance to change a'ong ordinary !eo!le di'inishes *ith ti'e) non1availability and *ith ne* generation. &o*ever this does not ha!!en *ith !eo!le in

!o*er. They o!!ose it *ith !o*er. hat it 'eans is that !o*er$ul classes and nations*ill continue in their old *ays. The scra'ble $or de!leting resources o$ oil and 'inerals*ill continue to lead to s'all and big *ars. Et can also lead to a *orld *ar +ind o$situation) *hich) this ti'e around) *ith nuclear) che'ical and biological *ea!ons candestroy al'ost all living beings. /o *e cannot slac+en in our e@isting 'ove'ents o$anti*ar) antinuclear *ea!ons and energy) o!!osition to 'ega da's and !olluting !o*erand other industries. <or should *e $orget the daily struggle o$ billions o$ !eo!le just tosurvive. (uring the transition !eriod these struggles *ill be even 'ore !ain$ul. e *ill

34



$ace job losses) 'alnutrition) hunger) illnesses) suicides and so on. hat *e need to do isto strengthen all these struggles and 'ass organisations li+e *or+er unions) !easantassociations and other civil society organisations and engage *ith the' on the the'es o$a $ossil $uel $ree society.

This is one individuals) that is) 'y drea'. E invite you to join 'e both in *or+ingto*ards the dis'antling o$ ca!italis' as *ell as to drea' on your o*n.

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A!!endi@

T&? VE/E"<ARE?/

6alden by Henry 2a"id 7horeau 3(*(89(*:+5 !ublished in -;) e'!hasiDes thei'!ortance o$ sel$1reliance) solitude) conte'!lation) and closeness to nature intranscending the crass e@istence that is su!!osedly the lot o$ 'ost hu'ans. 6alden isneither a novel nor a true autobiogra!hy) but a social critiHue o$ the estern orld) *itheach cha!ter heralding so'e as!ect o$ hu'anity that needed to be either renounced or!raised.

Fields# Factories and 6orkshops is a land'ar+ anarchist te@t by Peter Kropotkin 3(*;+9()+(5) and arguably one o$ the 'ost in$luential and !ositive state'ents o$ the anarchist!olitical !osition. &is ins!iration has !er'eated into the 20th and 2st centuries as alasting vision o$ a 'ore har'onious *ay o$ living $or a ne* *orld. To a large degree4ro!ot+inMs e'!hasis is on local organisation) local !roduction obviating the need $or

centralised govern'ents. 4ro!ot+inMs vision is also on agriculture and rural li$e) 'a+ing ita contrasting !ers!ective to the largely industrial thin+ing o$ co''unists and socialists.&is $ocus on local !roduction leads to his vie* that a country should 'anu$acture its o*ngoods and gro* its o*n $ood) 'a+ing i'!ort and e@!ort unnecessary. To these ends headvocated irrigation $or boosting local $ood !roduction ability. Critics say he is rathero!ti'istic in his *or+s) ho*ever the !roble's arising $ro' industrialisation and itsreliance on $ossil $uels has sho*n his ideas to be $ar sighted and !ossibly a!!ro!riate $orthe !ost $ossil $uel age.

7he Kingdom of God is 6ithin <ou) the non1$iction 'agnu' o!us o$ =eo 7olstoy 3(*+*9()(,5# is the cul'ination o$ thirty years o$ TolstoyMs Christian thin+ing. Et lays out a

road'a! $or a ne* organisation o$ society based on literal Christian inter!retations.Tolstoy ta+es the vie*!oint on QThou shalt not 'urderQ literally and there$ore that allgovern'ents *ho *age *ar are directly a$$ronting the Christian !rinci!les that shouldguide all li$e. En the boo+ Tolstoy s!ea+s o$ the !rinci!le o$ non1resistance *hencon$ronted by violence) as taught by 3esus. &e advocates non1violence as a solution tonationalist *oes and as a 'eans $or seeing the hy!ocrisy o$ the church. These *ords had!ro$ound in$luence on 8ahat'a 7andhi. &e *rote in his autobiogra!hy 7he Story of My 0!periments with 7ruth# that this boo+ Qover*hel'edQ hi' and Qle$t an abidingi'!ressionQ. 7andhi listed TolstoyMs boo+) as one o$ the 'ost i'!ortant 'odernin$luences in his li$e.

%or Endians) Gandhi 3(*:)9();*5 and his boo+let Hind Swara> i''ediately co'e to'ind. Et is a 'ani$esto) *hich is) at once a critiHue o$ B?nglish civilisation =industrialsociety> and a !rogra''e $or rebuilding Endia. The boo+let is a severe conde'nation o$B'odern civilisation. &e *as eHually critical o$ 'odern technology and its BcraDe $orlabour saving 'achinery) the i'!etus behind *hich is not the !hilanthro!y to savelabour but greed. &e advocated sel$1su$$icient villages based on rural industry. &e had anintegral and holistic vie* o$ agriculture) ani'al !o*er) industry) education and healthcare. Today the !roble's arising $ro' industrialisation and its reliance on $ossil $uels

36



have sho*n his ideas to be $ar sighted and !ossibly a!!ro!riate $or the !ost1$ossil $uelage.

/*araj is a +ind o$ Endividualist Anarchis'. Et advocates a stateless society) as accordingto 7andhi the overall i'!act o$ the state on the !eo!le is har'$ul. &e called the state a

Qsoulless 'achineQ *hich) ulti'ately) does the greatest har' to 'an+ind. Ado!ting/*araj 'eans i'!le'enting a syste' *hereby state 'achinery is virtually non e@istentand the real !o*er directly resides in the hands o$ !eo!le. 7andhi said) BPo*er resides inthe !eo!le) they can use it at any ti'e. This !hiloso!hy rests inside an individual *hohas to learn to be 'aster o$ his o*n sel$ and s!reads u!*ards to the level o$ hisco''unity *hich 'ust be de!endent only on itsel$. BEt is /*araj *hen *e learn to ruleourselves.

7andhi *as undaunted by the tas+ o$ i'!le'enting such a uto!ian vision in Endia. &ebelieved that by trans$or'ing enough individuals and co''unities) society at large*ould change. &e said) BEt 'ay be taunted *ith the retort that this is all 5to!ian and)

there$ore not *orth a single thought... #et Endia live $or the true !icture) though neverrealisable in its co'!leteness. e 'ust have a !ro!er !icture o$ *hat *e *ant be$ore *ecan have so'ething a!!roaching it.

1n 1gricultural 7estament by Sir 1lbert Howard 3(*8?9();85) $irst !ublished in 9;0) iscredited by so'e *ith launching the organic $ar'ing agricultural 'ove'ent. Et $ocuseson the nature and 'anage'ent o$ soil $ertility) and notably) e@!lores co'!osting. At ati'e *hen 'odern) che'ical1based industrialised agriculture *as just beginning toradically alter $ood !roduction) it advocated natural !rocesses rather than 'an1'adein!uts as the su!erior a!!roach to $ar'ing. En 92;) he set u! the Endore Enstitute o$ PlantEndustry at Endore in central Endia. &ere he develo!ed the conce!ts o$ <atures %ar'ing.&e argued that since natural ecosyste's are stable over long !eriods o$ ti'e) in $ar'ingtoo) *e should i'itate as $ar as !ossible the local natural ecosyste'. &e observed $our!rinci!les in nature: . 8i@ed cro!!ing is the ruleI 2. The soil is al*ays !rotected $ro'the direct action o$ sun) rain and *indI 6. The $orest 'anures itsel$I ;. Cro!s andlivestoc+ loo+ a$ter the'selves. 7andhi *as a*are o$ his *or+ and visited hi' in Endore.&e re*rote his !a'!hlet on co'!osting and !ublished it in the Hari>an% "ne o$ 7andhisco1*or+ers) 8ira ,en) devoted her li$e to !o!ularising co'!osting 'ethods in re'oteEndian villages based on &o*ards *or+.

Masanobu Fukuoka# 3()(?9+,,*5) author o$ 7he 'ne9Straw /e"olution) 7he /oad Backto .ature and 7he .atural 6ay 'f Farming) is one o$ the !ioneers o$ no1till graincultivation. %u+uo+a !ractised a syste' o$ $ar'ing he re$ers to as Bnatural $ar'ing.Although so'e o$ his !ractices are s!eci$ic to 3a!an) the governing !hiloso!hy o$ his'ethod has success$ully been a!!lied around the *orld. En Endia) natural $ar'ing is o$tenre$erred to as BRishi 4heti. The essence o$ %u+uo+aMs 'ethod is to re!roduce naturalconditions as closely as !ossible. Q<atural $ar'ing is not just $or gro*ing cro!s) it is $orthe cultivation and !er$ection o$ hu'an beings.Q

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Small @s Beautiful by 0% F% Schumacher 3()((9()885# originally !ublished in 96 is acollection o$ essays that brought /chu'acherMs ideas to a *ider audience) at a criticalti'e in history. /chu'acherMs *or+ coincided *ith the gro*th o$ ecological concerns and*ith the birth o$ environ'entalis' and he beca'e a hero to 'any in the environ'ental'ove'ent. En the $irst cha!ter 1 The Proble' o$ Production) /chu'acher !oints out that

our econo'y is unsustainable. The natural resources =es!ecially $ossil $uels>) are treatedas e@!endable inco'es) *hen in $act they should be treated as ca!ital) since they are notrene*able and thus subject to eventual de!letion. &e $urther !oints out that) si'ilarly) theca!acity o$ nature to resist !ollution is li'ited as *ell. /chu'acherMs !hiloso!hy is a!hiloso!hy o$ enoughness) a!!reciating both hu'an needs and li'itations) anda!!ro!riate use o$ technology. Et gre* out o$ his study o$ village1based econo'ics) *hichhe later ter'ed B,uddhist ?cono'ics. &e $aults conventional econo'ic thin+ing $or$ailing to consider the 'ost a!!ro!riate scale $or an activity) blasts notions that Bgro*th isgood) and that Bbigger is better) and Huestions the a!!ro!riateness o$ using 'ass!roduction in develo!ing countriesI !ro'oting instead) B!roduction by the 'asses./chu'acher *as one o$ the $irst econo'ists to Huestion the a!!ro!riateness o$ using

7ross <ational Product =7<P> to 'easure hu'an *ell being) e'!hasising that Bthe ai'ought to be to obtain the 'a@i'u' a'ount o$ *ell being *ith the 'ini'u' a'ount o$consu'!tion.

Patrick Geddes in @ndia is a collection o$ e@cer!ts o$ *ritings o$ Patrick Geddes 3(*A;9()?+5 *hile he *as in Endia. &e *as a /cottish to*n !lanner and *as in Endia bet*een9- and 99. En 7eddess *ords OTo*n1!lanning is not 'ere to*n !lanning) not even*or+ !lanning. E$ it is to be success$ul) it 'ust be) $ol+ !lanning. 7eddes advocates tree!lanting K es!ecially $ruit yielding trees and vegetable gardens as integral to to*n!lanning. BE insist that an enor'ous !ro!ortion o$ the diseases o$ children and o$ 'enand *o'en1*ould disa!!ear i$ there *ere a substantial increase o$ $resh vegetables and$ruits in their diet. %urther) everyone +no*s that the 'ost destructive o$ the diseases o$Endia are diseases o$ the ali'entary canal and that these diseases are co''unicated int*o *ays) by dust and by !olluted *ater. These !lanting !ro!osals *ould greatlydi'inish both the dis!ersal o$ dust and the !ollution o$ *ater.

There are three central the'es in 7eddes *or+. %irst is BRes!ect $or <ature. &isa!!roach is dee!ly ecological e'!hasising a citys relationshi! to its *ater resources) the!ro'otion o$ !ar+s and trees) the i'!ortance o$ recycling) and the lessening o$de!endence on the resources o$ the hinterland. The second the'e is BRes!ect $or(e'ocracy. &e insisted that the residents o$ a city 'ust hel! design !lans 'ade $orthe'. The third the'e is BRes!ect $or tradition) Ba!!reciation o$ all that is best in the olddo'estic architecture o$ Endian cities and o$ rene*ing it *hen it has $allen a*ay.

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<?7ATEV? ?<TR"PY A<(

/5/TAE<A,E#ETY

technology choice for a fossil fuel free society

The 'ost $unda'ental technological basis o$ a $ossil $uel $ree society is harvesting the/uns energy biologically. The theoretical issues o$ entro!y and negative entro!y are!resented here. "nly the e@a'!le o$ agriculture *ill be ta+en u!) though other areas suchas energy) housing) trans!ort etc. are eHually i'!ortant.

Et is not as i$ in a $ossil $uel $ree society other sources o$ energy *ill not be used at all.&arnessing direct heat $ro' the /un itsel$ is a di$$erent !rocess) that is) it is not harvestedbiologically. 5se o$ hydro!o*er in the $or' o$ *ater 'ills or use o$ gravity in directing*ater $lo*s is another e@a'!le. ?ven 'etals and $ossil $uels 'ay be in use in a li'ited*ay.

hen !eo!le tal+ o$ $ossil $uel $ree society or sustainability) o$ten ter's li+e eco1$riendlytechnologies) a!!ro!riate technologies using hu'an and ani'al !o*er and so on areused. Critics o$ten in$er to this as tal+ing o$ going bac+ to nature) being !ri'itive)unscienti$ic and as i'!ossibility. This article atte'!ts to !rovide logic $or eco1$riendly)

a!!ro!riate technologies using hu'an and ani'al !o*er.

?ntro!y

En 'any !rocesses in 'odern technology) $or e@a'!le) in the conversion o$ energy $ro'one $or' to another) the net availability o$ energy decreases. This decrease o$ availableenergy is called entro!y. B?ntro!y is a 'easure o$ that !art o$ the ther'al energy o$ aclosed syste' that is not available $or conversion into 'echanical *or+. The la* o$entro!y is +no*n as the second la* o$ ther'odyna'ics. The second la* holds that theentro!y o$ the 5niverse invariably increases *ith every trans$er o$ energy event. There isal*ays so'e a'ount o$ energy that is trans$or'ed into an unusable or unavailable $or'

o$ energy. Et is on this !rinci!le that engines *or+. All such !rocesses have e$$icienciesless than one. That is) the net out!ut energy is al*ays less than in!ut. As a rule entro!y)that is) the unusable or unavailable $or' o$ energy is increasing. e are 'oving $ro'organiDation to disorganiDation or $ro' order to disorder. The entro!y o$ a closed syste'tends to get higher as ti'e !rogresses because disorganiDation increases. The la* o$entro!y is considered to be a basic la* o$ nature and the 5niverse.

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<egative ?ntro!y

&o*ever) living things a!!ear to behave in a di$$erent 'anner. All living things atte'!tto 'odi$y their environ'ent $or their o*n needs) by creating *hat $or the' is order. En

9;6) ?r*in /chrdinger) <obel #aureate in Physics) used the conce!t o$ Bnegativeentro!y in his boo+ Bhat is li$eF

This boo+ *as *ritten $or the lay'an. Today it ran+s a'ong the 'ost in$luential boo+s o$scienti$ic *riting o$ t*entieth century. Et *as one o$ the s!urs to the birth o$ 'olecularbiology and the subseHuent discovery o$ the structure o$ (<A. Et attracted 'anyscientists to biology.

The creation o$ order is one de$inition o$ negative entro!y. "ne o$ the de$initions o$ li$e'ight be the ability o$ li$e $or' to create order. A living syste' i'!orts negative entro!yand stores it. #i$e $eeds on negative entro!yJ Roc+s or other inani'ate objects do not

!ossess this !ro!erty called negative entro!y. (eath 'ight be de$ined as the inability o$ aliving thing to continue to create negative entro!y $or its use. As long as a li$e $or'e@ists) it creates negative entro!y) *hich *e observe as the creation o$ order.

hat is the source o$ negative entro!yF The /uns energy is highly organiDed and carriedby !hotons. "ur ,ios!here absorbs this energy and then releases it bac+ to the 5niverse1the global balance o$ energy is Dero. The blac+ body radiation o$ the /un at ate'!erature o$ -00 degrees 4elvin is absorbed by the ,ios!here and the blac+ bodyradiation $ro' the ,ios!here and ?arth at 20 degrees 4elvin $lo*s to the 5niverse)*hich is at a te'!erature o$ 6 degrees 4elvin.

&o* does li$e steal energy $ro' the /unF This is done through a !rocess called!hotosynthesis. En this !rocess the green 'atter =chloro!hyll> in !lants converts the /unsenergy to usable energy $or the !lant gro*th. &erbivores and carnivores sustain andre!roduce the'selves by using the /uns energy through !lants. This !rocess is notavailable to non1living things.

Thus) biological !rocesses creating negative entro!y) unli+e the 'echanical !rocesses)!roduce 'ore energy than they ta+e. The e$$iciency is al*ays greater than one. Ty!icallyit is about 2.- =this does not violate the la* o$ conservation o$ energy 1 the rest co'es$ro' the /un>. That is $or one unit o$ energy =calories> in!ut) say in a B!ri'itivesustainable $ar' in the $or' o$ hu'an and ani'al energyI *e get t*o calories o$

consu'able energy out!utJ &o* do *e get this 'ore out!ut $ro' less in!utF As *e saidabove) *e are not counting the in!ut $ro' the /un K either $or 'echaniDed or traditionalagriculture.

Co'!are this *ith A'erican Bagribusiness) *hich in 9 too+ - calories o$ $ertiliDers)tractor $uel and de!reciation) hu'an labour and che'ical s!rays to !roduce one calorie o$$ood and an incredible e@tra 20 calories o$ energy K all $ro' $ossil $uels 1 to clean)!ac+age) trans!ort and coo+ the $ood ready $or eating in the city. Thus the !ri'itive sel$1

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su$$icient !easant li$e is about -0 ti'es 'ore e$$icient than industrialised $ood!roduction. The reason being) !ri'itive agriculture uses 'ainly biological or li$e!rocesses *hich have nor'ally e$$iciencies greater than one *hereas industrial !rocesses'ainly use non1biological in!ut and !rocesses. =BThe Road to AltoM) by Robin 3en+ins)Pluto Press) 99>.

Cuban ?@a'!le

En Cuba) organic $ar'ing has been carried out on a large scale. The science o$ agro1ecology has been highly develo!ed and 'any scientists in Cuba are turning to this $ieldbecause this a!!ears to be very i'!ortant $or the $uture o$ our Planet. ,elo* is ane@a'!le o$ such a research *hich is relevant to this discussion.

=,"Z>

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[

Integrated agroecological s!ste"s as a #a! $or#ard $or Cuban agriculture

A three1year e@!eri'ent *as carried out to study di$$erent agro1ecological livestoc+1 cro!syste's under di$$erent soils and cli'ates) *ithout irrigation and using on1$ar' resources$or ani'al and !lant nutrition. %ive $ar's) $our in the !rocess o$ conversion and the $i$th*ith t*elve years o$ establish'ent *ere studied. ?ight sustainability indicators=re$orestation) total s!ecies) $ood !roducts) labour intensity) !roduction o$ organic$ertilisers) yields) energy e$$iciency and 'il+ !roduction> *ere de$ined. These relate tothe 'ain !roductive and environ'ental !roble's $aced by the livestoc+ sector due to thes!ecialised agricultural 'odel that has !revailed in Cuba over the last $e* years. Theseindicators *ere 'easured) re!resented on a radial gra!h and evaluated through an

analytical descri!tion and 'ultivariate analysis.

,iodiversity increased a$ter the establish'ent o$ integrated syste's. /tarting $ro's!ecialised 'il+ !roduction syste's) diversi$ication allo*ed $or bet*een 60 and ;0 'ore!roducts. %he integrated s!ste"s increased the energ! e$$icienc! $ro" & to ' )oulesroduced er )oule o$ inut+ #abour intensity decreased yearly a$ter a greater initiallabour de'and reHuired $or establishing the syste'. Production o$ high Huality organic$ertiliser =2 to ; tonnesha> *as a 'ajor resource to cover the cro! nutrient reHuire'ents.Productivit! increased b! u to ,+- tonnes.ha including both ani"al and croroduction+ There *as so'e $luctuation bet*een ani'al and cro! !roduction) but the$inal result *as higher syste' !roductivity.

The results o$ the study sho* that integrated ecological livestoc+1cro! syste's can!rovide su$$icient ca!acity and !otential to sustain intensive !roduction based onavailable natural resource 'anage'ent alternatives.=%ro' /ernando1/unes0on1ote and 0arta 0on1ote2 Pastures and Forage /esearch @nstitute 3@@PF5# P'Bo!;,+)# CP(,;,,# Ha"ana# Cuba% 0mail mgahonaip%etecsa%cu 5

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[

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mailto:[email protected]




/ustainability

8uch o$ the discussion on sustainability is about !lanet earths ability to su!!ort li$e atthe !resent rate o$ e@!loitation by 'an. The 'ain !roble' is the use o$ $ossil $uels as the

'ain source o$ energy. This Bdead source o$ energy can only increase entro!y.

&istorically civiliDations bro+e do*n *hen the bias to*ards negative entro!y *asre!laced by a bias to*ards !ositive entro!y. That is *hat is ha!!ening today. Ca!italis'has a tendency to increase Bconstant ca!ital that is 'achinery) and reduce Bvariableca!ital that is labour. En our ter'inology the share o$ entro!y generating technology+ee!s on increasing at the cost o$ negative entro!y !rocesses. This a!!lies to sources o$energy) such as $ossil $uel as against biological $uel such as *ood) charcoal) agro1*asteetc. as *ell as !roducts such as !lastic $urniture against *ood $urniture and so on.Todays 'ain crisis) na'ely cli'ate change and global *ar'ing is !ri'arily a result o$these entro!y1generating !rocesses. E$ *e continue *ith this) not only the !resent

civiliDation is doo'ed) !robably the very e@istence o$ the hu'an s!ecie is doo'ed.

A'ong civilisations only China and Endia created sustainable agricultural sur!luses overcenturies and survived continuously until recently. This they did by retaining the $ertilityo$ the soil over centuries. This *as done by using a 'i@ o$ cro!s) cro! rotation and usingco'!ost. The Endian artisan) *eaver) cobbler and !otter 'ainly used biological in!uts inter's o$ ra* 'aterial and labour !rocesses. Today these civiliDations also are ta+ing thesa'e road o$ ca!italis' and are $acing si'ilar !ros!ects.

Technology Choice

/o $or sustainability) the technology choice should be such that *e 'a@i'iDe biological!rocesses in our technology. This i'!lies organic $ar'ing and a host o$ a!!ro!riatetechnologies that !eo!le have been tal+ing about. This does not 'ean *e are going bac+or that *e are being !ri'itive and unscienti$ic.

/cience does not 'ean using the la*s o$ science to BconHuer nature or e@!loit it. /ucha 'eaning acHuired i'!ortance 'ainly in the industrial era *here the logic o$ ca!italis'needed 'ore and 'ore !roduction. These together de$ine the Bdevelo!'ent 'odels andBgro*th 'odels that are res!onsible $or 'uch o$ resource de!letion and environ'entaldegradation and global *ar'ing. These are essentially unsustainable 'odels.

/cience) historically) 'eant understanding the la*s o$ nature and living in har'ony *ithit. Agriculture calendars *ere !re!ared on such +no*ledge and !eo!le organised theiragricultural activities on the basis o$ these calendars. Peo!le learned to live *ith $loodsand bene$ited $ro' the $resh soil that *as brought *ith it) instead o$ Bcontrolling $loods*ith building da's and e'ban+'ents. #i$e on earth has been sustained by harvesting the$usion reactor in the /un rather than building a $ission reactor on earth itsel$J ,iologicalsciences are 'ore co'!le@ than 'aterial sciences. 8a@i'ising biological !rocesses inour technology i'!lies 'ore and better science as *ell as using sensible achieve'ents o$

42



!revious generations. This also i'!lies sustainable 'odels o$ near Dero gro*th.

There are other as!ects o$ using biological !rocesses that cannot be 'easured so easily. Atree gives $ruits) leaves) $uel) ti'ber) !rovides shade) shelter to birds and a host o$ insects.

Et also absorbs carbon dio@ide and gives out o@ygen. Et lets the rain*ater reach the earthgently and slo*ly. hen it dies all o$ it goes bac+ to nature through the activities o$insects and $ungi and sa!ro!hytic $lora.

There are aesthetic as!ects too. 8any o$ us ad'ire handicra$ts that are 'ade $ro' naturalra* 'aterials. En all our social and religious $unctions and 'arriages 'ost o$ us !re$erdecorations and clothes 'ade $ro' natural 'aterial.

En s!orts too *e can see this. ,i+e enthusiasts love the thrill o$ s!eed and traversingrough terrain. ,ut horse riding can also give si'ilar thrill and cover even rougherterrains. And the latter is 'ore sustainable.

En Conclusion

#i$e on earth *as sustainable be$ore the industrial revolution and de$orestation becausethe entro!y o$ the ,ios!here *as decreasing continuously. This *as so due to the $actthat hu'an beings *ere still 'ainly de!endent on biological !rocesses $or their survivaland gro*th. /table and sustainable civiliDation li+e the Chinese and the Endian) *ere builton such technologies. The !resent crisis o$ cli'ate change) *hich is leading to thee@tinction o$ li$e on earth) is due to the $act that in the last 200 years) non1biological)entro!y increasing technologies have beco'e do'inant.

A!art $ro' technology there is 'uch else that is *rong *ith ca!italis'. Et is 'ainlyirrational !roduction and consu'!tion. /o'e esti'ate it to be as 'uch as 90 L o$ allactivities in ter's o$ 'oney. These include the 'ilitary industrial co'!le@ and 'edicoindustrial co'!le@) 'uch o$ the e@tractive industry) al'ost all o$ $ossil $uel industry)irrational use o$ agriculture to su!!ort tobacco) alcohol and narcotic industry and so on.

There is a strong correlation bet*een ca!italist irrational !roduction and consu'!tionand entro!y generating technologies. "$ course sustainable technologies *ill have so'enon1living things such as 'etals in hand1tools and so'e ca!italist !roduction such astobacco can be biological in origin. &ence the !ro'otion o$ technologies that have highcontent o$ negative entro!ybiological !rocesses and eli'ination o$ irrationalities o$

ca!italist !roduction and consu'!tion can ensure a sustainable $uture.

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C5,A ET&"5T E/8/

road to a fossil fuel free society

Cuba is *here OPea+ "il hit in 99 1 in an arti$icial 'anner 1 because in the *orld as a*hole) there *as no shortage o$ oil. "nly the /oviet syste' had begun to colla!se andCuba sto!!ed receiving !etroleu' $ro' the /oviets. This *as its only source because o$the 5/ e'bargo. Cuba *as !ut to its greatest test and it !assed *ith $lying coloursJ Theyear 99) ushered in the B/!ecial Period in Cuba) a scenario that has hit the rest o$ the*orld no*. The *orld) ho*ever) is not as !re!ared to 'eet it as Cuba *as. En the case o$Cuba *e can see the *hole e@!erience o$ Pea+ oil) econo'ic crisis and recovery. ?ven*ith regards to global *ar'ing) *hich has beco'e a 'ajor crisis no*) Cuba has

achieved all the goals o$ reducing its carbon e'issions. Thus Cuba has lessons $or all onho* to 'eet the !resent challenge.

The *ord Bis's re!resents a grou! o$ *ords ending in Bis') li+e colonialis') neocolonialis') ca!italis') socialis') co''unis' and anarchis'. Although these *ords*ill be used in the te@t) the idea is that the e@isting 'eaning o$ these *ords should notbog do*n the reader. hile the Cuban govern'ent calls itsel$ BA /ocialist /tate) these*ords have di$$erent i'!lications in di$$erent historical conte@ts. The e@!erience o$ Cubais too i'!ortant to ignore and one should be !re!ared to learn *ithout these !re1conceived notions.

The s!ecial !eriod in Cuba is li+e a real ti'e 'odelI large enough to !rove its viability.&o*ever it is never easy to re!eat *hat so'e one else has done. <orth 4orea too $acedthe sa'e !roble' as Cuba did in 99 but did not ta+e the !ath o$ Cuba. TodayNi'bab*e is $acing the *orst econo'ic crisis and one cannot say ho* the country *illdeal *ith the set bac+s.

The story o$ Cuba

Cuba is an archi!elago) that is) it is a grou! o$ islands situated in the Caribbean /eabet*een the t*o A'ericas. There are t*o 'ain islands1Esle o$ Cuba and the Esle o$ Youthand so'e 00 s'all islands) *ith a total area o$ about ))000 sHuare +ilo'etres. Et

has a !o!ulation o$ about . crore =200> and a density o$ 00 !ersons !er sHuare+ilo'eter. Et is a tro!ical country li+e 4erala in /outhern Endia *ith a rain$all o$ 600'' =-2 inches> !er year. The 'ain $ood cro!s are rice) corn) cassava) beans) !lantainsand citrus $ruits.

Colonialis' in #atin A'erica and in Cuba

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8odern colonialis' in #atin A'erica began *ith the voyages o$ Christo!her Colu'busand Vasco (a 7a'a in the closing years o$ the - th century. Colu'bus *ho actuallystarted $or Endia reached Cuba in ;92. hile the A'ericas *ere ra!idly colonised in theth century *ith genocide and 'ass +illing o$ the bison !o!ulation) colonialis' did not

succeed in Endia e@ce!t in 7oa. Et too+ another 2-0 years $or the ?ast Endia Co'!any toget the 2iwani =Rights to collect revenues and ta@es> o$ ,engal in -. Another!articularity is that local languages *ere al'ost co'!letely re!laced by /!anish. /!anishis the co''on language o$ #ain A'erica =e@ce!t in ,raDil) &aiti and est Endies> and itsliterary tradition has !layed a uniting role in the region. The #atin A'erican intellectualthere$ore o$ten reads the sa'e boo+s) and is in$luenced by the sa'e thin+ers and *riters.This di$$erence is crucial to understand *hy the #atin A'erican countries) and in!articular Cuba) in s!ite o$ the !aucity o$ resources) has 'ade such ra!id advances insocial) !olitical) educational and !ro$essional s!heres. To 'ention in !assing) it alsoe@!lains !artially the di$$erence bet*een 7oa and rest o$ Endia.

Prior to the arrival o$ the /!anish) the island *as inhabited by <ative A'erican !eo!les+no*n as the Ta\no and Ciboney. The Ta\no *ere $ar'ers and the Ciboney *ere huntersand gatherers. The /!anish colonialists 'ade Cuba the headHuarters o$ their e'!ire. Theybrought nearly $ive hundred thousand slaves $ro' A$rica as $ar' labourers) destroyed thetraditional subsistence econo'y and created sugar !lantations *ith slave labour.

Ende!endence and <eo Colonialis'

,y the 9th century) the 5/A had gro*n in !o*er and *as contending to e@!and itsin$luence in /outh A'erica. The 5/A $ought *ith /!ain and su!!orted inde!endence'ove'ents. These Binde!endent countries actually beca'e neo colonies o$ the 5/ *ith

the 5/ ca!italis' ta+ing over 'ost o$ the business in these countries. 8ost o$ it *as'ining and !lantation. Cuba too $aced this and there *ere atte'!ts to liberate itsel$throughout the $irst hal$ o$ the 20 th century. Et ulti'ately sa* success in 9-9 *ith the%idel Castro co'ing into !o*er.

Revolution and its achieve'ent

%idel Castro beca'e the !ri'e 'inister o$ Cuba in %ebruary 9-9. En its $irst year thene* revolutionary govern'ent e@!ro!riated !rivate !ro!erty *ith little or noco'!ensationI nationalised !ublic utilitiesI tightened controls on the !rivate sector ; and

closed do*n the 'a$ia1controlled ga'bling industry. /o'e o$ these 'easures *ere

underta+en by %idel CastroMs govern'ent in the na'e o$ the !rogra''e outlined in the8ani$esto o$ /ierra 8aestra. The govern'ent nationalised !rivate !ro!erty totallingabout ]2- billion 5/ dollars) out o$ *hich A'erican !ro!erty 'ade u! only over 5/ ].0billion. Cuba $aced o!!osition $ro' the 5/A and a trade e'bargo. Cuba turned to the/oviet 5nion *hich hel!ed it to develo!. Et bought sugar $ro' Cuba at a high !rice andgave it oil) 'achinery and $ood at a chea! !rice. ?ven be$ore Castros co'ing to !o*er)Cuba already had a *ell develo!ed econo'y. ith /oviet hel! and its o*n revolutionary!rogra''e it 'ade ra!id strides in education) health and invested in !rogra''es $or the

45



general *ell being o$ its !eo!le. Et also de$ended itsel$ against e$$orts by the 5/ todestabiliDe the govern'ent) assassinate its leaders and even invade territory.

?'!loy'ent and Trade 5nions

En Cuba) the <ational #abour Code legislation co'!rehensively guarantees *or+ersrights. Et guarantees *or+ers the right to belong to a trade union and the state has theres!onsibility o$ $inding *or+ $or every one over the age o$ including those *ithdisabilities *ho are able and *illing to enter e'!loy'ent.

Cuba has a *or+ $orce o$ ;0)00)000 o$ *ho' 9L belong to a trade union. o'en 'a+eu! ;6L o$ the trade union 'e'bershi! and account $or -.9L o$ o$$icials at the regionallevel. En addition) 2)-0)000 !ensioners are also trade union 'e'bers.

En order to $or' a trade union) no !er'ission $ro' the govern'ent is reHuired.8e'bershi! is not obligatory and 'e'bers !ay L o$ their earnings each 'onth. En each

enter!rise there is only one union to re!resent the *or+$orce.

(uring the s!ecial !eriod) the trade union 'ove'ent organised *or+ers !arlia'ents in*or+ !laces around the country. They gave ))000 suggestions on ho* to 'eet thecrisis. A large nu'ber o$ these suggestions *ere incor!orated into the govern'ents!lans.

?ducation

Cuba has a long history in education. The 5niversity o$ &avana *as $ounded in 2. En9- just be$ore the Castro regi'e ca'e into !o*er) Cubas literacy level according to

the 5nited <ations data *as $ourth in the region at al'ost 0L 1 higher than o$ /!ain.

E''ediately a$ter the revolution) the govern'ent declared a ; 'onth closure o$ colleges.The Oti'e o$$ *as 'eant to be utiliDed $or conducting literacy classes $or adults. About)20)000 voluntary Bteachers *ent out into the hinterlands) and over )00)000 !eo!lelearned to read and *rite. Thus in one year Cuba attained a very high rate o$ literacy.Today) school attendance is co'!ulsory $ro' ages si@ to the end o$ basic secondaryeducation =nor'ally at age -> and all students regardless o$ age or gender *ear s!eci$iedcolour school uni$or's as !er grade levels. &igher education is !rovided by universitiesand higher !edagogical and !olytechnic institutes. The Cuban 8inistry o$ &igher?ducation also o!erates a sche'e o$ distance educationI !roviding an o!!ortunity $or

agricultural *or+ers in rural areas to attend regular a$ternoon and evening courses.?ducation has a strong !olitical and ideological e'!hasis and students !rogressing tohigher education are e@!ected to have a co''it'ent to the goals o$ the Cubangovern'ent. Cuba has also !rovided state subsidised education to a li'ited nu'ber o$$oreign nationals at the #atin A'erican /chool o$ 8edicine.

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&ealth

&istorically Cuba has ran+ed high in the nu'ber o$ 'edical !ersonnelI 'a+ingsigni$icant contributions to *orld health since the 9th century. Cubans bene$it $ro' $reehealth care services. Pri'ary care is available throughout the island and in$ant and

'aternal 'ortality rates co'!are $avorably *ith those in develo!ed nations.

Post revolution) in the 90s) Cuba initially e@!erienced an overall *orsening in healthconditions 1 in ter's o$ disease and in$ant 'ortality rates 1 *hen hal$ its )000 doctorsle$t the country. Recovery occurred by the 90s. The Co''unist govern'ent assertedthat universal healthcare *as to be a !riority in state !lanning. Accordingly) a!!ro!riate'easures *ere ta+en in rural areas. &o*ever) $ollo*ing the end o$ /oviet subsidies in99 and tightening o$ the 5/ e'bargo in 992) 'edical care too su$$ered $ro' severe'aterial shortages.

Cuba has the highest doctor1to1!o!ulation ratio in the *orld and has sent thousands o$

doctors to 'ore than ;0 countries around the *orld. According to the 5<) the li$ee@!ectancy in Cuba is .6 years =.2 $or 'ales and 0.; $or $e'ales>. This ran+s Cuba6th in the *orld and 6rd in the A'ericas) behind only Canada and Chile) and just aheado$ the 5nited /tates. En$ant 'ortality in Cuba declined $ro' 62 =in$ant deaths !er )000live births> in 9-) to 0 in 99019-. En$ant 'ortality in 20001200- *as . !er )000live births =co'!ared to . in the 5/A>.

Colla!se o$ the /oviet 5nion and the /!ecial Period

,e$ore 99) Cuba *as a 'odel 7reen Revolution $ar' econo'y based on huge!roduction units o$ state1o*ned $ar's and de!endent on vast Huantities o$ i'!orted oil)

che'icals and 'achinery to !roduce e@!ort cro!s. 5nder agree'ents *ith the $or'er/oviet 5nion) Cuba had been an oil1driven country) and 9 !ercent o$ all its !etroleu'had co'e $ro' the /oviet bloc. At the end o$ 99) only o$ the !ro'ised 6 ' tons*ere received) and the short $all in oil began to severely a$$ect the nations econo'y.

hile oil *as critical) other losses *ere also i'!ortant) as - !ercent o$ all Cubas trade*as *ith the /oviets. Cuba e@!orted !ercent o$ all sugar and 9 !ercent o$ its citrus$ruit to the /oviet bloc) and i'!orted $ro' the' !ercent o$ its $ood) !ercent o$ allra* 'aterials) and 0 !ercent o$ 'achinery and s!are !arts. ConseHuently) *hen su!!ort$ro' the /oviet bloc *as *ithdra*n) $actories closed) $ood scarcity beca'e *ides!read.

The colla!se o$ the /oviet bloc and the tightened 5/ trade e'bargo e@!osed thevulnerability o$ Cubas 7reen Revolution and e@!ort oriented econo'y 'odel. Cuba!lunged into the *orst $ood crisis in its history.

En early 990) a survival econo'y *as !ut in !lace as )00)000 tons o$ *heat nor'allyobtained through barter arrange'ents $ailed to arrive and the govern'ent had to usescarce hard currency to i'!ort grain $ro' Canada. The !rice o$ $ood *ent u! and breadhad to be rationed. ,et*een 99 and 992) overall $ood consu'!tion *as said to have

47



decreased by 20 !ercent in calories and 2 !ercent in !rotein. To 'a+e 'atters *orse)Cubas e$$orts to reverse the trend o$ rural1urban 'igration over the !ast decades $ailed tocurtail the increasing tide o$ rural 'igrants to the cities) es!ecially to &avana. /hortageso$ $ood and 'edicine and gasoline *ere driving !eo!le to the ca!ital.

Cuba *as $aced *ith a dual challenge o$ doubling $ood !roduction *ith hal$ the !reviousin!uts and *ith so'e ; !ercent o$ its !o!ulation living in cities. Yet by 99) Cubans*ere eating al'ost as *ell as they did be$ore 99) *ith negligible $ood andagroche'ical i'!orts. Enstead) Cuba concentrated on creating a 'ore sel$1reliantagriculture. A co'bination o$ higher cro! !rices !aid to $ar'ers) agro ecologicaltechnology) s'aller !roduction units and 'ost i'!ortantly urban agriculture.

The Cuban res!onse

The *ay Cuba res!onded is an ins!iration to the rest o$ the *orld. Et began *ith a nation1*ide call to increase $ood !roduction by restructuring agriculture. Et involved converting

$ro' conventional large1scale) high in!ut 'onoculture syste's to s'aller scale) organicand se'i1organic $ar'ing syste's. The $ocus *as on using lo* cost and environ'entallysa$e in!uts and relocating !roduction closer to consu'!tion) in order to cut do*n ontrans!ortation costs. 5rban agriculture !layed a signi$icant !art in this e$$ort.

A s!ontaneous decentralised 'ove'ent had arisen in the cities. Peo!le res!ondedenthusiastically to the govern'ent initiative. ,y 99;) 'ore than )000 city $ar's *erecreated in &avana alone. %ront la*ns o$ 'unici!al buildings *ere dug u! to gro*vegetables. "$$ices and schools cultivated their o*n $ood. 8any o$ the gardeners *ereretired 'en in their $i$ties and si@ties and urban *o'en !layed a 'uch larger role inagriculture than their rural counter!arts. ,y 99) an esti'ated -);)000 tons o$ $ood

*ere !roduced in &avana $or local consu'!tion. %ood Huality also i'!roved as !eo!lehad access to a greater variety o$ $resh $ruits and vegetables. 5rban gardens continued togro* and so'e neighbourhoods *ere !roducing as 'uch as 60 !ercent o$ their o*n $ood.The gro*th o$ urban agriculture *as largely due to the /tates co''it'ent to 'a+eunused urban and suburban land and resources available to as!iring urban $ar'ers. Theissue o$ land grants in the city converted hundreds o$ vacant s!aces into $ood !roducing!lots and ne* !lanning la*s !laced the highest land use !riority on $ood !roduction.Another +ey to success *as o!ening $ar'ers 'ar+ets and legalising direct sales $ro'$ar'ers to consu'ers. (eregulation o$ !rices co'bined *ith high de'and $or $resh!roduce in the cities allo*ed urban $ar'ers to generate t*o to three ti'es as 'uchinco'e as the rural !ro$essionals.

The govern'ent also encouraged gardeners through an e@tensive su!!ort syste'including e@tension service !ersonnel) and horticultural grou!s that o$$ered assistanceand advice. /eed houses throughout the city sold seeds) gardening tools) co'!ost anddistributed bio$ertilisers and other biological control agents at lo* costs. <e* biologicalsoil in!uts and organic gardening techniHues *ere develo!ed and !er$ected by Cubasagricultural research sector) *hich had already begun e@!loring organic alternatives toche'ical controls. This enabled Cubas urban $ar's to beco'e co'!letely organic. En

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$act) a ne* la* !rohibited the use o$ any !esticides $or agricultural !ur!oses any*here*ithin city li'its.

The introduction o$ a diversi$ied 'ar+et1based syste' $or $ood distribution s!urredincreased agricultural !roductivity. The 5nited <ations %ood and Agriculture

"rganiDation esti'ated that bet*een 99; and 99) Cuba tri!led the !roduction o$tubers and !lantainsI doubled the !roduction o$ vegetables) *hich $urther doubled againin 999. Potatoes increased $ro' ))000 tonnes in 99; to 6)60)000 tonnes in 99I*hile beans increased by 0 !ercent and citrus by 0 !ercent $ro' 99; to 999.Anecdotal in$or'ation suggests that thousands o$ $a'ilies le$t cities and large to*ns to'a+e their livelihood $ro' the land. "ther in$or'ation indicates that thousands o$une'!loyed K including rural 'igrants K have $ound e'!loy'ent in urban agriculture.

Trans!ort

hen oil su!!ly sto!!ed in 990) trans!ortation ground to a near halt. There *ere no cars

runningI !ublic conveyance colla!sedI and the streets *ere e'!ty. Peo!le *al+ed.Around 996) Cuba i'!orted 2)00)000 Chinese bicycles.

To begin *ith) truc+s *ere converted to buses by si'!ly *elding ste!s to the bac+. As+eletal $ra'e o$ rods and a cano!y *ere added. The conce!t *as re$ined into the Cubas'ass transit bus the BCa'ellone =The Ca'el>. ,uilt on a long chassis vehicle) it canacco''odate 2-0 !ersons. %or shorter distances there *ere cycle and auto ric+sha*s. Ens'aller to*ns) horse dra*n or even 'ule dra*n Bcabs *ere to be s!otted. Car1!oolingand ride sharing is co''on in Cuba. There are designated govern'ent o$$icials in yello*uni$or's *ho have the right to !ull over even govern'ent vehicles and seat !eo!le inneed o$ trans!ort.

Cuba as a $ossil $uel $ree society

Cuba) it *ould a!!ear) is *ell on its *ay to being a $ossil $uel $ree society. Ets agricultureis !ri'arily organicI it has rationalised its trans!ortI and it has achieved e'issionstandards *ell belo* the !rescribed li'it. Cuba also sho*s that a $ossil $uel $ree societydoes not 'ean going !ri'itive. Cuba is a 'odern society *ith access to 'odern science)education) health care and culture.

&o*ever) one should re'e'ber) it is still in transition. Cuba 'aintains the second largestar'y in #atin A'erica. This) it has to) because o$ the !resence o$ the 5/A in its

bac+yard. A genuine $ossil $ree society *ill be achieved only in a *orld *ithout *ars)*ithout ar'ies) *ithout nuclear *ea!ons) in short a *orld *ithout borders.

%ro' all the indications available) it is unli+ely that the !o*er$ul nations *ill ta+e this!ath *ithout going through another *ar. All the invest'ents in the ca!italist *orld are$lo*ing to ar'a'ent industry instead o$ going into alternative sources o$ energy ororganic $ar'ingJ En such a scenario) Cuba still has to be on its toes to survive and is $ar$ro' reaching its $ull !otential.

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Reasons $or Cubas success

En the 20th century $our great revolutions occurred: The Russian) the Chinese the

Vietna'ese and the Cuban. ?ach one o$ the' ins!ired 'illions o$ !eo!le all over the*orld in their struggle against i'!erialis') against injustice and against ineHuality. ?ventoday) the revolutionary 'ove'ent continues to learn i'!ortant lessons $ro' theserevolutions. &o*ever *hile the Russian) the Chinese and the Vietna'ese revolution'oved signi$icantly a*ay $ro' their socialist agenda) Cuba a$ter -0 years still see's tocontinue to succeed and ins!ire not only the revolutionary and the socialist 'ove'ent)but also a *hole range o$ !eo!le *ho are involved in the environ'ental and green'ove'ents and *ho are loo+ing to*ards a !ost $ossil $uel society. hat could be thereasons $or thisF

The main credit of course goes to the Cuban people, their organisations, their

professionals and the leadership. They withstood almost half a century of hostility by thebiggest imperial power next door. The hostility included not only trade embargo but also

a series of attempts to assassinate their leaders, coups and even invasions. On hindsight,

this hostility may appear to be a blessing in disguise. It kept the country on its toes and

never allowed it to get rich and corrupt. Cuba also had a policy of allowing all those who

wanted to emigrate to the US to go. This may have also helped.

There are other reasons too that explain the uniqueness of Cuba and acknowledging these

can help us understand the lessons one can learn from Cuba. These are historical;

political; economic; and the high level of achievements in education and health sectors.

Latin America and Cuba experienced colonialism way back in the 16 th century. Thus they

were exposed to scientific and technological advances in Europe that much earlier. They

got their freedom in 1898, unlike Asia and Africa where it came after the Second World

War. They had free elections in 1940.

Cuba had Latin America's highest per capita consumption/use rates for meat, vegetables,

cereals, automobiles, telephones and radios. Gross domestic product per capita had been

approximately equal to Italy and significantly higher than that of Japan. Cuban workers

enjoyed some of the highest wages in the world. Cuba attracted more immigrantsprimarily from Europe as a percentage of population than the US. The United Nations

acknowledged Cuba for its large middle class. And finally, Cuba already had a good base

in education and healthcare.

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#essons $ro' Cuba

Cuba can !rovide us *ith a real ti'e 'odel $or the $uture not*ithstanding the $act that no'odel is ever $ully or e@actly re!licable. There *ere s!ecial and uniHue historical and!olitical reasons that hel!ed Cuba to $ace the crisis and co'e out o$ it *ith $lying colours.

/ince 'any countries in #atin A'erica share the colonial and !ost colonial history *ithCuba) there is a greater a!!reciation $or Cuba there. And learning lessons $or' it *ill berelatively that 'uch easier.

%or rest o$ the *orldI *herever regions share or identi$y *ith so'e o$ Cubas $eaturesthere is a greater chance o$ i'!le'enting these lessons. The 'ost signi$icant being)social a*areness o$ e@!loitation and o!!ressionI struggle $or eHuityI tradition o$de'ocracy in society and in !olitical !artiesI high level o$ literacy and educationIa*areness o$ environ'ent degradationI global *ar'ing) !ea+ oil and its conseHuencesIunderstanding the current global econo'ic crisis and initiatives e@!loring alternatives toit.

En Endia) the est coast) !articularly 4erala) coastal 4arnata+a and 7oa have so'e o$$eatures si'ilar to Cuba and 'ay be they *ill be able to $ace the current crisis better.est ,engal) in s!ite o$ CPE =8>s !resent un$ortunate !olicies) 'ay eventually e'erge

to !lay a signi$icant role. ,ut no one can !redict the $uture *ith a decent degree o$accuracy 1 it al*ays has a store o$ sur!rises.

51



&AT T&?< /&"5#( ? ("F

/o $ar the issues discussed have been global in nature. hile the crisis is truly global) thesolutions *ill di$$er $ro' country to countryI $ro' region to region.

The B'odels !resented in the !revious section can not be re!licated just li+e that. En $actin history there are no 'odels. There are theories and there are e@!eriences. They canins!ire and guide but cannot be blue!rints $or action. %or instance) the Russian revolution'ay have ins!ired the Chinese revolution but the latter is not a co!y o$ the $or'er./i'ilarly today) Cuba 'ay a!!ear to be a transition 'odel $or a $ossil $uel $ree societyIbut it can only ins!ire. ?ven *ithin #atin A'erica) each country is $ollo*ing a di$$erent!ath. Endia too is a sub continent. (i$$erent regions *ithin Endia have had and *ill havedi$$erent !aths o$ change.

Through out the boo+) the e'!hasis has been on reiterating that change can be broughtabout 'ainly through the organised struggles o$ sta+eholders. Rebuilding o$ theco''unity *ill e'erge out o$ co''on needs and visions o$ the co''unity. En thisinstance) co''unity identity is considered on the basis o$ biogeogra!hy and naturallanguages.

52



T&? %?(?RA# R?P5,#EC "% E<(EA

region# biogeography and language

A $ossil $uel $ree society i'!lies s'aller siDe o$ regions and co''unities $ederated *itheach other. hat $ollo*s is a discussion on the !ossible basis o$ *hich these areas couldbe de$ined or de'arcated as societies $unctioning inde!endent o$ $ossil $uels.

%ederalis'

En the history o$ BeHuality a'ongst !eo!le as a conce!t) the !olitical organisation haso$ten been visualiDed as $ederal. %ederalis' 'eans that the constituent units co'etogether to $or' an organisation based on eHuality. ?ach unit itsel$ can be a $ederation o$s'aller units such as a village co''unity or an urban locality. 5sually the resources o$ a

$ederal structure are raised through contributions $ro' constituent units. The !olity *ithinthe unit 'ay be re!resentative or a direct de'ocracy.

The issues o$ $ederal concern are generally those that reHuire the collective coo!erationo$ its constituent units) and centraliDed i'!le'entation. /o'e o$ these areco''unication) con$lict resolution) trade regulation) vigilance on trade routes $or s'ooth$unctioning etc. There are tried) tested and very e$$ective 'echanis's already in !lace.The !ressing issues o$ !resent ti'es are disar'a'ent and deco''issioning o$ nuclear*ea!onsI nuclear energy !lantsI nuclear *asteI environ'ental challengesI disasters dueto natural !heno'enonI s!oradic outbursts o$ highly co''unicable diseasesI $oodsecurityI disintegration o$ the social $abric in society etc.

&istorically there are several e@a'!les o$ $ederal e$$orts. The $ederation o$ A'ericanEndian tribes has) it is clai'ed) ins!ired the 5/ %ederation. Again) the 92; constitutiono$ 5//R =the later version strengthened the centre under /talins leadershi!> has beenconsidered as a 'odel $ederal docu'ent. "n the eve o$ the inde!endence o$ Endia a$ederal constitution *as !ro!osed *ith li'ited !o*ers to the centreI but it *as notacce!table to the Endian bourgeoisie. They !re$erred a strong unitary $or' and o!ted $orthe !artition o$ Endia. Presently there are 'any O$ederalists across the globe es!ousing aschool o$ thought in the nature o$ a $e* thousand s'all inde!endent states on the !lanet.

<ot very long ago 1 in the !re1colonial and !re industrial era K there e@isted $unctioningtribal or ethnic societies *ith clear cut traditions o$ governance. Although these haveco'e under so'e $or' o$ a larger entity1 the stateI $or the !ur!ose o$ resolving 'anyinternal con$licts) they seldo' ta+e recourse to la*s laid do*n by the constitution.

All over the *orld) de'and $or s'aller states or secessionist de'ands are based onBidentity !olitics. #anguage o$ten re$erred to as Bdialect and geogra!hic or ecologicalcriteria $or' the basis $or such de'ands. #anguage is not si'!ly a tool $orco''unication but is a central and de$ining $eature o$ identity as all hu'an thoughts are

53



conce!tualised through language and all hu'an values are !ronounced and !erceivedthrough it. Very o$ten the e'!hasis on ecological or bio1geogra!hical regions is re$lectedin the daily !ractices o$ the !eo!le and their language. En the *orld today) out o$ 92living languages about 2-00 are endangered to varied degrees and 200 have alreadybeco'e e@tinct. En Endia) o$ the ;- living languages) 9 are endangered and 9 have

beco'e e@tinct. 8any o$ these endangered languages belong to the north1east) the tribalbelts o$ est ,engal and "rissa and to &i'achal Pradesh) 3a''u and 4ash'ir and5ttara+hand.

A %ossil %uel %ree Endia

A $ossil $uel $ree Endia *ould consist o$ about a hundred or so $ederated units) sodelineated) on the basis o$ language and biogeogra!hy. To !ro!ose such an ideaI it isreHuired *e evaluate the short co'ings in the e@isting situation.

(uring colonial rule) the !olitical regions e'erged as ,ritish !o*er e@!anded. These

regions e'erged around ,o'bay) 8adras) Calcutta and *ere +no*n as !residencies.They covered 'ultilingual regions. Thus) the ,o'bay !residency had 7ujarati) 8arathiand 4annada s!ea+ing regions and the 8adras !residency had Ta'il) Telugu and4annada s!ea+ing regions. A$ter inde!endence) the de'and $or coherent linguisticregions gained strength) so'e contradictory) and at ti'es) co'!letely tangential!ro!ositions. "n one hand the de'and $or large Telugu) 4annada and 8arathi linguisticstates beca'e !o*er$ul *hile so'e s'aller regions sho*ed a !re$erence $or s'allerstates. The <agas on the e@tre'e <orth ?astern border *anted to be inde!endent o$ theEndian state. ?ven a$ter the $or'ation o$ states on linguistic basis) !eo!les de'and $or$urther delineation based $or regional criteria continuedI ulti'ately resulting in the$or'ation o$ 3har+hand) 5ttara+hand and Chhatisgarh. These have $urther $uelled

de'ands $or ,odoland) 7or+haland) Vidarbh) Telengana etc.) *hich continue to this day.

There is no doubt that these 'ove'ents *ill gro*. Et is entirely !ossible that 'ore states*ill be created. &o*ever) i$ these s'all states are created today) they *ill go the sa'e*ay as 3har+hand and Chattisgarh have gone. The 'ineral rich states o$ 3har+hand andChattisgarh are attracting ra!acious ca!italist shar+s. The ruling !oliticians in these statesare not eHui!!ed to deal *ith the' and are Oselling the states resources chea!. This hasled to enor'ous e@!loitation o$ natural and hu'an resources. The environ'ent and theordinary citiDens are bearing the brunt and stri$e is a'!ly evident. The sa'e *ill 'ostli+ely ha!!en i$ de'ands $or s'aller states are given into through creation o$ 'ore states*ithout due !erce!tive $orethought.

"ne o$ the reasons $or the !resent situation in the ne*ly created states is the basis on*hich such de'ands *ere 'ade. The rationale being) larger states li+e ,ihar or 8adhyaPradesh *ere bene$iting $ro' the resources o$ these 'ineral rich areasI that there *asuneven develo!'entI and these regions *ere treated as internal colonies. ?ssentially it'eant the local ruling grou!s *anted 'ono!oly control over this *ealth. Very o$ten thelocal big business house aided the'. %or e@a'!le) the Tatas su!!orted the 3har+hand'ove'ent. &o*ever) Essues such as language) culture) e@!loitation o$ local !eo!le and

54



natural resources) receded into the bac+ground once the ne* states *ere $or'ed.

Et 'ay be !rudent to note that the basis o$ these de'ands ought to be in the interest o$!eo!le and ecology. The de'ands $or inde!endent ad'inistrative identities1 such asstatehood 1 are use$ul only i$ they are achieved along *ith socialist or libertarian de'ands

o$ $reedo' $ro' e@!loitation) eHuality and rational use o$ resources. /!eci$ically) thede'arcation o$ the boundaries o$ ne* regions *ould be 'ost ideal i$ based onbiogeogra!hy and language.

,iogeogra!hy

,iogeogra!hy deals *ith the geogra!hical distribution o$ !lants and ani'als. Endia has 0clearly distinguished biogeogra!hical areas. They are:

. Trans &i'alayan Regions 2. &i'alayan Region 6. (esert ;. /e'iarid Region -.estern 7hats . (eccan Plateau. . 7angetic Plain . <orth ?ast Endia 9. /ea Coasts

0. Eslands.

There 'ay be $urther subdivisions *ithin these areas on the basis o$ a s'aller ecosyste'.Thus) estern 7hats has the 4on+an stri! o$ 8aharashtra) 7oa: 4aravali in 4arnata+aIand the <ilgiri ,ios!here at the tri1junction o$ 4erala) 4arnata+a and Ta'ilnadu. Again)(eccan !lateau *hich is a huge land 'ass has been divided into several s'aller subdivisions.

A biogeogra!hic region de$ines its $lora) $auna and hu'an society. Thus it also de$ines a!eo!le) a s!eech co''unity or i$ you li+e a co''on identity. They are uniHue in the$ood they gro* and consu'eI houses and architectureI habitsI cultural and religious

!racticesI clothingI language.

#anguage) /tandard #anguage and ,iogeogra!hy

En the !o!ular ter'inology) standard language is just called language and other languagesare called dialects. #inguists today do not use the ter' dialect as it connotes hierarchy.%or the' all MdialectsM are languages. <atural languages have a shar!ly de$ined geogra!hicboundary and these also tend to coincide *ith ecological or biogeogra!hical regions. "nthe other hand) standard language is a !olitical entity and has an elastic boundary.

The e@a'!le o$ &indi can be used to illustrate this. &indi re!resents a set o$ about 60

languages. These 60 languages are not dialects o$ &indi. /tandard &indi is a recent!heno'enon dating bac+ to late 9th century only. hereas) 'any o$ the other languagesenjoy a 'uch older literary history. Acharya 4ishori (as ,aj!ai re$erred to &indi as ater' that denotes a co''on*ealth o$ languages united by geogra!hic continuity) aco''on scri!t that is Bnagari and the use o$ kaD pratyay 3uska# uske liye5% /o'e o$ theselanguages are: 8aithili) 8agahi) ,hoj!uri) A*adhi) ,raj) 4hari ,oli) 4u'aoni)7arh*ali) (ogri) 8e*ati) 8e*ari) 8ar*adi) ,undel+handi) ,aghel+handi) 8al*i)<i'ari) Chhatisgarhi and so on. These languages have a shar!ly de$ined boundary and

55









Regional Enitiatives


The Endian scene

&aving !ro!osed a $ossil $uel $ree society) ho* does one go about achieving itF Et *illcertainly not be a de'and $or statehood under the !resent constitution $ollo*ing all the!olitical B*heeling1dealing that goes on in !resent day Endian !olitics. En $act) it 'ay bebest to avoid all !resent day !arlia'entary !olitical !arties.

/ince 9;) all the !arlia'entary !arties have abandoned the !oor. En 9;) in ,ho!al)during the biggest industrial accident in the *orld) e@ce!t $or /5CE =/ocialist 5nity

Centre o$ Endia>) none o$ the !arties *ere on the side o$ the !eo!le. %ro' the 90s) *iththe advent o$ liberalisation) !rivatisation and globalisation) the !arlia'entary !olitical!arties have been braDenly o!!osed to the !oor) dis!lacing the' in 'illions $ro' theirho'es and resources in the na'e o$ develo!'ent.

"n the side o$ the !oor) there are three 'ajor $orces and a host o$ s'all ones. They arethe <a@alites) <AP8 and the (alit 'ove'ent. A'ong the s'aller ones) but neverthelessvery i'!ortant) are the *o'ens 'ove'ents) anti1co''unal grou!s) Christian andEsla'ic dalits) atheists) rationalists and !eo!les science activists. 8any individuals)!ro$essionals li+e social scientists) engineers) architects) urban !lanners are also on theside o$ the !oor. En the struggle $or the !oor) there are three as!ects: assurance) relie$ and

solution. All these grou!s are a source o$ assurance to the !oor) because they have stoodby the' under very di$$icult situations o$ e@!loitation and o!!ression. En giving relie$) the<a@alites have been 'ore success$ul than others. <a@alites have hel!ed to raise *ages o$the !oorest !eo!le e.g. tendu leaves collection) beedi 'a+ers) 'iners etc. They also!rotected the !oor $ro' o!!ression) ra!e) hu'iliation) bonded labour etc. As to thesolution) none have a credible and realisable vision. The <a@alites o$$er only a theoreticalsolution. Et $ails to address adeHuately i'!ortant conte'!orary issues li+e gender andcaste discri'ination) co''unalis') ecology) cli'ate change and energy.

The 5nited %ront o$ the /ta+eholders

7iven this situation) ho* does one beginF "ne *ay is to begin at the local level. #ocalcan be as s'all as the village or a locality in a to*n and as big as an ecoDone or state 1 asde$ined above. The ne@t ste! *ould be to identi$y and engage in a dialogue *ith all thesta+eholders.

ho are the sta+eholdersF They can be individuals) classes or social grou!s and !olitical!arties. A'ong individuals) there is a large variety. The only criteria $or the' being:either their !revious engage'ent or their !resent *illingness to engage *ith the !oor in

59



their struggle. These !eo!le 'ay be ordinary !eo!le such as school teachers) ban+e'!loyees) or !ro$essionals such as social scientists) scientists) architects) engineers) journalists and authors or any one else. A'ong classes and social grou!s there are tradeunions and organisations o$ dalits) *o'en) tribals) victi's o$ develo!'ent and so on.Although it has been said above that the !arlia'entary !arties have beco'e anti !eo!leI

recently) due to rise o$ !eo!les 'ove'ents) so'e !arties outside the govern'ent havesho*n a slight interest. &o*ever) they are li+ely to s*itch over the 'o'ent they beco'e!art o$ the govern'ent. There are several $or'ations li+e <AP8) *hich are !olitical andthey have been on the side o$ the !eo!le. <a@alites are unli+ely to join o!enly because o$their involve'ent in illegal ar'ed struggles.

hat *ill be the agendaF The 'ain agenda $or hu'anity $or the ne@t thirty years or so isto heal the earth o$ the degradation caused by ca!italis'. To do this) !eo!les strugglesagainst these $orces o$ ca!italis' *ill have to continue. Al'ost every*here it *ill also bea struggle against e@!loitation and o!!ressionI and a struggle $or justice and eHuality.Parallel to this) there *ould have to be initiatives o$ designing and e@ecution o$ regional

!lans $or a $ossil $uel $ree $uture.

hat is !ro!osed here is to ta+e the idea $or*ard through an organisation o$ the 5nited%ront o$ all the sta+eholders. Et is not enough just to have an e1grou! 1as is the !resenttrend a'ongst civil society grou!s. En ter's o$ e$$ectiveness) its li'itations are 'any. Agenuine engage'ent and ground level action is *hat is reHuired. /ingur and <andigra'in est ,engal have sho*n the !o*er o$ this +ind o$ action. ?ven there) it lac+s aconcrete alternative !lan.

A victory li+e /ingur or <andigra' is a !o*er$ul booster o$ energy $or !eo!le. Though)there is al*ays the threat that e@isting !olitical interests *ill *ant to gain 'ileage out o$such Ovictories. Enstead o$ allo*ing this to ha!!en) there should be a genuine !eo!les!lan $or a $ossil $uel $ree alternative. This !lan should be so designed such that it is!ossible to i'!le'ent it incre'entally *ith i''ediate relie$ and bene$it to thesta+eholdersI !articularly those *ho are adversely a$$ected by the sto!!ing o$ such anti!eo!le develo!'ent !rojects. /ections o$ such !eo!le $or e@a'!le are: construction*or+ers) individuals *ho have lost their lands and livelihoods or so called develo!'entre$ugees. The !lans should o$$er i''ediate relie$ and e'!loy'ent so as to avoid trau'aand the !ossibility o$ ri$ts a'ongst the sta+eholders.

/o *hat should one do in the here and no* to 'ove to*ards such a $utureF

The case o$ one such region) the 4aravalis) is ta+en as an illustrative 'odel. Et isundoubtedly a s+etchy and tentative !ro!osal. %or) a genuine *or+able !ro!osal can onlybe !re!ared by a $oru' o$ local s+ate holders and their $acilitators) *ho have been !art o$e@isting struggles.

60



The 4aravalis

The 4aravalis include the three districts o$ the coastal !lains o$ 4arnata+a. ?cologicallyand historically the 4asargod district o$ 4erala has al*ays been !art o$ the 4aravalis.The $our districts are s!read across an area o$ 202sH.+'s. *ith a !o!ulation o$ -.-

'illion and a !o!ulation density o$ 60. 4annada is the o$$icial language. 8ost !eo!lecan s!ea+ 4annada and the local languages. The language o$ 5ttara 4annada is 4annadaand 4on+ani. 4on+ani is also s!o+en by the Catholics and 7oud /aras*at ,rah'ins=7/,s> all over the region. Tulu is s!o+en in (a+shina 4annada and 5du!i. 8alayala'and Tulu are s!o+en in 4asargod.

61

(istrict &eadHuarters Po!ulation

=200>

Area (ensity

=+'>

(a+shin4annada

8angalore )9);06 ;--9 ;

5du!i 5du!i )09);9; 69 2

5ttar4annada

4ar*ar )6-6)299 0)29 62

4asargod 4asargod )206)6;2 992 0;

T"TA# -)-2)-6 202 6-9.-



The <atural ?cono'y o$ the 4aravalis

The *ord Bnatural econo'y here does not 'ean !ri'itive or !re ca!italist econo'y. Et isused to distinguish $ro' the econo'ic activity that serves distant interests) li+e re$ineries)!o*er !lants) naval bases etc.

The basis o$ the econo'y is $ishing and agriculture. Agriculture cro!s here are 'ainlyrice) coconut) areca and cashe*. &ence) there are rice 'ills) oil 'ills and cashe*!rocessing $actories as 'ajor allied industries. A!art $ro' *or+ing in these industries) the$a'ilies o$ the !oor landless su!!le'ent their inco'e by rolling beedis. There are bigbeedi 'anu$acturers 1 li+e the $a'ous 7anesh ,eedies 1 *hose 'ain *or+ is labeling)!ac+ing and 'ar+eting. The industry itsel$ *or+s on a B!utting out syste'. Anothersource o$ subsistence is the $orest. Et !rovides $uel and a host o$ 'inor $orest !roduce thatsu!!le'ent the econo'y o$ the !oor.

The natural econo'y has been under stress due to the !ressure o$ neo liberal !olicies.

Cash cro!s are re!lacing $ood cro!s. This is also becauseI the younger generations *ithin$ar'ing $a'ilies !re$er a lucrative job in the service industry) over the $a'ilystraditional occu!ation o$ $ar'ing. 8any rice $ields have $allen $allo*I *hereas) the!roduction o$ areca) to !rovide $or the gro*ing gut+a 'ar+et) is increasing. ,ecause o$anti s'o+ing la*s and the ca'!aigns to raise a*areness regarding the haDards o$s'o+ing) che*ing o$ gut+a is slo*ly re!lacing beedis. En s!ite o$ heavy rains) one can sees!rin+ler irrigation in areca !lantations. Che'ical in!uts to agriculture are alsoincreasing. (e$orestation has ta+en !lace e@tensively. 8onocro!s have been introducedand biodiversity has been reduced.

The ?@tended ?cono'y

The econo'y *hile it *as sel$1su$$icient did not generate enough 'oney. /o educationand out 'igration have been i'!ortant $actors. The region has a $airly old history o$Christianity and hence an old history o$ !rinting) boo+s and education. The region has ahigh literacy rate) has !roduced i'!ortant literati) and ban+ers. The region is ho'e to$our national ban+sJ 5du!i hotels are the other side o$ the e@tended econo'y. hen theecono'y o$ the Arabian 7ul$ nations boo'ed a$ter 9) there *as signi$icant out'igration) !articularly $ro' areas) *ith high 8usli' !o!ulations) li+e ,hat+al. Et isi'!ortant to re'e'ber that conversion to Esla' occurred 'ainly a'ong artisan castes.&ence) there already e@isted a high !ro!ortion o$ s+illed *or+ers a'ong the'. &o*ever)i$ ta+en as a *hole) out 'igration occurred $ro' across the region and $ro' all sections

o$ the !o!ulation.

The 5ndesirable (evelo!'ent

The sea !ort at 8angalore and the naval base at 4ar*ar have been around $or so'e ti'e.En $act the !ort even has an un1o!erational barge1'ounted !o*er !lant. hat is *orryingto 'ost environ'entalists and to the local !eo!le is the glut o$ !o*er !lants being!lanned and to so'e e@tent e@ecuted.

62



The close !ro@i'ity to the sea *or+s in $avour o$ such decisions $or the $ollo*ingreasons: . E'!ort o$ coal $ro' Australia. 2. ater is available in !lenty. 6. The sea canbe used to du'! *aste.

The o!!osition to these !lants is 'ainly based on the $ollo*ing argu'ents: . 7oodagricultural land is being ta+en a*ay 2. Et *ill cause irre!arable environ'ental da'age toone o$ the 'ost environ'entally sensitive regions 1 estern 7hats. The i'!ortance o$the estern 7hats as an ecological hots!ot cannot be overstated. A!art $ro' its uniHue$lora and $auna) it is the source o$ all the 'ajor rivers $lo*ing east*ard) thus) !roviding*ater security to the *hole o$ /outhern Endia.

The &istory o$ the /truggle

The trade union 'ove'ent in the region is $airly strong. The $isher'ens union) the,eedi *or+ers union are traditional unions. The 8angalore !ort *or+ers also have a

union. ,an+ and insurance e'!loyees unions) although a !art o$ national unions) have astrong !resence here. ,y and large the unions have been loo+ing a$ter the interests o$

their constituency in ter's o$ *ages) !rovident $und) health care etc. The ,eedi *or+ershave *on i'!ressive gains in s!ite o$ being s!read so thinly across the region. &o*ever)on the *hole) there is little concern $or the region or the larger crisis o$ ca!italis' and$uture o$ the society. This is understandable) as it has not been on their agendaI the dailystruggles $or survival ta+e u! all ti'e and energy.

There have been big struggles against re$ineries) !o*er !lants and the 8angalore /!ecial?cono'ic None !ro!osals. hile the industries have created *ealth $or the national andlocal rich) it has co'e at an enor'ous e@!ense to the !eo!le and to the ecology o$ the

region. Peo!le *ere dis!laced *hile building the !ortI so'e o$ the' *ere dis!laced again*hile building the re$inery and the 4on+an Rail*ay. A holistic a!!roach to the struggle*as ta+en by !re!aring a docu'ent called 4?/A14odachadri ?cologically /ensitiveArea. Et *as a !roactive 'ove on the !art o$ local sta+eholders !ro!osing the area bedeclared as ecologically sensitive. Et *as 'eant to !revent the setting u! o$ ecologicallyunviable industries in the region under the e@isting Endian la*s.

The !rocess o$ !re!aring this !ro!osal *as very !artici!atory and de'ocratic. All thesta+eholders in the struggle *ere consulted and *ere +e!t in the !icture through out.#ocal and national e@!erts !ooled their +no*ledge and !ut u! a very strong case. Thedocu'ent *as !resented to the 5nion and /tate 7ovt. Predictably it is hanging $ireI *hile

the ecology o$ the region continues to !ay the !rice. hile it *as an e@cellent e@ercise) it*as not thought out $ully. Et $ell short o$ $ollo* u! action at the co''unity levelco'bined *ith a lac+ o$ !ersistent and consistent $ollo*1u! at o$$icial levels.

"ne o$ the !roble's *as the !rotagonists 'ain ai'I *hich *as) to engage *ith the /tate1 as+ing it to i'!le'ent its o*n la*s. There *as an i'!licit belie$ in the !ossibility andviability o$ the Bel$are /tate. This also led the' to engage *ith local 8#As andreligious !onti$$s. hile this !rovided an o!!ortunity to *or+ and engage *ith 'any

63



!ro$essionals) it did not hel! in ta+ing the *or+ $or*ard. /o *here does one beginF

The 4aravali Regional Enitiative 7rou!

Peo!le can only start *ith *hat has already been achieved and go on to build on its

strength. En the 4aravalis) there are already) several good !recedents. The organisationthat has been success$ully *aging a struggle against the !o*er !lant at <andi+ur $or thelast 20 yearsI the struggle against the re$inery; the struggle against the 8angalore /!ecial

?cono'ic NoneI the consortiu' o$ 4?/AI and a host o$ e@isting social and classorganisations that have success$ully launched various struggles in the !ast. /o'e o$ theseorganisations and grou!s are:

1. ,eedi *or+ers association

2. Cashe* *or+ers association

3. Tile *or+ers association

4. The ta@i and ric+sha* drivers union

5. ,an+ and insurance e'!loyees unions6. Port *or+ers union

7. 8RP# *or+ers union

8. (alit /angharsh /a'iti

9. 3a'at e Esla' e &ind

10. 4arnata+a %oru' $or (ignity

11. 3ana 3agruti /a'iti) <andi+ur ='ove'ent against the ther'al !o*er !lant>

12. 4rishi ,hu'i /a'ra+shana /a'iti) 8angalore ='ove'ent against 8angalore

/?N>13. 3ana Para Vedi+e

14. Parisaras+atara "++utu

15. 4o'u /ouhadrya Vedi+e

A 4aravali regional initiative grou! can be started *ith these sta+eholders and it cangro* incre'entally. Et can begin by ta+ing stoc+ o$ the situationI identi$ying sta+eholdersI engaging *ith the'I building strategies to carry $or*ard the on going strugglesIand start a !lanning grou! $or the alternatives.The action !lan can be designed to:

1. ?ncourage and su!!ort ecologically unviable industries through a s*itch over to

ecologically sustainable enter!rise.2. (evelo! a !lan to restore the natural econo'y. The !lan should include

rehabilitation o$ the *or+ers o$ the undesirable industries.3. En the natural econo'y) eli'inate the neo liberal in$luences. Thus) increase the

$ood acreage and reduce areca acreage. Reduce che'ical in!uts and go organic.4. Encrease the $orest cover and its bio diversity.

5. /to! overe@!loitation o$ the sea through the use o$ big tra*lers $or $ishing.

6. (evelo! industries based on local resources li+e ba'boo and ti'ber to re!lace

!roducts based on $ossil $uels.

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/o'e Essues

"ne o$ the 'ajor !roble's in this *or+ is the di$$iculty $or the !eo!le to get out o$ their!resent 'indsets and thin+ o$ a $uture *ith a changed scenario. %or e@a'!le) the unionshave been 'ainly concerned about i'!roving their lot *ithin the syste'. <o* they have

to be !re!ared to !artici!ate in evolving alternatives. This is becauseI 'any o$ their jobs*ill be redundant soon. /i'ilarly) 'any young !eo!le are as!iring $or careers in theservice sector) !articularly in ban+ing and so$t*are. This is !roving to be a bubble thathas already burst in the advanced ca!italist countries. /o the grou! has to *or+ to*ardsbuilding a*areness on the issue. Then the !lan has to include a list o$ livelihoodo!!ortunities based on $ossil $uel $ree resources. The tas+ o$ relocation is al*ays !ain$uland the grou! has to *or+ intensively in !re!aring *or+ers $or alternative jobsIsu!!orting the' and their $a'ilies during the interi' !eriod.

As has been said be$ore) this is just one !ersons vision and the actual !lan and activitycan only be decided by the local grou!.

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TRA(? 5<E"< E<ETEATEV?/


8ajor changes in society are brought about through the organised e$$orts o$ !eo!le=su$$erers> ar'ed *ith the vision o$ a better society. ?vidently) along *ith otherorganisations o$ such !eo!le) the trade union 'ove'ent has a very signi$icant role to!lay. &o*ever) the alternative today) re!resents an alternative to industrialisation itsel$J&ere is an atte'!t to e@!lore the history o$ such initiatives and suggest *hat the'ove'ent can do in the conte@t o$ the !resent crisis o$ ca!italis'.

Trade 5nions in the /truggle and Reconstruction

%or the last -0 years) trade unions have been in the $ore$ront in the struggle o$ all*or+ing !eo!le $or their due rights. hen revolutionary changes occurred in Russia)China) Cuba) Vietna' and so on) they *ere in the $ore$ront both in the revolutionary'ove'ent as *ell as in rebuilding o$ the society !ost the revolution. En trans$or'ing the!resent $ossil $uels de!endant ca!italist society into a $ossil $uel $ree society) the tradeunions have a crucial role to !lay. As 8ar@ said) ca!ital creates its o*n gravediggers inthe $or' o$ organised labour.

hereas today) ca!italis' is i'!loding) crashing do*n on its o*n. The rug o$

concentrated energy has been !ulled $ro' under its $eetI there is no alternative ready athand. "rganised le$t all over the *orld) by and large) is not ready $or it in any signi$icant*ay. A large section o$ it *ent the social de'ocratic *ay) that is) ca!italist *ay under asocialist na'e. They shared !o*er and it got the' thoroughly corru!ted. The Endian le$thas $aired no better. Et is acting in an authoritarian $ashion K *here ever it is in !o*er.

The trade union 'ove'ent *orld over has also got either corru!ted 1 *ith the unionbosses acting li+e ca!italists 1 or has been so !oliticiDed) that it no longer re!resents the*or+ers or societys interests. The *or+ing class 'ove'ent and trade union 'ove'ent)there$ore) have to $ace the challenge in a di$$erent *ay. They have to !lan to be $ree $ro'their o*n !arty bosses and learn to act on their o*n.

Anarcho1/yndicalis'

/uch a tendency in the international *or+ing class 'ove'ent has been +no*n asanarcho1syndicalis'. Anarcho1syndicalis' is a branch o$ anarchis') *hich $ocuses onthe labour 'ove'ent. /yndicalis' is a %rench *ord 'eaning Btrade unionis' K hence)the Bsyndicalis' Huali$ication. Anarcho1syndicalists vie* labour unions as a !otential$orce $or revolutionary social changeI re!lacing ca!italis' and the /tate *ith a ne*

66



society) that is) a de'ocratically sel$1'anaged society by *or+ers.

The basic !rinci!les o$ anarcho1syndicalis' are *or+ersM solidarity) direct action) and*or+ersM sel$1'anage'ent. or+ers solidarity 'eans that anarcho1syndicalists believeall *or+ers) no 'atter *hat their gender or ethnic grou!) are in a si'ilar situation *ith

regard to their bosses =class consciousness>. %urther'ore) it 'eans that) in a ca!italistsyste') any gains or losses 'ade by so'e *or+ers $ro' or to bosses *ill eventuallya$$ect all *or+ers. There$ore) to liberate the'selves) all *or+ers 'ust su!!ort oneanother in their class con$lict. Anarcho1syndicalists believe that only direct action K thatis) action concentrated on directly attaining a goal) as o!!osed to indirect action) such aselecting a re!resentative to a govern'ent !osition K *ill allo* *or+ers to liberatethe'selves. 8oreover) anarcho1syndicalists believe that *or+er organisations K theorganisations that struggle against the *age syste') and *hich) in anarcho1syndicalisttheory) *ill eventually $or' the basis o$ a ne* society K should be sel$1'anaging. Theyshould not have bosses or Bbusiness agentsI rather) the *or+ers should be able to 'a+eall the decisions that a$$ect the' the'selves.

Rudol$ Roc+er !oints out that the anarcho1syndicalist union has a dual !ur!ose: . Toen$orce the de'ands o$ the !roducers $or sa$eguarding and raising o$ their standard o$livingI 2. To acHuaint the *or+ers *ith the technical 'anage'ent o$ !roduction andecono'ic li$e in general and !re!are the' to ta+e the socio1econo'ic organisation intotheir o*n hands and sha!e it according to socialist !rinci!les. En short) 'eaning) layingthe $oundations o$ a ne* society B*ithin the shell o$ the old.

5! to the %irst orld ar and the ,olshevi+ Revolution) anarcho1syndicalist unions andorganisations *ere the do'inant actors in the revolutionary le$t. A$ter the colla!se o$/oviet 5nion in 990 and China ta+ing the ca!italist road) the co''unist 'ove'ent losta lot o$ its !restige. Et led to a revival o$ anarchist tendency) co'bining it *ith ne*lye'erging concerns o$ race) $e'inis' and environ'ent. Anarcho1syndicalis' re'ains a!o!ular and active school o$ anarchis' today and has 'any su!!orters as *ell as 'anycurrently active organisations. A green anarcho1syndicalist !ers!ective visualises *or+ersta+ing over e@isting units and trans$or'ing the' into Bgreen alternatives. %or the rest o$this essay it i'!lies creating a $ossil $uel $ree society.

Trade 5nions in Endia today

The trade union 'ove'ent in Endia re!resents less than ten !ercent o$ *or+ers. En ter'so$ nu'ber) ho*ever) it 'eans so'ething li+e 6 crores =6) 00) 00)000>. This) along *ith its

long history) it still re!resents) a signi$icant !otential $orce in social change *hich is $ar'ore than its 'ere strength in nu'bers. Trade unions have !layed an i'!ortant role inthe national liberation 'ove'ent in the colonial conte@t as *ell as leading the *or+ersand !easants 'ove'ents both be$ore and a$ter Binde!endence. En the last $e* decadesthe agriculture and industrial sectors have been on a decline and the service sector hasgro*n enor'ously. The trade union 'ove'ent has bases in the $irst t*o sectors and *iththeir decline it has *ea+ened enor'ously. This has resulted in closure o$ a large nu'bero$ industrial units) both large and s'all) and has 'ade 'illions o$ *or+ers to 'ove to

67



unorganised sectors *ith conseHuent relative i'!overish'ent. En the agriculture sector)the green revolution and globalisation has 'ade 'illions o$ s'all $ar'ers lose their landand turned the' into agricultural labour or i''igrants into city slu's as uns+illedlabour. As a rule) traditional artisans have been losing their 'ar+et and are giving u! theirtrade and joining the urban and rural !oor. 8ajority o$ Endians today are e@!eriencing

decline in their inco'e and living standards. The botto' 60L is e@!eriencing'alnutrition) disease and death. 5rban and rural suicides a'ong *or+ing !eo!le haveincreased dra'atically in the last decade.

The trade union 'ove'ent today is on the de$ensive. or+ers are trying to !rotect their jobs and 'aintain their *ages in the $ace o$ rising in$lation. hen the units close do*nthey try to restart it and i$ that $ails they try to get their !rovident $und dues) getco'!ensations and so on. "rganisations li+e <agari+a 8anch in 4ol+ata) Centre $or?ducation and Co''unication =C?C>) <e* Trade 5nion Enitiatives =<T5E>) #abour%ile) (elhi and 'any others have docu'ented their struggles and !light. Altogether theyare $ighting a tough and losing battle. Today) the need o$ the hour is that they carry their

struggle $or*ard in such a 'anner that it !re!ares the *or+ing !eo!le o$ the country to$ace the !resent crisis o$ ca!italis'. And it !re!ares the !eo!le to 'ove to*ards a $ossil$uel $ree society. %or that to ha!!en) *e 'ust $irst ta+e a loo+ at the history o$ suchstruggles *ithin the trade union 'ove'ent in Endia. These co'bined the ele'ents o$B/truggle and ,uild =Sangharsh aur .irman>.

The Endian situation

The 'ost i'!ortant $act today is that all the !arlia'entary !arties have abandoned the!oor and !articularly the trade union 'ove'ent. This has not ha!!ened overnight. A$terthe t*o1year drought in 9- and 9 and the conseHuent recession) there *as an

u!surge in trade union and 'ass 'ove'ents. The ruling congress lost the election ineight states and 'any !olitical !arties s!lit and 'any ne* 'ove'ents *ere born. A$terthe ,angladesh *ar) Endira 7andhi rode on a nationalist =read $ascist> senti'ent andbrutally su!!ressed 'ass 'ove'ents. En 9; there *as the great national rail*ay stri+eand <av <ir'an 8ove'ent in 7ujarat and the 3. P. 'ove'ent in ,ihar. To su!!ress it)the govern'ent e@!loded a nuclear device to once again regain nationalist senti'ent.Then the govern'ent declared e'ergency and let loose a $ascist terror ca'!aign againsttrade unions and 'ass 'ove'ents.

&o*ever) the 'ass 'ove'ents continued even though 'any i'!ortant leaders *ere jailed. %inally) the govern'ent *as $orced to li$t the e'ergencyI conduct elections. The

ruling Congress !arty lost the election heavily. ?ven a$ter the e'ergency status *asli$ted) the trade union leaders li+e A. 4. Roy and 7eorge %ernandes had to $ight theelection $ro' jail. "nly a$ter having *on the election *ere they released $ro' jail.

This Bvictory) ho*ever) *as short lived. The coalition lost through in$ighting and'ani!ulations by the Congress Party. The ruling !arty continued its !olitics o$ $o'entingregional as!irations and 'ani!ulations. %inally it bac+$ired and Endira 7andhi *asassassinated on "ctober 6) 9;. That year 'ar+ed the end o$ su!!ort o$ !o!ular

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'ove'ents by !arlia'entary !arties.

"n a chilly 'orning on (ece'ber ;) 9;) *hen every one *as aslee!) the *orstindustrial accident in the *orld occurred in ,ho!al. Et +illed thousands o$ !eo!lei''ediately. hile it dre* international attention and su!!ort $or the !eo!le and *or+ers

o$ ,ho!alI not a single Endian !arlia'entary !arty =e@ce!t /ocialist 5nity Centre o$Endia1 /5CE> ca'e out in su!!ort o$ the !eo!leJ /ince then) !arlia'entary !arties havere$used to su!!ort any !eo!les 'ove'ent) be it against the big da'sI againstdis!lace'ent by Bdevelo!'ent !rojectsI !ollution by s!onge iron !lantsI or large1scaleclosure o$ industries and the subseHuent retrench'ent o$ *or+ers.

,y 99) *ith Endia getting on the band*agon o$ re$or') o$ liberalisation) !rivatisationand globalisation) the !rocess *as co'!lete. The govern'ent) and this ti'e all the!arlia'entary !arties) once again rode on the 'iddle class consent to its develo!'entideas) gro*th o$ 7(P) !ros!erity etc. at the cost o$ environ'ent and !eo!le. ith oil!ea+ing this year the end o$ this era has begun.

Sangharsh 1ur .irman

hy do these !arties abandon 'ass 'ove'entsF A brie$ ans*er *ould be B!o*er andgreed $or !o*er. En 9) *hen CPE =8> shared !o*er in est ,engal and 3yoti ,asu*as the &o'e 8inister) he ordered !olice $iring on the agitating !easants in <a@albari+illing 'en) *o'en and children. Et also gave birth to the <a@alites 1 the largest anti1!arlia'entary organised grou!. /i'ilarly) *hen these !arties tasted !o*er in 9 theyonce again dro!!ed their trade union co'rades. A. 4. Roy) the trade union leader in the3haria coal$ields *as sus!ended $ro' CPE =8> and so *as /han+ar 7uha <iyogi) thetrade union leader in ,hilai /teel Plant and iron ore 'ines.

These events gave rise to inde!endent and creative trade union 'ove'ents in the 0s.The slogan) Sangharsh aur .irman =/truggle and ,uild> *as given by /han+ar 7uha<iyogi and he sy'bolised this trend. 5nder his leadershi!) the *or+ers built the $a'ous/haheed &os!ital at (alli Rajhara K the 'ining to*n in Chhatisgarh. /ince then) 'anysuch !eo!les hos!itals have been built. En ,ihar) A. 4. Roy *as leading a red and greencoalition bet*een *or+ers and tribal !easants *ho carried out land re$or's and !racticedcollective $ar'ing. ?very*here *or+ers education !rogra''es had begun. En Ta'il<adu a big union o$ construction *or+ers ca'e into being and today it is building houses$or Tsuna'i a$$ected villagers. A $e* industries *ere and are being ta+en over by*or+ers in various !arts o$ the country.

All these inde!endent and creative trade union 'ove'ents have had a rebirth in the 2 st

century. En the beginning o$ this century the e$$ects o$ globalisation !ut a tre'endous!ressure on the *or+ing classI giving rise to a large nu'ber o$ 'ove'ents. A'ong these<T5E or the <e* Trade 5nion Enitiative is signi$icant. 8any o$ the constituents o$ <T5Eare the erst*hile inde!endent trade union 'ove'ents 'entioned above. En its docu'entit says B <T5E is a national !lat$or' o$ non1!artisan le$t1de'ocratic trade unions in the$or'al and in$or'al sectors o$ *or+ that re!resent *or+ers in agriculture) $orest)

69



construction) 'anu$acturing and services *ith the objective o$ $or'ing trade union$ederation. En as 'uch as constituents o$ <T5E are not bound by !arty a$$iliation) <T5Ehas a relatively greater s!ace to loo+ at the e'erging issues.

%uture Endustrial /cenario

En a $ossil $uel $ree society the industrial scene *ill be radically di$$erent. %or this) theinitiative ta+en by the *or+ers should on one hand allo* the' to have a better Huality o$li$e and at the sa'e ti'e !re!are the' $or such a society. e $irst ta+e a Huic+ loo+ at*hat *ill and *ill not be there.

1. ,ecause o$ the lac+ o$ a$$ordable $uel) the $irst sector a$$ected *ill obviously be

trans!ort. #u@ury sectors li+e aviation are already under huge losses. ,oth AirEndia and Private airlines in Endia are !osting huge losses to the order o$ 'illionso$ dollars. The *orld $igure o$ losses is re!orted to be o$ the order o$ nine billiondollarsJ Truc+ers in ?uro!e are $acing !roble's o$ $uel shortage and !rices. This

*ill in turn a$$ect international and long distance trade *ithin the country. Again)this in turn *ill a$$ect large1scale !rojects. To begin *ith) starting o$ ne* 'ega!rojects 1 be it in auto) !o*er generation) steel !lants) housing^ *ill beabandoned. ?@isting 'ega !rojects *ill either live their li$e out or close do*n.8any o$ the service sectors *ill also vanish. Thus) there *ill be huge loss o$ jobs.

2. "n the other hand) this *ill also lead to 'ore local econo'y. Endustries that are

needed) li+e $ood) housing and te@tiles 1 the $a'ous B /oti# kapda aur makanD *illobviously survive) but at a 'ore local and regional level. The technology also *illbe si'!ler and o$ten based on biological !rocesses. Related local industries li+erice 'ill) $lour'ill) oil 'ill and artisan trades li+e car!entry) !ottery) leather*or+and s'ithy *ill survive and $lourish. This *ill generate a large nu'ber o$ ne*

jobs.3. %ood security through restoration o$ the $ertility o$ the soil and *ater security

through restoration o$ the $orest *ith biodiversity *ill be the 'ain agenda o$ theco'ing decades. This *ill create 'illions o$ jobs in agriculture) $orestry andrestoration o$ *ater bodies.

4. The science o$ agro ecology *ill $lourish. This *ill create ne* jobs in teaching

right $ro' school to university level and o!en ne* research o!!ortunities.

Proble's o$ Trade 5nion initiative

hile the $uture scenario is not all blea+) the actual !artici!ation o$ trade union inbroader issues is a di$$icult one. ,y and large it has 'ainly been done *ith revolutionary!olitical !arties =in s!ite o$ all that *e said about the !olitical !arties in Endia and aboutanarchist tendencies in the 'ove'ent>.

1. "ne o$ the biggest !roble's) li+e rest o$ the society) the unions and *or+ers also

$ind it di$$icult to believe that the industrial era is over. ?@ce!t Cuba) no !olitical!arty any*here is having such an agenda.

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2. e should re'e'ber that) although the tradition o$ anti industrial society ideas o$

Thoreau) Tolstoy and 7andhi has a history o$ 'ore than a century) it never had abig !resence. ?ven 7andhis 1 *ho had a big !resence in !re1inde!endence!olitics 1 ideas never really caught on.

3. The environ'ental issues o$ industrial health) air !ollution due to industry etc.

that a$$ect the *or+ers directly) have had $e* ta+ers in the history o$ the *or+ingclass 'ove'ent.

/o *hat should be the Trade 5nion initiative todayF

The trade union 'ove'ent is o$ten accused $or de'anding *age rise only. This shouldno* be seen in the conte@t o$ eHuity. The *or+ers) justi$iably) $eel they should get ahigher share o$ the sur!lus value they generate. hy should the bossesca!italists getsuch a high share o$ the !roduceF En the !resent crisis) their de'and *ould naturally be:let the e'!loyers $irst ta+e a cut in their earnings 1 the jobs 'ust be saved. /econdly) thene* society and the ne* technologies cannot succeed unless *aste o$ resources 1 either

by *ay o$ e'!loyers ta+ing their undue share or by irrational !roduction andconsu'!tion o$ goods 1 is sto!!ed.

This very correct de'and 'ust be co'bined *ith initiatives based on regional !lanning$or a $ossil $uel $ree society. e cannot !lan in vacuu'. Et has to be in the conte@t o$ theactual situation o$ the region and the issues $aced by *or+ing !eo!le.

The 'ove'ent today is $acing si@ +inds o$ situations related to the colla!se o$ ca!italis':

1. The ca!ital has abandoned and the units are closed.

2. The industry is running into losses and is !lanning to close do*n.

3. The industry is running but it has enor'ous contradiction *ith the co''unity dueto !ollution o$ land and *ater.

4. <e* units are !ro!osed at the cost o$ tribals) !easants) environ'ent andor the

activity is irrational $ro' a $uturistic !ers!ective o$ a $ossil $uel $ree society.5. The industry is running as a !art o$ the natural econo'y o$ the region and can

easily $it into a $ossil $uel $uture.6. <e* industrial activity is !lanned in tune *ith the needs o$ a $ossil $uel $ree

society.

The Trade 5nion Res!onse

1. The initiative should $ocus on the $irst !roble' because the need is acute and ane* activity can be !lanned. "ne o$ the $irst things to do *ill be to clai' theresources o$ the abandoned unit 1 land) housing colony) building) eHui!'ent andstores and cash co'!ensation. The initiative should be centered to*ards the 'ostdistressed section o$ the *or+ing class and start *ith 'itigating the distress.&o*ever it should be done through ne* initiative o$ 'utual aid *hich *ouldbuild a sense o$ co''unity. Et can start *ith ensuring $ood and shelter $or the*or+ing !eo!le. Co''unity +itchens could be one o$ the $irst things to start.

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Vegetable) $ruit and agricultural activities should be i''ediately started. At thesa'e ti'e one should enter into a dialogue *ith the other *or+ing !eo!le o$ theregion) *hich includes not only in$or'al sector *or+ers and !easants andartisans) but also !ro$essionals) *ho +no* the regions !otentials in ter's o$alternatives. herever !ossible su!!ort o$ !olitical organisations and 'ove'ents

should be sought 1 li+e <a@alites) <AP8 and others. /lo*ly a collectivealternative should be built u!.

"$ course there *ill be re!ression by the state directly and indirectly. This is*here the 'ass su!!ort *ill !lay a crucial role. <agari+a 8anch in 4ol+ata and<T5E can !otentially do a lot o$ good *or+ in this area. ithin the trade union'ove'ent regional $ederation o$ all the unions 'ay be a ne* direction that the'ove'ent 'ay have to ta+e. /o'e o$ the big o!!ortunities *e 'ay have !robably'issed *ere the closure o$ 4olar 7old %ields and /indri %ertiliser %actory. En4olar) the govern'ent o$$ered the *hole to*nshi! to the *or+ersJ ,ut) there are alot 'any !laces *here the need is urgent.

2. En the !ast) *hen an industry *as !lanning closure) the unions tried to sto! it.

Today it *ill not be advisable. Et is better to 'ove in early to bargain $or the*or+ers share in the closing !rocedure. #i+e in the case above the union can ta+eover the resources and run a ne* activity in collaboration *ith regionalsta+eholders.

3. The 'ost di$$icult situation is one *here the industry is running and the Trade

5nion 'ove'ent is co'ing in shar! contradiction *ith the local !o!ulation andenviron'ent grou!s. A classic e@a'!le is the Coco Cola $actory in Plachi'ada in4erala. &ere the $irst need is to start a dialogue bet*een all the sta+eholders. "ne

should $irst co'e to an agree'ent on the long1ter' goals. Then) *or+ to*ards a!ath *here all the sta+eholders needs are satis$ied as *ell as the goal =closure o$$actory and alternative Bgreen e'!loy'ent generation> is achieved. The case o$shi$ting s'all1scale industry out o$ (elhi due to the !ollution caused is anothersuch case.

4. En instances *here ne* irrational industrial activities are co'ing u!) the !ath is

Huite clear. e have to join other 'ove'ents *hich are o!!osing the' andinitiate alternate regional !lanning $or a green $ossil $uel $ree society. The coal1based !o*er !lant in <andi+ur in 5du!i district is one such case. /o $ar) theresistance has succeeded in !reventing three !revious atte'!ts to set it u!. The

!resent atte'!t o$ setting u! the !lant a!!ears to be succeeding in so $ar asbuilding activity is going on. ,ut *hether the crisis *ill allo* it to co'!leteconstruction or not is so'ething that only ti'e can tell. /i'ilarly) the 8angalore/?N and the /?Ns all over the country are $acing a big resistance $ro' the !eo!le.

5. En cases *here the industry $its in easily *ith a $ossil $uel $ree $uture) the e$$ort

should be to save the industry. "ne can then 'ove to*ards) a greater share o$*or+er !artici!ation in running the industryI better conditions o$ *or+I 'a+ing

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the industry Bgreener etc.

6. %inally) *herever ne* industrial activity is !lanned in tune *ith the needs o$ a

$uture society) the /yndicalist a!!roach can be !ut to $ull use. The *or+ers cano*n the activity in so'e $or' o$ the coo!erative run *ith $ull coo!eration o$

regional sta+eholders.

%or the sa+e o$ si'!licity) E have avoided !utting disclai'ers throughout the essay. E a'a*are that one !erson cannot be !rescri!tive to a great 'ove'ent li+e) the Endian tradeunion 'ove'ent is. /o) the contents should be ta+en as 'aterial $or *or+er education inthe trade union 'ove'ent.

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5rban Enitiatives


En tac+ling !roble's arising out o$ acute shortage o$ $ossil $uels) *e *ould need to $ocuson urban areas becauseI they consu'e bul+ o$ the energy derived $ro' $ossil $uels. 5rbanareas are energy intensive on account o$ being centers o$ econo'ic) !olitical)ad'inistrative !o*er) and o$ten) centers o$ learning and culture. (e'ands in rural areasare in$luenced by trends in urban areas. Also) *ithin urban agglo'erates) de'ands ins'aller cities are in$luenced by bigger cities. ConseHuently reduced de'ands in urbanareas *ill have a s!illover e$$ect into the other areas.

5rban Endia

Endia has an urban !o!ulation o$ 600 'illion) greater than the !o!ulation o$ 5/A) or $orthat 'atter) greater than any country e@ce!t China. This urban Endian !o!ulation lives ina total o$ ;00 urban agglo'erates. "$ this urban !o!ulation) 'ore than hal$ =0 'illion>lives in 6- cities that have a !o!ulation greater than a 'illion. The three 'etros) 8u'bai)4ol+ata and (elhi have 'ore than 0 'illion residents. &yderabad and ,engaluru) have'ore than - 'illion. Et *ill be easier to tac+le the !roble's o$ 20 'illion !eo!le *holive in 6- urban agglo'erates o$ less than a 'illion) and 'any o$ the success stories *ill$irst co'e $ro' the'. "n the other hand) 'any grou!s and individuals in bigger cities are'ore a*are and have resources to start alternatives. They can hel! grou!s and residentsin s'aller to*ns.

The 5rban 'indset

,e$ore *e ta+e u! concrete !rogra''es) *e should $irst understand the urban 'indset.This is crucial in *or+ing out the details o$ the !rogra''es. En urban areas)individualis' or alienation is very signi$icant. Peo!le are used to being on their o*nI notrelating *ith their neighbours. Any solution to urban !roble's *ill have to tac+le thisissue $irst.

Ca!italis' breeds ca!italist individualis' and brea+s do*n co''unities. hat isca!italist individualis'F Et is the belie$ that one is $ree i$ one has 'oney in ones !oc+etto s!end as one li+es. The 'ore the 'oney) the 'ore the $reedo'J &o*ever) this very'oney is obtained through jobsI *hich i'!lies) *age slavery. /o) at one level) this$reedo' is 'ythical. At another level) historically) it 'eant getting out o$ the o!!ressivebondage o$ a caste syste' or a !atriarchal $a'ily. /o) it did 'ean $reedo'. Thus thegro*th o$ ca!italist individualis' and the brea+ing do*n o$ co''unities are one and thesa'e !rocesses. The de'ocratic state also aids the !rocess o$ brea+ing do*nco''unities through !ro'ises o$ a *el$are state and through +illing traditions o$ sel$1'anage'ent o$ local issues.

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The real $reedo' is to get out o$ *age slavery and $eudal bondage. "n the other hand) thehu'an s!ecies is a social s!ecies. &o* do *e co'bine the urge $or $reedo' *ith theneed to be !art o$ a co''unityF Et cannot be done by going to the !ast and building theco''unity on the basis o$ caste) as 7andhi tried to do. e !ro!ose that this be done by

disengaging *ith ca!ital and the state and rebuilding the co''unity on the basis o$ afree association of free people. hat does it 'ean in !racticeI and *here and ho* doesone beginF

The basis o$ ones $reedo' is in res!ecting the other !ersons $reedo'. Res!ecting)loving and caring $or the other is the basic !rinci!le on *hich a $ree association can bebuilt. /o) *e should get to +no* each other directly) be they !oor or rich) o$ ourcasteclass or o$ another. ,ut our historyI our vie*sI inhibits us. #earning toacco''odate diversity *ill be the basis $or building co''unity. e start $ro' *here *eare and 'ove in the direction. e should credit ourselves on ho* 'uch diversity *e canrelate to) !articularly *ith the !oorest $a'iliesI !eo!le living in bastesI servantsI so1

called untouchablesI and so on.

En urban areas) there is a horri$yingly stu!endous *aste o$ $ood because things co'eeasily to the *ell1o$$ sections. Peo!le in urban areas do not !roduce $ood. "ther*ise)they *ould have +no*n better. e should reduce both consu'!tion and *astesyste'atically and incre'entally.

/o *hen *e are discussing concrete !rojects they are not just technological $i@es o$!ublic trans!ort versus !rivateI se!arating solid *aste at sourceI urban gardeningIchanging incandescent bulbs to C%# bulbs etc. Et *ill reHuire rebuilding the co''unityand that can be done 'ainly through local associations and trade unions. En 'ost o$ theseinitiatives) the siDe o$ the co''unity should be on hu'an scale) say a !o!ulation o$0)000 or so.

Children

En urban areas) children have lost their childhood) !articularly in 'etro!olitan situations.They are engul$ed in the vicious circle o$ school) tuition and consu'eris' !ro'oted byTV channels and !eer1grou! !ressures. "rganising childrens grou!s !lay and library at alocal level is a very i'!ortant activity. As $ar as !ossible) encourage children to go tolocal schools so as to cut !recious travel ti'e and save trans!ort costs and $ossil $uels.e have to !ose the Huestion) Bhy cant *e 'a+e the local school as good as the distant

oneF e should actively !artici!ate in the 'anage'ent o$ local schools) be they !rivateIgovern'entI or those run by local associations.

"rganising childrens eco1clubs) either at the school or in the locality can be veryre*arding. Children are rece!tive to ne* ideas and so'e o$ the local initiatives describedbelo* can be started at these clubs.

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/olid *aste dis!osal and urban gardens

The urban situation i'!lies se!aration o$ !eo!le $ro' the land. <utrients are trans!orteda*ay $ro' the cro!s and $ar's *here they originateI accu'ulate) in !art) as *aste in thecitiesI de!rive $ar' land the nutrient that *ould have other*ise been recycled at siteI

!rogressively de!lete $ar' land soil HualityI and are a reason $or urban $ilth. 5rban *astedis!osal 'ethods thus) cut at the very root o$ the nitrogen cycle by not allo*ing thebiodegradable *aste =the nutrients o$ the soil> to go bac+ to the soil. &ence) se!aration o$biodegradable *aste at the source and co'!osting at an individual or co''unity level isan absolute 'ust. Related issues are rain*ater harvesting and urban vegetable gardens.These *ill reduce trans!ort costs 1 both in trans!orting *aste to du'!s outside the cityand bringing vegetable to to*nI !rovide $resh $oodI and 'a+e $or consu'!tion o$ theco'!ost !roduced locally. This ta+es care o$ nearly 0 !er cent o$ the *aste. There'aining *aste such as 'etal) glass) !lastics) etc. can be recycled 'ore easily and ingreater Huantities since it is already se!arated.

%uel

Al'ost all do'estic $uel consu'ed in cities today is o$ $ossil $uel origin. ith the cost o$coo+ing gas and +erosene slo*ly going u!) !eo!le *ill be $orced to 'ove to *ood1based$uels. here is the *ood $or thisF "ur $orests are already under great stress. The onlysolution is to gro* $uel *ood *ithin the city. 5nless *e start right no*) *e *ill not beready *hen the crisis dee!ens) as trees ta+e ti'e to gro*. Also) solar bo@ coo+ersovenscan save at1least hal$ the total coo+ing $uel.

Trans!ort

Trans!ort is the biggest $ossil $uel guDDler today. e have discussed childrens schooltrans!ort) trans!ort o$ solid *aste and bringing in vegetables and $ruits $ro' rural areas.There still re'ains general *ithin1the1city trans!ort. En big cities t*o *heelers) cars andauto ric+sha*s create terrible !roble's o$ road accidents and air !ollution. Recent rise in$uel !rices are !utting great !ressures on t*o and three *heelers because they are used byrelatively lo*er inco'e grou!s. 8any auto drivers $eel that the days o$ autos arenu'bered and that cycle ric+sha* *ill co'e bac+. 8ost !robably) there *ill be a !haseo$ sharing autos be$ore they get !hased out. /i'ilarly) $or t*o *heelers they !robably*ill go through a !hase o$ battery o!erated #una style 'inis or bicycles. Et *ill allha!!en $irst in s'aller to*ns and then in bigger cities. /'all to*ns *ith distances o$ -+' or so dont need any $ossil $uel vehicles. Et is just a!ing the big cities and e@!ression

o$ !o*er. They can easily launch on the !ath o$ beco'ing $ossil $uel $ree straight a*ay./o) as stated be$ore) it *ill be easier to ta+e the initiative in s'aller to*ns.

E'!roved cycle ric+sha*s 1 lighter and *ith gears 1 have been around $or so'e ti'e. En(elhi) Chandigarh) Agra) 8athura and 3ai!ur several thousands !ly. En 8aharashtra thereis a design *here in the ric+sha* !uller can rearrange the seat and convert it into a bedJ

%or the bigger cities) there *ill have to be a 'ore co'$ortable and rational urban !ublic

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trans!ort syste'. Et is a !olitical battle *hich 'any civil society grou!s are *aging.8ean*hile local grou!s can ta+e initiatives in the use o$ cycles and in bringing bac+ thecycle ric+sha*s) !articularly in the outlaying areas.

ater

The siDe o$ any hu'an settle'ent is deter'ined by the a'ount o$ *ater available. Todayal'ost all the 'illion !lus cities and 'any s'aller cities are de!endent on *ater beingbrought $ro' a distant river or la+e. En 'any cases this *as reHuired not only because o$increase in !o!ulation) but also due to !ollution o$ the e@isting source. There *illde$initely be con$lict over the issues in the $uture. The ai' should be that every hu'ansettle'ent is sel$1su$$icient in *ater resources. T*o initiatives are !ossible: > aterharvesting $ro' roo$s o$ individual buildings) 2> Cleaning u! the e@isting *ater sourcesto 'a+e *ater !otable. This *ill reHuire) 'andatory cleaning and treat'ent at the!olluting source.

&ealth Care

5rban li$estyles) !ollution) and che'ical addiction =narcotics) tobacco) and alcohol> havecreated severe health !roble's. PrivatiDation o$ health care) !articularly cor!oratisation)has 'ade it the biggest direct e@!loiter o$ the !eo!le. Pediatric and geriatric health careare !articularly !rone to e@!loitation as they involve the e'otions o$ !eo!le. There is anurgent need to initiate co''unity1based !eo!les health care grou!s *hose ai's can be:. To 'ove to*ards in$or'ed sel$1care.2. To !ro'ote healthy li$estyles and !reventive health care.6. To !rovide !ro$essional care service through a trained $a'ily !hysician.

Consu'er Co1o!eratives

5rban li$e is do'inated by irrational consu'eris' and choices in the 'ar+et that are noteasy to discern. /o the basis $or the local sho! should be a li'ited choice o$ reliable!roducts in ter's o$ Huality and !rice. This *ill reduce inventories and save 'oney both$or the sho!+ee!er and the consu'er. The sho! can be +e!t by any one in the co''unityor can be run by a society. A co''itted 'e'bershi! hel!s in bul+ !urchases. Theco''unity can also *or+ *ith one village $or bul+ !urchase o$ organic !roducts.

5nto the last

En rebuilding the co''unity the needs o$ the !oorest co'e $irst. hile charity 'ay beneeded initially to overco'e hunger and starvation) the long1ter' solution is to createne* jobs *ithin the co''unity) such as those o$ gardeners and co'!ost 'a+ers) cycleric+sha* drivers and re!air !ersons) jobs associated *ith local cr_ches) local ba+eries)co''unity service centers) !lu'bers) car!enters) 'asons) tailors) general re!air and'aintenance *or+ers etc. The goal should be that basic securities o$ shelter) $ood) $uel)education o$ children and health care should be available to all irres!ective o$ inco'e*ithin the co''unity) and *ith the co''unitys resources.

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7et started

"ne should begin *ith onesel$ and start i'!le'enting so'e o$ the ideas *ithin oneso*n control. %or e@a'!le) one can start using bicycles) segregating *aste at source)

buying a solar coo+er) !lanting a tree etc. Then one should start $or'ing a grou!. The$irst thing is to educate the grou! about Pea+ "il. Then one can start !lanning activitiesgiven the resources o$ the grou!. The ai' should be to *or+ *ithin the resources o$ the'icro co''unity one is a !art o$. %ederal lin+s and 'utual su!!ort *ith si'ilarneighbourhood grou!s *ill co'e later. As soon as !ossible) 'e'bers o$ the grou! should join associations and trade unions *ithin the co''unity as *ell as beco'e 'e'bers o$the e@isting city grou!s such as bird society) sna+e club) horticultural society)environ'ental grou!s and so on. This *ill give access to vital resources *ithin the city.

Tal+ing about Pea+ "il can be very $rustrating in the beginning. e are all so used to ourli$e style) !articularly i$ *e belong to the 'iddle and u!!er1'iddle class that it is di$$icult

to conceive li$e *ithout oil. As ,ush said) *e are addicted to oil. And li+e in all addictioncases the $irst stage is to deny that there is a !roble'. Then to ho!e that so'e 'agictechnology solution *ill co'e and so on. "$ course events o$ rising !rices do hel! but itis still very di$$icult to overco'e inertia cou!led *ith the !roble' o$ alienation as hasbeen discussed above.

Et 'ay) there$ore) be easier to *or+ in s'aller to*ns. /o i$ *e are living in big cities) it'ay be *orth*hile to develo! lin+s *ith the nearest s'all to*n and either 'ove there ordevelo! initiatives there. %inally) it 'ay be *orth*hile to loo+ at Cubas e@!erience.

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R5RA# E<ETEATEV?/


Rural Endia

Endia is a large country *ith about 00)000 rural co''unities. ?vidently there can be noone ty!e o$ village. To loo+ at it 'eaning$ully *e should thin+ in ter's o$ ecology orbiogeogra!hic Dones as discussed in cha!ter . These s'aller regions de$ine the +ind o$$ood gro*n and hence the +ind o$ village and the village co''unity.

Then one has to loo+ at the' in ter's o$ recent history. hile the country as a *hole hase@!erienced ca!italist develo!'ent and the rural areas have not been una$$ected by it)there are regional variations. As a rule ?astern Endia has seen lo*er develo!'ents o$ca!italis' than the <orth) est and the /outh. &o*ever) *ithin each o$ these regions)there are tribal hinterlands that still live on subsistence econo'y.

Rural issues

0conomy

The 'ain result o$ invasion o$ ca!italis' !ushed by the state in rural areas is theincreased cash needs o$ the villagers $or health) education and trans!ort. This has led toco''ercial and che'ical agriculture. This in turn has 'eant cash in!uts $or irrigation)che'ical $ertilisers) and !esticides. Enitially this did increase !roduction and led to $urtherincrease in rural consu'eris'. /oon) ho*ever) the cash inco'e due to agriculturebeca'e less than the e@!enditure on in!uts and other ite's. Et led to debt tra!s and the*orst1o$$ resorted to suicide.

Rural !overty is increasing although govern'ent statistics say other*ise. Acreage)!roductivity and hence total !roduction o$ several $ood cro!s have been decreasing $orthe last seven years. Per ca!ita availability o$ $ood has also continuously $allen. There hasbeen continuous 'igration $ro' the rural areas to the cities.

Society

The 'onetiDation o$ the rural econo'y has bro+en the social $abric in a big *ay. Cash inthe !oc+et brings individualis' and brea+s the co''unity. /ince the needs o$ theco''unity re'ain) it reasserts in a cash 'anner. Co''unity $unctions) births) 'arriage)deaths) $estivals have beco'e increasingly e@!ensive. Annual $estivals attract 'igrantsbac+ ho'e and they have to sho* o$$ by s!ending 'oney. This increase in cashe@!enditure together *ith increased e@!enditure on health) education and trans!ort has!ut rural society in great distress. Rural alcoholis' and even consu'!tion o$ narcoticshave increased signi$icantly.

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Conflicts

Rural Endia has al*ays $aced intense class con$licts and there have been !easant'ove'ents and agricultural labour 'ove'ents and tribal 'ove'ents all the ti'e.&istorically) the Co''unist 8ove'ent in Endia has !layed a 'ajor role in hel!ing the

rural !oor. En recent years the issue o$ develo!'ent !rojects acHuiring lands has beco'ea 'ajor source o$ con$lict. ,ased on the !ast e@!erience) villagers no longer *ant to giveland because in the !ast !ro'ises o$ land) jobs etc. have not co'e true. hile 'any!rotests began *ith river da' !rojects) today it has 'oved on to !rojects involving'ines) s!onge iron !lants) large steel !lants) coal based ther'al !o*er !lants) /?Ns andeven car !rojects. hile the issue o$ land and livelihood re'ain i'!ortantI the issues o$environ'ent degradation and global *ar'ing are also beco'ing serious and severalsections o$ society) rural and urban) are joining the !rotests. The biggest current con$lictis 'ainly in 'ineral rich resource areas o$ Chhatisgarh. &ere the /tate has declared a *aron the tribal !eo!le) $orcing the' to 'igrate out so that !o*er !lants and steel !lants canbe set u!. hile 8aoists are an i'!ortant grou! in !eo!les 'ove'ent) a very large

nu'ber o$ other grou!s and !ro$essionals are also !art o$ the 'ove'ent. Thesecoalitions) cou!led *ith the history o$ rural reconstruction 'ove'ent in Endia) carry theseeds o$ building a $uture $ossil $uel $ree society.

Rural initiatives

1ims

The ai's o$ the initiatives can be:

. To rebuild the co''unity $abric on the basis o$ eHuality.

2. To rebuild the rural econo'y on the basis o$ a $ossil $uel $ree society.

Et is i'!ortant to re'e'ber that the t*o objectives are inse!arable. Et is entirely !ossibleto use $ossil $uel $ree technologies) li+e organic $ra'ing) solar) *ood gassi$iers etc. tosu!!ort ca!italist enter!rises. This *ill not solve the !roble's and !rojects li+e bio$uels*ill even increase the !roble's.

Guidelines

/o'e guideline to achieve the ai's could loo+ li+e this:

. Ai' at local control) nurture) and care o$ natural resources. /ee+ $ood) *ater) andhealth security on a local sel$1su$$icient and sel$1'anaged basis. The ai' o$ agriculture is!ri'arily sustenance o$ li$e. Cash cro!s are only a su!!le'ent $or obtaining essentialsli+e salt) s!ecial 'edication) boo+s) stationery) s!ecialised tools) utensils etc. As such)they can only be about - !er cent o$ the out!ut. All in!uts to agriculture should co'e$ro' the land itsel$.

2. Another 'ajor issue in any co''unity is e@tre'ely uneHual o*nershi! o$ resources)

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!articularly land. "ne should consider that land does not belong to any one) least o$ all tothe state. The co''unity should collectively control it. The land and other resourcesshould $eed all the !eo!le. Peo!le should be caring to*ards each other. E$ that is absent)then *e *ill be !artici!ating in the govern'ent syste'.

6. There are so'e !eo!le *ho are not able to do *or+. They 'ay be old) sic+)handica!!ed... Et should be the res!onsibility o$ the unionsocial organisation or even the<7"s that these !eo!le have access to $ood and healthcare.

;. &ealth is al*ays an i'!ortant issue and social organisations have to ta+e an initiativein it. The ai' o$ health !rogra''es should be in$or'ed sel$1care. En dealing *ith thee@isting health and education institutions in our co''unity) *e should relate *ith the!ersonnel on the basis o$ treating the' as 'e'bers o$ our co''unity and not as Bthe'.e should try to get *hat is availableI but 'ore i'!ortant is to involve the' in theco''unity1building !rocessI obtaining relevant education and health care.

-. En as 'uch as village society has 'ore caste and !atriarchal hierarchies) good results*ill be obtained *hen *e *or+ *ith children. ?ducation can involve a lot o$ agricultureand nature conservation activity. En $act) that can be the 'ain ai' o$ education 1 to learns+ills and +no*ledge $or sustenance o$ li$e. 8any schools have nature clubs and ecoclubs. The design o$ activity o$ these clubs should be such that they $ollo* nature and theagricultural calendar. This activity should be cou!led *ith greater $orest acreage)biodiversity and conservation o$ endangered s!ecies o$ $lora and $auna.

Rural initiatives: s!eci$ic e@a'!les

/ebuilding communities

There are scores o$ e@a'!les o$ rebuilding co''unities in the Endian e@!erience. Tobegin *ith) there are co''unist e@!eriences in the Telengana struggle and 'ore recently8aoist Bliberated areas. &ere a*areness o$ ideas o$ eHuality and end o$ e@!loitation o$'an by 'an has been the do'inant 'essage. Enstitutional o!!ression o$ caste) religionand obscurant ideas has been attac+ed. o'ens rights and *o'ens !artici!ation alsohas been i'!ortant. #and re$or's *ere carried out and coo!erative agriculture has been!ractised. Co''unity health and education have been stressed. A 'ajor !roble' theseorganisations $ace is to have a !ro!er balance bet*een engaging *ith the state in the $or'o$ ar'ed struggle and rebuilding co''unities. "$ten the $or'er ta+es a lot o$ energy o$the organisations and 'any issues such as environ'ent are neglected.

There has been very i'!ortant *or+ carried out in this $ield. Anna &aDares *or+ inRalegaon /iddhi) near Pune) co'bined rebuilding co''unity *ith anti alcohol and antitobacco 'ove'ent) *ater harvesting and i'!roving agriculture. The village 8endha=#e+ha> in 7adchiorli district o$ 8aharashtra beca'e $a'ous *ith its declaration) Behave our govern'ent in (elhi and 8u'bai) but in our village *e ourselves are thegovern'ent. Et is a village inhabited by the 7ond tribe. They !ractice direct de'ocracy)ta+e decisions by consensus and not by 'ajority. They have carried out i'!ortant *or+

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in rebuilding the co''unity in ter's o$ decision 'a+ing !rocess) reviving 7otul)increasing *o'ens !artici!ation) reclai'ing $orest etc. 5nli+e the co''unists) thesegrou!s do not challenge the /tate and in $act are able to use the /tate develo!'ent $undse$$ectively. Et has also been argued that *ithout the village !eo!les organisation) state$unds usually get 'isused. They have also *or+ed closely *ith the <7"s. En both these

!rojects there is high a*areness o$ environ'ent degradation due to B'odern li$e. "ne o$the criticis's o$ these e@a'!les is that they have not been re!licated either in theneighbouring villages *here conditions are si'ilar nor have they ins!ired other social*or+ers to be able to re!licate the'.

8any 'ove'ents also try to carry out ne* initiatives) although their energies are 'oreneeded in the 'ove'ent. En the <ar'ada ,achao 8ove'ent) they have tried to buildalternative school and alternative technology !rojects and !lanning e@ercises.

%ossil %uel %ree Technologies

Endia has a rich e@!erience o$ $ossil $uel technologies. The *orlds $irst biogas !lant *asinstalled in ,o'bay in the 9th century. Albert &o*ard) $ather o$ 'odern organic $ar'ing*or+ed in Endia u!to the 960s and develo!ed the Endore 'ethod. Endia is the largest usero$ bo@ solar coo+ers. Rural Endia is still a bicycle and bulloc+ cart country. "nly the richin rural Endia are able to use ce'ent in any signi$icant Huantity. 8ud houses are stillaround. #aurie ,a+ers *or+ in 'ud houses is *ell +no*n. &and s!un and hand *ovencloth) 4hadi is still available all over the country and so on.

Today there is a crisis o$ che'ical $ertiliser su!!ly due to !ea+ oil. /o) even thegovern'ent is !ro'oting organic $ar'ing in a big *ay. There are large *atershed and joint $orest 'anage'ent !rogra''e s!onsored by the govern'ent. A large nu'ber o$

technology institutes have a!!ro!riate technology !rogra''es.

&o*ever technology $i@es alone do not solve the !roble'. They can even be used to!ro'ote ca!italis') 'a+e the rich richer and !oor the !oorer. They 'ay even degrade theenviron'ent $urther) li+e !ro'oting bio$uels or carbon trading.

&ence) the t*in ai's o$ rebuilding co''unity on the basis o$ eHuality and building a$ossil $uel society 'ust go hand in hand.

here to ,eginF

En !ractice one should start $ro' *here one is. ?nsure that the tiller gets his $ull share o$the labour *hether heshe o*ns the land or not. Absentee landlords should get only *hatthey !ut in. The botto' line is) no one in the co''unity goes hungry.

e have re!eatedly said through!ut this boo+ that it is the organisation o$ !eo!le that canreally bring about change. Also the $act re'ains that in 'ost cases the organisations areco'ing u! in the conte@t o$ struggle against ca!italist e@!loitation o$ resources anddegradation o$ the environ'ent. /o the initiatives) 'entioned above) *ould be ta+en u!

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*ithin this real historical conte@t. And the nature o$ the struggle *ill deter'ine the +indo$ initiatives. The guide lines and the e@a'!les 'entioned above 'ay hel! to visualisethe initiatives.

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&AT CA< E ("F

Endia has a !o!ulation o$ 'ore than a billion or hundred crores. And each individual isdi$$erent. /o ho* can one *rite about Bhat E can doF

"ne can reduce the !roble' by assu'ing BE to be a reader. /o the reader is an educated'iddle class urbanrural !erson. /hehe already has so'e e@!osure to the environ'ent)cli'ate change) global *ar'ing) !ea+ oil and the nature o$ the !resent econo'ic crisis.The reader has also !robably seen articles li+e 00 thing one can do to save the !lanetor B&o* to save the !lanet by !utting in - 'inutes every day. /o *hat can one doF As ageneral rule the +ey *ord is voluntary si'!licity at a !ersonal level. Et is o$course truethat one !erson reducing herhis energy consu'!tioneco $oot !rint cannot signi$icantlychange the situation. As the critics o$ten say) Bi$ you dont use it so'e one else *ill useit. ,ut it does give one the 'oral energy to go ahead and involve in larger issues in

larger conte@ts. A$ter all one does $ace the Huestion) Bhat are you doing about itF hatis your $oot !rintF /econdly it can also be argued that si'!licity or going a bit a*ay $ro'the consu'er society actually gives one 'ore ti'e to do things.

The +ey $actor in voluntary si'!licity is energy) !articularly energy $ro' $ossil $uelsources. Thus giving u! !ersonal cart*o *heeler and ado!ting bicycle and !ublictrans!ort is high on the agenda. The second is $uel) $ood and *ater. 5sing solar coo+er tosu!!le'ent coo+ing and co'!osting and !roducing so'e vegetable$ruit and rain *aterharvesting are eHually high in !riority.

A single !erson on ones o*n can do very little because she or he has very little ti'e or

resources. (aily li$e and e$$orts to survive ta+e their toll on ti'e and resources. /till a!erson *ho is a*are can 'a+e choices and can 'a+e signi$icant contributions. 5suallysuch a !erson can begin *ith acHuiring so'e e@!erience o$ environ'ental 'ove'ents.

As has been said in the earlier cha!ters re!eatedly) changes occur 'ainly through thee$$orts o$ organised !eo!le. /o a!art $ro' !utting individual e$$orts in ones daily li$e)and acHuiring so'e +no*ledge o$ environ'ental 'ove'ents) one o$ the $irst things oneshould do is to be a !art o$ an organisation. This can be an environ'ental organisation) abird *atching society or even a $il' club. ?very*here one *ill $ind the current crisisre$lected and there is so'ething to learn and so'ething to do.

&o*ever) the !ri'ary organisations are in ones *or+ !lace and in ones residential area./o'e o$ the ideas !resented in the cha!ters) BTrade 5nion Enitiatives and B5rbanEnitiatives 'ay !rove hel!$ul.

<o* *ithin an organisation there is al*ays a s!ace $or individual initiative. En $act theorganisation is strengthened by individual e$$orts. %or instance) *ithin an urban grou! a!erson can $ocus attention on solar coo+ers) or trans!ort or urban gardens and co'!ostingor roo$to! rain *ater harvesting. Then one can *or+ *ith schools and nature clubs) run

84



libraries and boo+sho!s and so on.

/o'e have 'oved to rural areas) bought land and !lan to do organic $ar'ing. /o'e 'ayalready be *ell into it. 8any have done very good *or+ and are building localco''unities around the $ar'. These readers 'ay bene$it $ro' the cha!ter BRural

Enitiatives. %or instance *ithin a $ar' one can $ocus on co'!osting or seed collectionand seed ban+s. Then one can *or+ on energy !rojects li+e *ood gassi$iers or 'icrohydel !rojects. "ne can *or+ *ith ba'boo or learn ho* to 'a+e ro!es or !ottery. Then*ithin the co''unity one can *or+ *ith schools) *o'en) sanitation and health and soon. There is no dearth o$ *or+ either in an urban or in rural situation once one hasgras!ed the basic situation.

The Author hi'sel$) a!art $ro' *riting these articles and the boo+ has tried out so'e o$the urban initiatives. <eedless to say these e$$orts are !uny co'!ared to *hat is needed.The author also has *or+ed *ith 'any individuals to *or+ out !ersonal !aths o$incre'ental change. Again these e$$orts have had li'ited success. The author is *illing to

hel! any reader in evolving !ersonaliDed !aths $or action.

e are all $acing a very tough situation and it *ill get only *orse. The e$$orts in thisboo+ have been to sho* the reader that a better *orld is !ossible and there are *ays to goabout it. En the long run it 'ay be *orth the e$$ort.

85



A!!endi@

T&? G5A4?R 8?T&"(

En 'any !laces in the boo+) the need $or dialogue bet*een di$$erent grou!s has beenstressed. En this conte@t) it 'ay be !rudent to acHuaint onesel$ *ith one o$ the oldest andvery success$ul 'ethod o$ conducting 'eetings. The Gua+er 'ethod has been recognisedall over the *orld. Et ta+es a seat o$ !ro'inence) in the 5nited <ations) in con$lictresolution. "riginated in ?ngland) Gua+ers have had a !resence o$ 'ore than a century inEndia. They enjoyed 'utual res!ect *ith 7andhi.

The Gua+er 8ethod o$ conducting 'eetings has !roved very use$ul in !olitical'ove'ents in recent ti'es. Gua+ers real na'e is /ociety o$ %riends. They are anantiauthoritarian Christian religious grou! nearly $our hundred years old. They do notadvertise the'selves or !ractice conversion. You beco'e a BGua+er by Convince'ent.En $act there are Gua+ers *ho are agnostics. Gua+ers can be considered as belonging to

!aci$ist anarchist tendencies) *hich include the ideas o$ Tolstoy and 7andhi.

Gua+ers believe that there is divinity in every individual. This !rinci!le translated insecular ter's a'ounts to the idea that every one has access to so'e as!ect o$ the Truth.En 'eetings and dialogues) it is assu'ed that all are searching $or truth) that you listen toothers care$ully and e@a'ine your o*n truth. The objective is not to arrive at aco'!ro'ise) consensus or agree'ent) but to realise truth collectively as 'uch as!ossible.

This 'ethod is not uniHue to Gua+ers. Gua+ers the'selves observed si'ilar 'ethods inA'erican =Red> Endians. <earer ho'e) there are re!orts o$ 7ond tribals in 7adchiorli

discussing issues threadbare and reaching a decision only *hen everyone *as clear aboutit and agreed to it. En recent ti'es in anti1globalisation de'onstrations all over the *orld)grou!s believing in non1violence and grou!s believing in Bunconventional tacticsincluding violence) learned to *or+ together success$ully. At the /eattle !rotest againstT") the varied grou!s involved used this 'ethod to act in unison.

Collective Entelligence and Gua+er Practice

By =eonard Eoy leonard>oyigc%org

The *ays in *hich society generally !rovides $or collective discern'ent and decision1'a+ing are ill designed to ta! our collective intelligence and do 'uch to e@!lain ourcollective inability to discern and !ursue the co''on good. The $act that adversarialdebate is li+ely to $ail to res!ect all needs and legiti'ate interests 1 and) at best) !rovides$or co'!ro'ise 1 is $airly readily gras!ed. here not all voices are eHually heard) theneglect o$ so'e concerns 'ay be acute. And *here there is no 'utual caring bet*een!arts and *hole) there is !athology) even death.E have 'any e@!eriences o$ sustained decision1'a+ing in *hich) in 'y judg'ent)

86



collective *isdo' !revailed. E shall no* e@a'ine the !ractice that su!!orted this andconsider *hether its !reconditions have general a!!lication. The !ractice in Huestion isthe Gua+er !ractice o$ decision1'a+ing. The $act that it is a!!roached as Ba 'eeting $or*orshi! $or business) in !articular) raises the Huestion o$ its 'ore general a!!licability.#et 'e antici!ate and say that) a!!roached as a 'eeting $or discerning the co''on good)

the !ractice stands u! *ell in secular conte@ts.

The a!!ended e@tracts $ro' a Gua+er Faith and Practice describe the !ractice. They alsodescribe its 'ystical roots 1 the belie$ that Bthere is that o$ 7od in everyone) and that thiscan be e@!erienced so that discourse can be B/!irit1led.

The essentials o$ Gua+er !ractice) translated *here necessary into secular ter's) are as$ollo*s =no s!ecial order>:

. 7rounding o$ all !artici!ants in the desire $or the co''on good2. ?nsuring that all voices are heard and listened to

6. Res!ect $or all 1 both !artici!ants and those outside =but a$$ected by> the decision'a+ing !rocess;. Res!ect and caring $or the agreed legiti'ate interests o$ all-. 8aintaining co''unity1loving relationshi! 1 as a !ri'ary concern. 7rounding o$ all !artici!ants in their o*n hu'anity and their e@!erience o$ it duringthe 'eeting. /ensitivity to interde!endence 1 o!en syste's thin+ing. /!ea+ing out o$ the silence =the state o$ being !ersonally grounded>9. Addressing the cler+$acilitator not one another0. /!ea+ing si'!ly and not re!eating *hat has already been e@!ressed. Contributing !ersonal !erce!tions and convictions 1 s!ea+ing ones o*n truth1*ithout advocating that all should act on it2. The co''it'ent to air dissent6. <ot using e'otion to s*ay others *hile being authentic *ith the e@!ression o$ $eeling;. (istinguishing Bthreshing 'eetings $ro' 'eetings $or decision1'a+ing-. Pre!aring $actual and analytical 'aterial $or assi'ilation !rior to 'eetings $ordecision. The role o$ the cler+$acilitator in o$$ering syntheses o$ the Bsense o$ the 'eeting thatare !rogressively 'odi$ied until there is unity. The role o$ the cler+$acilitator in resolving di$$iculty in co'ing to unity. (ecisions are 'ade not by 'ajority vote) nor by consensus) but by unity9. The organisational structures that bring to bear the voices o$ 'any collectivities.

En !rinci!le) #eonard 3oys descri!tion o$ the Gua+er 8ethod is a very good guide.&o*ever) real li$e al*ays de'ands ada!tations and !racticality. E$ underta+en $ro' a!osition o$ standing on good !rinci!les the end result is generally closer to the 'odel.

87



VE##A7? "% T&? AT?R8E##/

@ had another dream

The eighth e!isode $ro' A+ira 4urosa*as $il' B(rea's

3()),# Colour# (8 minutes% 2irector 1kira Kurosawa% 1wards 1ward of the Eapanese 1cademy .ominated for Golden Globe# IS1%5

A young 'an $ro' the city) *ith a bac+!ac+) in *al+ing shoes) blue deni' trousers and ablue ca! *anders into an idyllic village *ith *ater'ills. There are t*o $lo*ing canalsconnected by a bridge and $lo*ers every*here. The village has 'any huts) each *ith a*ater'ill o$ its o*n. There is a loo+ o$ *onder'ent on the $ace o$ the young 'an.

A grou! o$ children !ass.

Children: 7ood dayJYoung 'an: 7ood dayJ

The children cross the canalI !ic+ $lo*ers and !ut it on a stone near the bridge.

The young 'an *al+s on) *ith a loo+ o$ *onder and be*ilder'ent on his $ace. There arebird songs in the bac+ground. &e reaches a hut *here an old 'an *ith a stra* hat isre!airing a *ater'ill. The old 'an has *hite beard) *hite eyebro*s) is dressed in blue*or+ing clothesI su!!osed to re'ind the vie*ers o$ 8asanobu %u+uo+a.

Young 'an: 7ood dayJ

The old 'an doesnt hear.Young 'an ta+ing his ca! o$$ re!eatsI louder this ti'e.

Y8: 7""( (AYJ"8: 7ood dayJY8: hats the na'e o$ this villageF"8: (oesnt have one. e just call it BThe Village. /o'e !eo!le call it ater'illVillage.

Y8: (o all the villagers live hereF"8: They live in other !laces.Y8: There is no electricity hereF"8: (ont need it. Peo!le get too used to conveniences. They thin+ convenience isbetter. They thro* out *hat is truly good.Y8: ,ut *hat about lightsF"8: eve got candles and linseed oil.Y8: ,ut the nights so dar+.

88



"8: Yes. Thats *hat the night is su!!osed to be. hy should night be as bright as dayFE *ouldnt li+e nights so bright you couldnt see the stars.Y8: You have Paddies) but no tractors to cultivate the'F"8: (ont need the'. eve got co*s and horses.Y8: hat do you do $or $uelF

"8: %ire*ood 'ostly. e dont $eel right) cho!!ing do*n trees) enough $all do*n bythe'selves. e cut the' u! and use the' as $ire*ood. And i$ you 'a+e charcoal $ro'the *ood just a $e* trees can give you as 'uch heat as a *hole $orest. And) co* dung'a+es good $uel too.

e try to live the *ay 'an used to. Thats the natural *ay o$ li$e. Peo!le today have$orgotten that theyre really just a !art o$ nature. They destroy nature on *hich their li$ede!ends. They 1 es!ecially scientists 1 believe they can 'a+e so'ething better. They 'aybe s'art but 'ost dont understand the nature o$ nature. They only invent things that inthe end 'a+e !eo!le unha!!y. Yet) theyre so !roud o$ their inventions.

hat is *orse) 'ost !eo!le are) too. They vie* the' as i$ they *ere 'iracles. They*orshi! the'. They dont +no* it) but theyre losing nature. They dont see that they aregoing to !erish. The 'ost i'!ortant things $or hu'an beings are clean air and clean *aterand the trees and grass that !roduce the'.

?very thing is being dirtied) !olluted $orever. (irty air) dirty *ater) dirtying the hearts o$'en.

The young 'an loo+s around) thin+ing.

Y8: "n 'y *ay here) E ha!!ened to see so'e children !lacing $lo*ers on a stone besidethe bridge. hyF"8: "h) ThatJ #ong ago) a stranger *ho died here) is buried there. Peo!le have $orgottenit but they still !ut $lo*ers on the grave.

Y8: =#istening to the distant sounds> Es there a celebration todayF"8: =Cu!!ing his ear to listen>) <o) a $uneral. You $ind this strangeF A nice ha!!y$uneral. Et is good to *or+ hard and be than+ed. There are no te'!les or !riest here. /o)all the villagers carry the dead to the ce'etery on the hill. e dont li+e it *hen youngadults or children die. Et is hard to celebrate such loss.

Peo!le here live a natural *ay o$ li$e. /o they !ass on at a ri!e old age. The *o'an *eare burying today lived u! to 99. You 'ust e@cuse 'eI E a' going to join the !rocession.=7ets u! to go into the hut) be$ore entering the hut) he turns around> To tell the truth) she*as 'y $irst love. ,ut she bro+e 'y heart and le$t 'e $or another. =Chuc+les> &a ha ha^The old 'an goes into the hut and co'es out *earing an orange jac+et and orange shoesand carrying bells in his right hand.

Y8: ,y the *ay) ho* old are youF"8: 8eF "ne hundred !lus three. A good age to sto! living. /o'e say li$e is hard.

89



Thats just tal+. En $act) its good to be alive. Ets e@citing.

The old 'an !ic+s so'e $lo*ers and holding the' in his le$t hand he 'oves to join the$uneral !rocessions) *hich has 'usicians and !eo!le dancing. &e leads the !rocession*ith ste!s and hands 'oving *ith the rhyth' o$ the 'usic. The young 'an *atches

be'used. As the co$$in !asses hi') he li$ts his ca!.

The young 'an is going bac+ *ith a ha!!y e@!ression on his $ace. There are sounds o$*ater $lo*ing) birds chir!ing and *ater'ills 'oving slo*ly. &e crosses the bridge) halts)loo+s bac+ and *al+s ra!idly bac+. &e !ic+s so'e $lo*ers) !laces the' on the grave asthe children had done earlier and *al+s a*ay.

Cal' settles do*n on the village *ith strea's 'ur'uring and birds chir!ing. A yello*lea$ slo*ly $loats do*n.

90



R?%?R?<C?/ A<( R?/"5RC?/

Cha!ter

. htt!:***.!ea+oilhasarrived.co' is an Endian site *ith very good lin+s.

2. ***.*ol$atthedoor.org.u+6. ***.theoildru'.co'

Cha!ter 2

. The ,ulletin o$ Ato'ic /cientists. **.thebulletin.org2. Ca'!aign $or <uclear (isar'a'ent) <uclear Po*er G ` A ***.cndu+.org3. <uclear Po*er orld*ide: /tatus and

"utloo+)httpJJwww%comJreleases#sciencedailyreleaseJ+,,8J(,J,8(,+?((,?,A+%ht m

4. 8a+hijani) Arjun. Carbon9Free and .uclear9Free 1 /oadmap for I%S% 0nergy

Policy# 200) E?R? Press.5. Ro'') 3ose!h 3. 7he Hype 1bout Hydrogen Facts and Fiction in the /ace to

Sa"e the Climate# 200-) Esland Press. Trainer) Ted. /enewable 0nergy Cannot Sustain Consumer Society# 200.

Cha!ter 6

Et is di$$icult to get *ritings o$ Thoreau) 4ro!ot+in and Tolstoy in !rint in Endia) butthey are available on the internet. All o$ 7andhis *or+s are available $ro'<avjeevan Publications) Ah'edabad.

Cha!ter ;.

. eaver) 3. &. 7he 6orld of Physics# Vol.) 9) <e* Yor+) /i'on and /chuster.2. /chrdinger) ?r*in. 6hat is life# 9) Ca'bridge 5niversity Press.6. 3en+ins) Robin. 7he /oad to 1lto# 99) #ondon) Pluto Press.

Cha!ter -

1. Mansatta, Bharat. 'rganic /e"olution- 7he 1gricultural 7ransformation of

Cuba since()),# 2008, Kolkatta, Earthcare.

2. SIS Press Release 21/01/08.Organic Cuba Without Fossil Fuels.3. htt!:en.*i+i!edia.org*i+iCuba

Cha!ter

,ora) Raj'al. Bharat ki Bhashayen 1itihsik aur Bhogaulik 4i"echan =Endinalangualges: &istorical and 7eogra!hical /tudy>) 99-) <e* (elhi) Vani Pra+ashan

91

http://www.peakoilhasarrived.com/

http://www.wolfatthedoor.org.uk/

http://www.thebulletin.org/

http://www.cnduk.org/

http://www.com/releases,sciencedailyrelease/2007/10/0710231103052.htm


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuba

http://www.peakoilhasarrived.com/

http://www.wolfatthedoor.org.uk/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuba

http://www.thebulletin.org/

http://www.cnduk.org/





Cha!ter 9

. 8any o$ the ideas discussed above originated in the garden city 'ove'ent in theearly t*entieth century. En the Endian conte@t) city urban !lanning e@ercises carried

out by Patric+ 7eddes in the 920s give a good historic !ers!ective. Patric+ 7eddesin Endia. 200) /elect ,oo+s) ) ,rigade Road Cross) ,angalore -0 00. Price:Rs.2-012. 5rban 7arden: A good !lace to start *ould be to contact BThe &orticulture

/ociety in the city.3. /olar Coo+er: htt!:en.*i+i!edia.org*i+i/olar[coo+er . This is a good starting

!oint. The bo@ solar coo+er is !robably the sa$est and chea!est.4. E'!roved Cycle Ric+sha*s:

htt!:***.itd!.orginde@.!h!!rojectsdetailindia[ric+sha*['odernhtt!:***.eco1*eb.co'editorial0--;.ht'l

5. Consu'er co1o!eratives: htt!:en.*i+i!edia.org*i+iConsu'ersM[coo!erative .

/ee the section on 3a!an.6.Cuba: htt!:***.i1sis.org.u+"rganicCuba*ithout%ossil%uels.!h!

7."n the net i$ you ty!e out Post carbon cities Brelocalisation) Bsolar bo@ coo+ers)

Bi'!roved cycle ric+sha* Burban gardens) BCuba etc. you *ill get e@tensivereading 'aterial and in$or'ation about these grou!s and resources.

Cha!ter 0

%or organic $ar'ing the best boo+ to start *ould be Albert &o*ards BAnAgricultural Testa'ent. An abridged edition is available $ro' Per'anent 7reen) ani'!rint o$ 8anchi Pusta+a' $or Rs. 201. 8asanubo %u+uo+as B"ne /tra*

Revolution is available $ro' "ther Endia ,oo+store) 8a!usa) 7oa $or Rs. 001

7eneral

This boo+ is 'ainly 'eant $or activist education. The best source $or such 'aterial inEndia is the journal Frontier% ?stablished in 9 by late /a'ar /en) it has educated ageneration o$ activists *ho *ere 'oved by the crisis in the late 0s. Today in the ;2 nd

year o$ its !ublication) Ti'ir ,asu) the !resent editor) is ably carrying out the 'issionin s!ite o$ great hardshi!s.

Contact: Frontier# ) 8ott #ane) 4ol+ata 00 06.Phone: 066 22- 6202 ?1'ail: $rontier*ee+lyhot'ail.co'ebsite: ***.geocities.co'$rontier*ee+ly/ubscri!tion: Annual: Rs. 2001 #i$e: Rs. 60001

92

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_cooker

http://www.eco-web.com/editorial/06554.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumers'_cooperative

http://www.i-sis.org.uk/OrganicCubawithoutFossilFuels.php



http://www.geocities.com/frontierweekly

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_cooker

http://www.eco-web.com/editorial/06554.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumers'_cooperative

http://www.i-sis.org.uk/OrganicCubawithoutFossilFuels.php


http://www.geocities.com/frontierweekly



<"T? T" T&? R?A(?R

There are 'any individuals) grou!s and organisations engaged *ith initiatives describedin the boo+. The author *ill be very ha!!y to hear about the'I be associated *ith the'Iand hel! the' *ithin his li'ited ca!acities. &e can be contacted at:

?'ail: t.vijayendrag'ail.co' Cell: 9 9;90 0-6;

,log: t1vijayendra.blogs!ot.co'

93







About the Author

T. Vijayendra =9;61 > is a ,. Tech. =?lectronics> $ro' E.E.T. 4harag!ur =9>. "ver the!ast $our decades) his *or+ *ith the trade union 'ove'ents) alternative journalis')libraries) boo+sho!s) !ublishing) socio K !olitical research) health) education) andenviron'ent have given hi' uniHue insights into Endias !eo!le and !roble's. &is*ritings directed to*ards activist education are !ublished regularly in the *ee+ly journal Frontier. &e lives on an organic $ar' in the estern 7hats.

8ore boo+s by the author

The #osers /hall Enherit the orld) 200) ?nglishThe Teacher and Child #abour) 2009) Telugu and ?nglish

(Back cover text)

7lobal *ar'ing and !ea+ oil have !osed the i''inent crisis in ca!italis' globally.&o*ever) 'ost !olitical activists a!!ear to be una*are o$ the e@tent) the interconnectedness and the i''ediacy o$ the crisis. There see's to be a vague but de$initecollective subconscious that all is not *ell) and that) the syste' is brea+ing do*n.

?very crisis o$ ca!italis' o!ens the !ossibility o$ $ar reaching changes. The transitionthrough *hich) could be ordered or chaotic. Those societies that are !re!ared *ith analternative have better chances o$ an ordered transition. Today) Cuba is best !re!ared $orsuch a transition.

This boo+ is an atte'!t to !resentI in as si'!le and straight $or*ard a *ay as !ossible)the !resent crisis Et also o$$ers so'e solutions that the author believes *ill hel! Endians

Documents

Regaining Paradise: towards a fossil fuel free society