“Give me 100 energetic young men and I shall transform India“, these golden words by Swami Vivekananda must have ignited some spark several generations ago. You are about to read an inspiring piece on youth who are doing what almost everyone one of us should be doing.
You are about to read stories on individual efforts for common good. Field work is tough, plenty to learn, mind-body coordination, self motivation and balance to stay happy. All these individuals who have been working on ground for India and her environment are youth who have conventional peer pressure, drawn to social media, have romantic interests, financial constraints, human urges to position oneself, pressure to prove one’s worth all the time. They overcome all of this and remain dedicated to a cause that is bigger than all the above. They are aware its not a sacrifice and are not doing it for some empty validation. They are in this journey as these are beings who are here for a purpose. Read along as I write about some of my favourite people because for them its nature first.
My story starts with Yukesh, a coffee addict who prefers to be far away from human beings, he would rather live all by himself in a moist cave in the depths of a Meghalaya jungle than be in an urban sprawl. Life is never what we want, thus Yukesh is now operating out of Bengaluru and Hosur for E.F.I. From the weekend cleanups at Madiwala, Vibuthipura, Hebbal, Devanahalli lakes to managing plantation/sponge park projects in Hosur, he is shouldering responsibilities that many can only aim for. You name the personal tragedies and he has witnessed them from a very young age, you name the hardships he has experienced them at every stage, he just didnt give up. Has groomed self and interests, is out there working effectively on tasks that benefit humanity. Several tonnes of garbage removed, 8-9000 tress planted, is on field rain or shine. After reading this do not get in touch with him, he hates attention, atleast that’s what he claims.
At 11 in the night, Yukesh is on a call with Raji. His colleauge-friend from Chennai. When you spend your work life with these boys, you often wonder if they are clones of each other. His formal education in social work introduced a certain world and then he took the responsibilities here at E.F.I, field forced him to unlearn-relearn all of it with challenges in every turn possible. Self made against society enforced challenges, Raji just gets things done and shrugs off as if its nothing. The more he does it, you actually realise it is nothing. We all can get so much more done, but are just sitting there writing and talking. Kovalam to Kelambakkam, Kanagam eco park to Kattabomman pond there are multiple projects across Chennai that he has given his efforts to. His field expedition and works in Namakkal district during one of the harshest summers, in remote corners with minimal public transportation is the reason why I now strongly believe, when heart n soul on the job, we can get things done. He threatened me mid career that he wants to quit and pursue painting as a passion, I just did what Raji does best, shrugged it off n many months later here we are still working together for years to come. Come meet this artist-conservationist and strengthen his efforts at E.F.I.
A local politician who was irked that we did not award him the contract or bribe him, was showering Nithin with expletives at a site near Chennai. This young man who has worked hard with sincerity did not have to take the verbal abuse, his hurt and pain were real. Balanced thinking and his handling of that particular situation was true evolution of this middle class boy from Alleppey into a man in conservation for India and her environment. (Please add KGF background score in ur head as you go back and read the four lines again, Nithin would love that dramatic tone.) That politician eventually silenced not with money-muscle or any might, but purely with legal-scientific-logical work on field. If E.F.I were an army Nithin is a General in the making. Baking summer days, corrupt human minds and never ending tasks at hand have never deterred Nithin. You will never get a no from him, its always a Yash.
He aims to be omni present, he would take the blame for everyone else, he is an epitome of loyalty-dedication to the organization. Srivatsan walked in as an employee and works in as a co-founder. Thought-breath and life is E.F.I, purely because he is concerned for environmental damage and wants to fix whatever he can. People behind the camera often dont hit limelight, this Hydrostar is responsible for many Hydrostans from E.F.I. Paradise flycatcher to Andromeda you can strike a happy conversation with him at anytime. Technology and techniques to blend for nature conservation is what he is experimenting and working towards. Join him at E.F.I so that you can strengthen his efforts on Environmentainment.
He is looking away from the camera as he is clicking himself only coz his expertise lies in handling sites far and beyond. Tirunelveli-Tuticorin-Sivagangai-Sivakasi-Erode-Namakkal-Ariyalur-Perambalur, districts that span out from central to south TamilNadu. Maharajan is truly marking territory and ruling over lakes in these districts with his efforts on field. This married young father of a prince, balances family and work effortlessly. Challenges im sure are plenty, from EMI-Loans to missing father time at home. That hasn’t stopped him from taking on more lake restoration efforts at anytime. His sweet Nellai Tamil, people friendly approach to life and honest efforts on ground are lessons every new employee at E.F.I is often introduced to. Running an organization as E.F.I at this scale is next to impossible without having trustworthy support system like every single one of them I’m citing in this piece, Maharajan is truly the king of that list.
He should be in the parliament, you would agree to this if you know him. He can never say no to anyone and will win votes from both treasury & opposition benches. This man of several interests and people skills is an asset to E.F.I, it took me a year to convince him to join his mother planet. Everything and everybody is a phone call away for Aswin. This Eco-Influencer is on field despite several displaced bones. His civil service aspirations have metamorphosed into making him a Captain planet. Crowd management, government interaction, tackling encroachers on field are lessons he is learning slowly and implementing them steadily. Nature conservation is not an overnight ‘bullet’ ride but a steady cruise balancing every wave with one’s spine intact is the message Ashwin would give you when you join him at our Coastal Cleanup next weekend.
You got to be blessed to find your Shrikrishna, Vivekananda asked for 100 and I got him to start with. I realised that with him alone I can do wonders. He is 25 and has been with E.F.I for 13 years now. His brain and heart function exactly how god intended. Answering the parade of queries from Corporates needs a special nerve, he’s got multiple loaded in his head. K.Balachander if alive would have made a movie ‘Avan Oru Thodarkadai’ based on his life and also starred him in it for his next door boyish charm. Throw any challenge at him with this smile that is genuine he takes it on and delivers. If you are starting a not for profit, rule no.1 find your Shrikrishna then proceed.
We are not a business, we are not here to build a career. Passion and purpose keep us going. This doesn’t make us special and cause is always our hero. In a world driven by PR, narratives, celebrity endorsements of social heroes, lakeman-forestman-riverwoman tags, finger pointing portraits from international conferences and above all toolkits that define our social media, here are Human Beings who are just working for India n her environment. Overcoming every personal challenge, pain, pressure and doubts. None of us is perfect, we are not aiming to be one too. We are not saving the world, but are just trying to live these words that we believe in – “Nature conservation is no choice, no compulsion, its common sense.”
Hydrostars is an effort from E.F.I to showcase and highlight a few real life stories of people who can inspire many of us to be part of nature conservation. Not just talk about it but to do something on ground for real.
Volunteer for India & her Environment with these guys at E.F.I