Initiatives

It was raining “Organic” at the Grape County’s precincts –By Dr. Freeda Maria

There is no greater joy than seeing your hard work, being recognized and the fruits of your labor being appreciated. There is no greater joy for a farmer who has toiled on his fields, fighting the harsh weathers with a grit to see his blooms. There is no greater joy, than to finally see his blooms and produce, laid out for people to buy and consume. The joy gets doubled, when he finds his produce displayed in a place which is frequented by all kinds of people, local and from outside, for its green practices…

A 20-acre property fanning out within the 250-acre sprawling biodiverse rich area. A 2000-acre reserve forestland just a stone’s throw away!

Welcome to the annual Flea and Farmer’s Market conceptualized by Green Spaces’, Grape County Resort, Nashik (https://www.grapecounty.in/). And this is the fourth time in a row for four years that they have hosted the event, in their resort premise. Carefully curated and crafted: for the best producers around this beautiful countryside, come together to showcase their labor of love.

The Valley as we call it, Nasik lies on the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, an ancient volcanic formation. Flowing through these open fertile lands are the Girna and the Godavari rivers. Being a grape country, half of our country’s vineyards and wineries are located here. A whopping 90 percent of all wine produced in our country comes from these Valleys. The strategic location of this place the bounty that is water and fertile land present, farmers have seen some good crops and are constantly thinking of employing good and sustainable practices in farming. They pride themselves of growing organic vegetables with zero use of chemical pesticides and insecticides.

What stands apart with this Farmers market and Flea market is that both have been combined. The flea market which is essentially a large open-air market where goods that are second hand, home-made crafts or merchandise are spread out for sales. Whereas Farmers markets are more retail markets that allows people to sell homegrown fruits and vegetables directly from the farmer to the customer. These markets are not limited to fruits and vegetables and can also have meat, live animals, baked goods, dairy products, poultry, and various other food items.

The Nashik Valley is a Sugarcane, Onions, Grapes and Pomegranate land. Every aim of this Market is to promote the indigenous farmers, who have marginalised lands. The stalls are given free of cost for three days with an aim to add it as an annual activity.

The Concept of having a Framers’ market and Flea market at GC (Grape County) was to give an opportunity to both kinds. The stalls at GC, reflect the sheer variety and innovation in their products and blooms. There even was an organic sugarcane juice maker bidding his business of zero maintenance and pure freshly pressed juice with the work his hands! The Machine runs with no motor or battery, the turning of the two wheels is the magic behind that refreshing glass of pure pleasure!

I chanced upon a brick slab on which few loosely packed products were placed and sitting by it this very elegant and smiling lady… neatly dressed in her traditional attire and going about her day, with her weary eyes looking for customers. Her offer was that of packets of homemade jaggery powder, from sugarcane grown on her fields, ragi powder and chakki (mill stone)pressed green gram, unpolished and broken down and unpolished raw rice.

One individual caught my immediate attention as I walked past, throwing glances at the many counters that had an array of things displayed. Shrushti organics grows its products using “Jeevamruth” to control pests replacing the chemical ones.  This is the traditional Indian  bio pesticide and organic manure that is prepared combining and fermenting cow dung, cow urine, jaggery, pulses flour, soil and water. His specialties include Rice, Sugarcane and Jaggery, processed products like Oils of Mustard, groundnut, sunflower, sesame and Desi Ghee.

A special mention goes out to the counter of Viveda Wellness Village, a unique concept of self-care and healing, this wellness centre has become a place of organic and wellness products. The centre uses traditional knowledge and local ingredients to make products like face packs, healing oils, bathing, and self-care products. (https://vivedawellness.com/). The counter of Grape County had its fruits, juices and other delectables, from farm to the counter, fresh and organic.

Our Flea Market was abuzz with Colours, and with creations from Local Women Entrepreneurs. Paintings, natural stones, Homemade soaps and cosmetics, I was spoilt for choices! Here are some pictures ….

Baro Market, a physical pop up at Cache, the Arts and Craft Gallery, Turner Road, Bandra West, will be held from Sep 24^th-26^th, 2021.

With the festivities around the corners, Baro Market’s second edition of sustainable and slow fashion pop up will be held physically at Cache, the Arts and Craft Gallery, Turner Road, Bandra West, from Sep 24^th-26^th, 2021.

The pop up will include a wide collection of apparels from homegrown brands that strongly believe in sustainable living. “What makes Baro Market’s collection unique is that all their products are mainly handcrafted and created in small batches with a commitment to conscious living” says its founder Srila Chatterjee.

 “Out of the 24 brands on display at this 3 day pop up, there are about 10 brands that are completely conscious and the rest of them believe in slow fashion and produce in small batches.  The pop will have apparels and accessories for both men and women”, she adds.

Founded by Srila Chatterjee in 2019, Baro Market is all about crafts, culture, community and a commitment to conscious living.  It is a platform that showcases the work of over 60 designers, artists and craftsmen from all over India.  

For more information log on to : https://baromarket.in/ 

Sustainable brands at Baro Market :

LataSita 

LataSita is a pioneering design studio creating zero-waste fashion. Hunting down fabric from diverse and sometimes unexpected sources – ranging from treasured private heirlooms to the wardrobes of everyday women and even a Durga Puja pandal, designer Meghna Nayak champions the circular economy.  Acclaimed nationally and internationally with sold out exhibitions from Stockholm to Taipei, Nayak’s work is exciting, fresh and dynamic.

Bandit

A part rebel, part Underground brand that is brave, honest and colorful even as it has cutting edge design, Bandit chose to re-look at how products were designed and made in the context of a planet being destroyed by single use plastic. They took a common material – tarpaulin – and with 2 years of research and repeated development, created bags that are technically unparalleled, help keep excess tarpaulin away from land fills and look so cool that they are becoming a cult… Also, 10% of their profits goes to SETHU – an NGO that works for the development of special needs children in Goa.

Earthaments

Engineering student Monalisha found herself drawn to the metal smiths in the lanes of Kolkata, grasping techniques while she watched magic unfold. She watched jewelry become an identity maker, and in the wearing, telling the stories of travel, of heritage and of history. The tribal woman became her muse : fierce, infinite, indescribable and absolute. She thus set out to create jewelry that had much to tell : heartfelt stories, close to the earth – Earthaments.

Earthroute

EarthRoute has a very unique approach towards fashion, lifestyle and the well-being of our mother earth. They believe in eco fashion, slow and ethical fashion. They work with handmade artisanal fabric. Handspun and handwoven are not just cosmetic words for them, but are mantras to grow and create a sustainable future. They blend their technical product knowledge and design aesthetics with the traditional skill of the artisans to create beautiful, unique and ergonomic product range that is not only creatively challenging, but can engage maximum number of artisans in the process, thus creating a sustainable livelihood for them. 

Help in suffering

Do good, buy good! Help in Suffering is the voice of the voiceless : shop for a cause with this 40 year old animal welfare charity. 100 percent of the proceeds go towards the treatment of all animals in and around Jaipur. Their wonderful products are thoughtfully created with prints that have been specially made for the organisation. There is something for every age group, from toys to boxer shorts!

Ira

Ira was born out of immense passion to reinvent Indian textile art fitted to today’s context, a determination to uphold the traditional crafts of Jamdani and Kantha of Bengal in the form of minimalistic and contemporary designs.

Ira believes in the beauty of handmade products, where every product spells distinct uniqueness of the art and the artisans we work with. Each of our pieces is meticulously handcrafted by our artisans in Bengal.

Kaisori

Kaisori is a celebration of Indian culture and storytelling as seen through it’s ancient crafts. It is a collective journey into the heart of India’s crafted marvels, reaching into cities for you to rediscover a love for all things handmade. Their designs are perfected by artisan’s labour of love. They present stories of India through a wide range of handcrafted products made by master artisans from different parts of India.

Kos

Centuries of artisanal values go into the handspun fabrics that these men’s shirts are created from. Its a journey around India as you feel the luxury of Ikkat, Jamdani and Khadi. Only taking these textiles into contemporary clothing will keep the master skills alive

Moirra

Handcrafted fabric jewellery representing an amalgamation of our rich Indian heritage crafted into a contemporary design. All pieces are fabric based with Zari, mirror work and french knots highlighted with surface ornamentation, each piece unique, telling the story of the person who made it. 

Padukas Artisans

Padukas is an NGO working with the Warli tribe in the Palghar district of Maharashtra to help them earn a livelihood from their Native art, sewing skills, and their innate ability to learn and master a new craft. In 2014, Jeanette Haley started it with 8 women and they have grown to a family of 62 women from 31 nearby villages. They are not only aiming for making these women financially Independent but also nurturing the artists in them. Indian fabric scraps produced by the fashion industry are collected, segregated, combined and hand stitched into beautiful objects of art by their team of seamstresses. Each Padukas product is handmade, therefore unique and original.

Project 1000

A social enterprise that creates home and lifestyle products indigenously designed and made by rural women to create a sustainable ecosystem. The products are made from 100% natural cotton supporting the Indian cotton farmers. 

Sienna

Sienna began as a home-grown project in Kolkata, dabbling in pottery, and soon became a vehicle which would enable rural artisans to reach a larger metropolitan marketplace. Through design collaboration and putting together people of various skills, Sienna enables individual artisans and cooperatives from remote villages to have access to the urban public, while still keeping alive their ancient art forms.

Manka – Bags

MANKA – ‘from the heart’, where each piece is sourced and constructed by hand, making each one unique! Their banjara bags are embellished with mirror work, embroidery, beads and tribal jewellery by the very talented banjara women! 

Neelanjana Ghose – Kantha Sarees and Stoles 

Neelanjana has been working with the kantha craft for over three decades. Shestarted in the early 80s, assisting her mother – the pioneer of kantha revival – Sreelata Sarkar, and has since dedicated her life in carrying forward this legacy. Neelanjana has weaved in her eclectic sensibilities in the traditional art form and has significantly contributed to making its appeal more global. Neelanjana is also a well know costume designer for films and have worked in over 20 feature films including those of Goutam Ghose (all his features), Bedabrata Pyne (Chittagong), Suman Ghosh (Podokkhep), Anjan Das (Shanjbatir Roopkathat). She has held several exhibitions of her kantha creations in Kolkata, Dhaka, Hyderabad, Bombay, Delhi, Rome.

Bhomra Design Co

Bhomra was born from Sriparna’s love of Bengal’s legacy of the unassuming taant, dhakai and tangail Jamdani saris that she grew up watching her grandmother wear. She wanted to celebrate the craftsmanship of the weavers, forever inspired by nature, by bringing its unassuming elegance, lightness and simplicity back into our everyday lives in the form of thoughtfully designed clothing that resonated these qualities and artistry, so long found only in the sari form. Thus the adventurous little bumbling bee –  Bhomra – fluttered its wings.

The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) have launched a new collaborative project – ‘Priorities for the Environmental Dimension of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) in India’, marking an important step towards recognizing and addressing the environmental dimension of AMR.

Antimicrobial resistance is a multi-faceted, complex global public health issue and has been recognized as a ‘One Health’ issue owing to its significant linkages with human health, animals, and the environment. While aspects addressing AMR from the human health perspective have received much attention, focus on the environmental dimensions of AMR has been limited. This includes the effects of discharging antibiotics and other antimicrobial compounds, such as disinfectants and heavy metals, into natural environments which have the potential to drive the evolution of resistant bacteria.

The project aims to strengthen environmental aspects of national- and state-level AMR strategies and action plans. It will undertake secondary research and stakeholder consultations to enhance understanding of the environmental dimension of AMR in India. Outreach activities targeting environmental authorities and ministries at the regional and state level in India are also planned. The work will also contribute to a regional brief on the environmental dimensions of AMR being prepared by the UNEP Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.

UNEP is supporting this project in India under the larger framework of Environment and Health, which is being led by the Inter-Ministerial Steering Group on Environment and Health (EH), co-chaired by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. ICMR-National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases (NICED), which is the Anti-Microbial Resistance Hub of ICMR since 2019, will implement this project.

“ICMR-NICED is the implementing organization for UNEP-funded project, Environmental Dimensions of AMR in India. NICED will generate information on environmental risk factors for developing AMR, the environmental spread of AMR and strategies for its containment. This will provide guidance on collective action and integration of this issue in policy and decision-making,” said Dr Shanta Dutta, Director, ICMR-NICED.  

“This launch is significant and historic because the environmental dimension of the AMR is going to be taken up at the country level in India. The work done will feed into the Ministry of Health’s National Action Plan on AMR.,” said Mr Atul Bagai, Country Head, UNEP India.

“The term ‘One Health’ is very vast with many interfaces. The demand on NICED which is a national institute and on India is huge – as it is also for other countries – to find ways to address issues around ‘One Health’, which is intricately linked with antimicrobial resistance,” added Dr Samiran Panda, Head, ECD, ICMR.

“AMR in the environment is an issue inadequately recognized by the stakeholders. It is critical to understand that we have to engage with the environment as a critical part of our AMR response. I am happy to highlight that this initiative taken by UNEP has substantiated convergence of both these sectors,” said Mr Lav Aggarwal, JS, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.  

In December 2017, the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) recognized that AMR is an increasing threat to global health, food, security and sustainable development, and underlined the need to further understand the role of the environment in the development and spread of AMR. UNEP is working to provide evidence that can inform national and global strategies. At the governance level, Inger Anderson, Executive Director of UNEP, is an ex-officio member of the One Health Global Leaders Group on antimicrobial resistance (Global Leaders Group), a key global governance structure that includes members from the Member States, civil society and the private sector.

About the UN Environment Programme

UNEP is the leading global voice on the environment. It provides leadership and encourages partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing, and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations. UN Environment works with governments, the private sector, civil society and other UN entities and international organizations across the world.