GEV - GOVARDHAN ECO VILLAGE, SIMPLE LIVING & HIGH THINKING Click - TopicsExpress

GEV - GOVARDHAN ECO VILLAGE, SIMPLE LIVING & HIGH THINKING Click HD to view clearer video. youtube/watch?v=kX_QoXvuyfg - Miracle Plant at Govardhan Eco Village youtube/watch?v=cBELY1xzr_8 - Govardhan Eco-Village (14min) youtube/watch?v=rNtd4w16vhA - Radhanath Swami at Govardhan Eco Villages Goshala ecovillage.org.in/news-2/gev-wins-skoch-platinum-award/ November 12th 2013 witnessed a very special event in the nation’s capital. An event that brought together some of India’s best leaders in the sectors of corporate, human resource, finance, banking and community based organizations. The objective of this meet was to honor some of the best practices in these fields acknowledging the super excellent contributions made towards nation building. During the event Mr. Gauranga Das, Director Govardhan Eco Village, was honoredwith the SKOCHPlatinum Award 2013 from the Finance Minister of India Mr. P Chidambaram, Mr. Montek Singh Alhuwalia Chairman Planning Commission of India, Mr. U K Sinha Chairman Securities Exchange Board of India. The SKOCH awards, instituted by Mr. Sameer Kochhar, chairman SKOCH group, enjoy the distinction of being the highest independently instituted awards in India. Govardhan Ecovillage was conferred upon this distinction for its efforts in pioneering a novel integrated water conservation and protection scheme, which could prove tobe a formidable way to tackle the water security issue in many underdeveloped nations. India today has a rural population of over 800 million, many of whom lack access to safe drinking water and hygienic sanitation. GEV took a scientific approach to this issue by studying the land topology and underground aquifers and creatednatural systems of water storage to collectthe run-off rain water. While thus conserving rain water and facilitating recharge of ground water, GEV also took care to avoid all sewage management techniques that could potentially contaminate the ground water by implementing a green sewage management concept called Soil BioTechnology. Today GEV boasts of conserving over 10 million liters of rain water and recovering an equal amount of water from sewage, which is used in irrigating the fields in the ecovillage. ecovillage.org.in/ Govardhan Eco Village illustrates ‘Simple Living & High Thinking’ – a principle which is so succinct, yet profound, and formed the basis of life in the bygone age of wisdom. Life in the Vedic times was focused on Service, but not on exploitation; this was the cardinal rule of living and the very essence of people’s dealings – with each other and that with Mother Nature. With the concepts of eco living being innate, the Vedic lifestyle was truly an eco friendly way of living life as instanced in the timeless Vedic scriptures like SrimadBhagavatam and Bhagavad-Gita. We at Govardhan Eco Village hope to present this model to the world as an alternative way of lifestyle and perhaps a solution to the impending ecological crisis. Govardhan Eco Village is a farm community spread over a scenic landscape of 60 acres at Galtare, Wada situated 110 km North of Mumbai, India. Since its inception in the year 2003, Govardhan Eco Village has made steady progress in Organic farming, Cow protection, Education, Rural development, Alternative energy, Eco friendly constructions and Sustainable living. In the scenario where environmental crisis is on the rise, Govardhan Eco Village is an example of living in harmony with nature. The purpose behind Govardhan Eco Village is twofold – one is to present a sustainable living model based on community living and second is to educate people in the field of traditional sciences including Yoga and spirituality. For demonstrating the principles of Eco friendly living, SrilaPrabhupada, the founder acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), stressed on developing farm communities as they present the only sustainable way of leading a life which is physically, mentally, socially, economically, spiritually and environmentally friendly. He said, “The Krishna consciousness movement is therefore establishing various farms to show how to be happy and content with minimum necessities of life and to save time for self-realization, which one can very easily achieve by chanting the maha-mantra—Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.” Govardhan Eco Village (GEV) is an ISKCON Chowpatty initiative under the inspiration and guidance of Radhanath Swami, who is the spiritual mentor at ISKCON Chowpatty. Radhanath Swami, a disciple of SrilaPrabhupada, spent a great number of years in a farm community established by SrilaPrabhupada experiencing an eco friendly lifestyle, serving the cows and leading the life of a monk. To fulfill the dream of his spiritual master, Radhanath Swami envisioned a farm community in India highlighting the importance of living in harmony with nature, and inspiring his followers to serve the society by setting up a model farm community – Govardhan Eco Village ecovillage.org.in/simple-living-high-thinking/ -------------------------------- OBJECTIVES To give individuals a first-hand experience of our utter dependence on Mother Nature’s gifts. To help cultivate an attitude of reverence and gratitude towards Mother Nature and all her children. To engender a spirit of peaceful cooperation among living entities for the supreme good of all. INITIATIVES & INNOVATIONS Govardhan Eco Village uniquely combines ancient Vedic principles of ideal human life and modern sustainable technology to create a revolutionary and progressive society. Here is a look into some of the initiatives and innovations which make GEV a pioneer progressive community. Organic farming: Many technologies are utilized to create the most sustainable and environment-friendly food sources possible. Such practices as crop rotation and companion planting, composting, mulching, organic fertilizers, green pesticides, permanent raised garden beds, and several kinds of irrigation are employed in the farming effort. Animal care: Upholding the Vedic tenet of respecting all forms of life, GEV is working steadily towards setting up exemplary animal care facilities. Two donkeys, two goats, two sheep, four dogs and several cows and bulls happily reside at the GEV. Green Buildings: Traditional earthen homes are built with locally available materials that reconnect us to earth, creating a healing and calming effect. Water conservation: Efficient Water conservation is a natural step towards sustainability with respect to water resources. The goal at GEV has been to create a system which could help attain this goal without disturbing the existing ecology and keeping cost feasibility in mind. Alternative energy: Alternative energy is any energy source that is an alternative to fossil fuels with their inherent disadvantages like carbon dioxide emissions, global warming, etc. GEV uses Solar Power, Biogas and Bull Power to meet energy needs in an eco-friendly way. Soil biotechnology: Soil Biotechnology (SBT) is an indigenous green technology for sewage processing which enables recycling and reuse of processed water. SBT has been developed & patented by Chemical Engineering Department, IIT Bombay. GEV has been one of the pioneers in employing the SBT technology for handling sewage wastes in a rural setup. Waste management: GEV uses a combination of time tested traditional techniques as well as indigenous innovations to develop a Symbiotic Model of Waste Management (SWMS). In a SWMS different processes or systems are integrated into loops so that the wastes of one system can be utilized by another. Rural empowerment: A Holistic Development Program for Rural & Tribal communities in Wada Block of Thane District was started by GEV to cover at least 500 tribal families over a period of 6 years. Women Empowerment: While focusing on a agro-horti-forestry based tribal development, there is need for a thrust to tackle the root causes of poor health and improve the quality of living, particularly of women. The focus of this program is to ensure food security and alleviate poverty by empowering women. Rural health care: Bhaktivedanta Hospital and Govardhan Eco Village, as a part of their mission to serve the needy, have been rendering free and concessional community health services to the villagers in and around GEV. Annamrita: The Annamrita kitchen supported by GEV today provides mid-day meals to almost 30,000 students from 400 schools. Vrindavan Biodiversity park: Taking inspiration from the sublime and symbiotic biodiversity of Vrindavan, GEV is coming up with a Vrindavan Biodiversity Park. Sitting in the lap of Mother Nature, being surrounded by mountains on all 4 sides and with the Vaitarna River flowing nearby, Govardhan Eco village has an ideal setting to experience the sweetness of Bhakti Yoga alongwith the blossom of Nature. Vrindavan Cultural and Educational centre: GEV is coming up with a beautiful temple of Sri Sri Radha Krishna. This temple will be a hub for cultural and educational activities for the entire region and therefore has been named as Vedic Cultural & Educational Center. Cottage industry: Cottage Industry refers to small-scale manufacturing of select products; from the very beginning, Radhanath Swami has emphasized that cottage industry is one of the important aspects of developing self-sufficiency and a means of providing employment to the community residents. At present there are seven products produced at GEV, which include ubtan (soap powder), tooth powder, flour, incense sticks, and cooking oil. Plant nursery: Spread over an area of 3 acres, the nursery houses hundreds of varieties of flora comprising of ornamental plants, flower plants, fruit bearing plants, forest plants and medicinal plants. The nursery employs shade-net areas, poly houses, lotus ponds and several other facilities for growing these different varieties of plants. The plants grown at the nursery can be classified as Shrubs, Trees, Hanging Pots, Moss Sticks, Grasses, Creepers, etc. AWARDS Govardhan Eco Village was honored at the 34th Skoch Summit in New Delhi. Skoch Awards are the highest independently-instituted civilian honor in India, recognizing people, projects, and institutions for their extraordinary contributions to society. They are coveted due to the exceptional research and rigorous process of selection of the Skoch Development Foundation. The GEV was bestowed this distinction for its efforts in pioneering a novel “integrated water conservation and protection scheme,” which could prove to be a formidable way to tackle the water security issue in many underdeveloped nations. APPRECIATIONS The GEV is a paradise in this world of conflict. Everyone here under the visionary guidance of Radhanath Swami is living a life of spiritual activation. The most important thing anyone can do is to dare to care about the happiness and wellbeing of others. This place is daring and caring. The best way to uplift our own life is to do all we can to uplift the lives of others.. GEV teaches us all how to do that! With great love all is possible, all is God’s grace..God is great and God is love.. All glories to Sri Krishna! – Sharon Gannon, Co-Founder of Jivmukti Yoga. govardhanashram/ Unfortunately, modern society has devised many means for killing animals in different forms of life. For example, in the agricultural fields there may be many mice, flies and other creatures that disturb production, and sometimes they are killed by pesticides. Every living entity should be nourished by the food given by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Human society should not consider itself the only enjoyer of all the properties of God; rather, men should understand that all the other animals also have a claim to Gods property. - Srila Prabhupada