INDIAN YOUTH CLIMATE NETWORK
Rural Climate Fellows
In 2010-11, 5 young women from the Bundelkhand community were trained as
Climate Fellows to hold meetings in 30 villages of Bundelkhand. The objective was to
get the village citizens talking about causes & effects of climate change that they can
notice around them & encourage them to take action for their own welfare through
community action & making district administration accountable.
Using props such as posters & films, solutions were discussed such as water
conservation, forest protection, and organic farming. The importance of Gram Sabha
was highlighted to collectively take decision on issues that affect the whole village
and seek information on various government schemes that were in effect then.
The Phase 1 of the project was supported by Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) as
well as the film, Aarohan, that was shown in the villages is produced by EDF.
Phase 2 of the project has also been conceptualised with the aim to make a unit of 5
model villages that are keen to take action on reviving their lakes, cleanliness &
hygiene, organic farming, and utilise government schemes.
They are seeking funds to support the work.
Project profile
 Project site - Chhatarpur district, Bundelkhand-Madhya Pradhesh, India
 Demography - villages inhabited by general as well as tribal population with
literacy rate from 5-25% and on an average 30–40 homes below poverty line
in each village.
 Occupation – people are farming, collecting & selling NTFP, working as
unorganised labour
 Meeting attendance ratio – meetings noticed 6:4 (women:men)
 Outcomes of Phase 1:
◦ Gram Sabha organised in 15 villages after decades – most popular topics
discussed were water scarcity, farmer debt & failed crops, pension
schemes and pending MGNREGA job cards/ payments
◦ Local administration forced to listen to their concerns after rallies & sit-ins
◦ Street & home cleanliness drives, construction of soak pits to stop
mosquito -breeding
◦ One village constructed check-dam; some villages requested Fellows to
organise training for them to learn make organic manure
◦ 2-day youth action camp organised by Climate Fellows for several village
youth
◦ Forms filled to avail government scheme benefits and more information
sought from government administration offices
◦ Local entrepreneurship ideas encouraged such as a machine that makes
leaf plates to replace styrofoam plates currently in use in villages. This
machine costs Rs 14000 & gives employment to 6 people
◦ One village organised meeting & film screening for out of scope
neighbourhood villages that resulted in idea for phase 2 of the project.
Indian Youth Climate Network
Off: E-37, Lajpat Nagar-III, New Delhi-24
Tel: +91-11-41718880, Website: www.iycn.in
INDIAN YOUTH CLIMATE NETWORK
Photo Gallery
Climate Fellows training in progress
Climate Fellows ready to begin project
Fellow holding a meeting
Fellow using posters
Pathari village submitting a letter of
demands to District Tehsildar
Youth camp organised by Climate Fellows
Indian Youth Climate Network
Office: E-37, Lajpat Nagar - III, New Delhi - 24
Tel: +91-11-41718880, Website: www.iycn.in
INDIAN YOUTH CLIMATE NETWORK
Village youth cleaning & deepening the
lake through “shram-daan”
Using music to get people together
Learning to make organic manure
Gram Sabha for the first time in decades
Water situation in a village
Constructing a soak pit
Indian Youth Climate Network
Office: E-37, Lajpat Nagar - III, New Delhi - 24
Tel: +91-11-41718880, Website: www.iycn.in