Knowing your local plants and animal varieties is an important life skill, even if many of us in today’s technology-driven age might not think so. It allows us to identify invasive species, stay in touch with our lands, and helps with biodiversity conservation, as we can put aesthetic and economic values on the nature we take for granted.
Yet, urban India, with dusty, polluted cities and some green strips does not see this knowledge being shared. Not in schools, not over office lunches, and not even in society gardening groups, that much as far as the author knows. Of course, there is a litter and hygiene problem we must first combat, but even in our home gardens, how many of us actually grow native species instead of popular houseplants? Do our society’s playgrounds have local plants that actually benefit the pollinators and air quality of our area? How many times do we visit our local farms, despite many offering tours? Do our children have any connection with their food beyond mall shelves? Beyond vegetable vendors and people who make elite societies with a focus on sustainability, and some ethicists, how many of us can identify five local plants? And should we be able to?
These might seem unimportant in our fast-paced lives, but knowledge of nature and food is important for human beings.
While, of course, on a personal level, caring for native species might be difficult and we might not have time due to our systems for gathering this knowledge, in an era where we are seeing the benefits of sustainable community gardens, urban agriculture, and food security, these insights that our grandmas held about their village flora and fauna must be revived. Not only does this help our environment and soil health by planting the right plants, but it also adds joy and whimsy to our lives. Perhaps that is why many YouTube creators suggest knowing your local plants as a way to romanticise your life. Further, it can help us eat native and traditional items. While we cannot always healthily restrict ourselves to those, including them as much as possible in our diets- especially the plant-based dishes- can have a positive impact on our food systems, even if organic and local isn’t always the best, as nuances likethe use of greenhouses to grow tomatoes in some countries have shown.
Whether we can teach this knowledge in schools through treks, whether we must clean up our cities first, or plant fruit trees before anything else which can be a source of free nutrition for the community, and are all of these even possible in Indian society are questions we must grapple with, lest we end up with an urban population that doesn’t know weeds from grass. Stay tuned to NB news for more sustainability ideas and events in India.
