February update

Tesi Environmental Awareness Movement¡¦s activities at the Kalachakra event were most successful, raising awareness of important environmental issues such as endangered species and the ecological and health effects of using plastic. We also successfully initiated a process of youth environmental activism, which will now spread within the schools the 30 Kalachakra TEAM student volunteers came from.

Since we met at the Kalachakra we have been busy carrying out our environmental awareness raising activities amongst Tibetans. We have focused especially on the endangered species campaign, which gained a momentum after the Kalachakra where H. H. the Dalai Lama made such strong recommendations to Tibetans on this matter. Since then, there has been an eruption of environmental activism with the voluntary burning of thousands of pelts of endangered species by Tibetans both inside and outside Tibet. To follow up our wildlife conservation work started since our inception on 5th June 2005, TEAM has been visiting settlements in the Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka State, Jammu and Kashmir to show videos and make announcements with the help of many of the TEAM Kalachakra volunteers. People have been most receptive and have donated illegal skins to be disposed of during our Earth Prayer Vigil to be held on the 14th March - document entitled Wildlife Urgent Appeal in home page.

Meanwhile we have also been interviewing farmers to uncover their concerns about converting to organic farming and accordingly provide appropriate solutions. This study will help us to explain the importance of organic farming and voice the concerns of farmers. Other future projects include working closely with monasteries and nunneries to start environmental groups and develop environmental leadership amongst the monastic community.

TEAM
Dharamsala