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Olawale Olaniyan

Jun 24, 2017
05:18

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Dear Mr. David,

You and your partnering organizations intend to strengthen " livelihoods of the tribal communities". You are committed to a good idea, I believe. I'll like to suggest a feasibility assessment for 'SALT' to have idea of its likelihood and possibility for adoption. 

Best wishes,

Olawale


David Gandhi

Jun 30, 2017
03:18

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Dear Mr. Olawale,

Thank you for your support and your suggestion.  

I have added some content to the proposal.

Regards,

David

 

 

 

 


Jugal Choudhary

Jun 30, 2017
03:05

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David, 

Your work is inspiring.  SALT is a great idea


Ridwan D. Rusli

Aug 17, 2017
04:45

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Excellent idea to solve this problem by offering alternative means for the local economy. Thorough plan of action.

Pls note, given observations from slash-and-burn in SE Asia, there could also be vested interests at play. Firstly, plantation companies that persuade farmers to continue the practice, as the (narrow and short-sighted) economics of slash & burn is still convincing enough. Secondly, local businessmen who live-off lobbying and coordinating local business-political efforts (instead of creating their own productive businesses) usually cultivate relationships and activities which, if they happened to benefit from continued slash-and-burn, pose challenges to your respectful programs.


David Gandhi

Aug 19, 2017
04:14

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Thank you Mr. Ridwan for your support.

Your observations raise an interesting issue. The pilot villages are too remote so the problem of vested interests has not been observed. However as we spread to areas closer to the main roads and markets, we will have to study this aspect and find ways forward.

 

 


Pia Jensen

Aug 19, 2017
08:44

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This is a terrific proposal. It reminds me of two things.

1. The Sacramento Valley in north-central California was traditionally subjected to heavy smoke and ash fallout from local rice farmers burning the fields after harvest. There was one company that practiced natural methods which increased soil fertility and did not require the burning of the fields. A campaign was held in Sacramento to put to a vote the elimination of this practice and it succeeded. The number of asthma and other related health issues has diminished since.

2. Greening of the deserts promoted and taught by permaculturists (Sepp Holzer and Geoff Lawton).

You might considering adding these to your References

Dispute Over Burning of Rice Fields / Sacramento-area farmers want phaseout postponed www.sfgate.com/news/article/Dispute-Over-Burning-of-Rice-Fields-3020026.php

Homer Lundberg of Lundberg Family Farms recognized for service to industry www.ricefarming.com/departments/industry-news/homer-lundberg-of-lundberg-family-farms-recognized-for-service-to-industry/

Sepp Holzer’s Permaculture – a Review https://permaculturenews.org/2011/06/15/sepp-holzers-permaculture-a-review/

Permaculture Behind Greening the Desert with Geoff Lawton https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Q41b05ku9U

 


David Gandhi

Aug 22, 2017
10:22

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Dear Ms. Jensen.

Thanks for your support for our proposal and for sharing the experiences from California. The references are relevant to the proposal and I will include them.

 


Julie Barry

Aug 24, 2017
01:36

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Great idea. I wonder if there might also be a benefit in using certain strains or types of seeds that might be more inclined to thrive in adverse conditions. There's information about similar efforts in Central America and Mexico. http://www.ecologic.org/actions-issues/challenges/slash-burn-agriculture/

Thank you for your important efforts. Best of luck.

Julie


David Gandhi

Aug 26, 2017
03:02

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Dear Ms. Barry, 

Thanks for your support. It's great to read of similar efforts by EcoLogic in Mesoamerica.

The hill people of the northeast of India are still using traditional seed varieties which are well adapted to the local agroclimate and no-external input system of agriculture. These can easily be incorporated into the proposed model.


Sergio Pena

Sep 6, 2017
02:11

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David, excellent presentation. Kindly, if you coudl be so kind to explain a little bit more on the impact of SALT on the conservatin of biological diversity woud be more interesting for, at least. As well, the proposal is in extreme complete, however, if you could explain a little bit more on the possibility to apply this idea in other countries will be wonderful. Further, we aware of intellectual property protection of this idea (by traditional protection or even traditional knowledge). Might ob interest to see if the Indian Law of Biodiversity and their by laws might help to your project by creating legal protection to the work of farmers. If I have more suggestions to share I will write to you.

Best regards.

Sergio


Arun Nagpal

Sep 10, 2017
01:48

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Delighted to be part of this initiative which seeks to address, literally as well as figuratively, a 'burning' issue in one of the remotest parts of the country, in a community that is otherwise ignored by the development and the prosperity that the rest of the country/world is experiencing.

Excited at the opportunity to contribute in one's own way - personally as well as professionally, to a holistic development initiative that one hopes will become a working model on the ground - a model that is sustainable and scalable, a model that can lead to significant, measurable and lasting impact over time.

Happy to commit to a partnership to this program that contributes in whatever way possible to making this a success and a model for the future.   


David Gandhi

Sep 10, 2017
02:43

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Dear Dr. Pena, I am very happy for your support and relevant comments to the proposal. I am  at present challenged due to poor internet connection, but will try to include the information. Best regards. David.


David Gandhi

Sep 10, 2017
02:07

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Dear Jugal, Thanks for your support. David


Sergio Pena

Nov 2, 2017
04:43

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Dear David, considering your outstainding results, could you be so kind to answer my questions put before?

 


David Gandhi

Nov 3, 2017
02:33

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Dear Dr. Pena,

Thanks for the reminder. I am still in the project area and unable to edit the online proposal and will briefly address your queries here:

The SALT adaptation model we are developing will have a strong positive impact on conservation of flora and fauna biodiversity as a result of the conservation of soil and water, mix of vegetation, use of traditional seed varieties and environment friendly agriculture practices. Indirect impacts due to shifting cultivation lands freed for regeneration of natural forest would also be significant.

 

We are of the view that similar models can be developed as per the local conditions in other countries where shifting cultivation has become unproductive with negative environmental impacts and we plan to develop a Pedagogy to guide future replication and adaptation.

 

The project area is in the northeast region and traditional tribal laws are applicable. I am not aware of the application of Indian Biodiversity laws, however it is a good suggestion to look into this aspect inas we move forward.

 

Thanks again.

 

David

 


Arun Nagpal

Nov 3, 2017
11:18

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It has been a great experience to be a part of this exciting and potentially impactful initiative at Aben. Heartening to note the engagement of the local community, their willingness to try out new things, a sense of positive optimism that prevails, and most importantly, the desire to do something different, to make a difference – in their own lives, and in the lives of their children and generations to follow.

During the last two visits to Aben, and during the course of the ongoing engagement between these visits, what we have attempted as a team is to

(a) foster greater community engagement – the VDC has been strengthened to include more representation from womenfolk and youth

(b) bring in an element of financial robustness and a ‘business angle’ into the agenda – sensitize individual stakeholders on the basic of costing, investments, returns and so on, even while encouraging the VDC to progressively take ‘ownership’ of the project itself. For instance, after creating a small pool of funds for the demo plots, the VDC gave loans to individuals, and these loans are expected to be paid back over time, to go into a Village Development Fund administered by the VDC, and which will over a period of time, become a revolving fund to be used for ongoing development initiatives

(c) encourage a holistic approach to development – weaving aspects such as skill development and livelihoods into the SALT initiative and

(d) facilitate market linkages for output from the fields – not just a commodity like raw turmeric, but processing and value addition within the village itself, which apart from generating livelihoods, can also provide (significantly) higher returns.

Besides, the synergistic partnerships created – local community, individual stakeholders (village folk who took the initiative and the step to be a part of the SALT demo units), VDC, NGO (PESCH), individuals (the Gandhi’s), social entrepreneurs (Mrida) – each bringing their respective skills sets and knowledge/experience base to the table, yet working together as a cohesive team to deliver results and impact – have been a pleasure to be an integral part of.

The above factors, we feel, will contribute to making this a sustainable initiative, which will stand the test of time with increasing ownership devolving to the local community and the VDC.

A sustainable and financially viable model of the kind being sought to be created is in itself a positive step towards scalability. The recent connect with the District Administration, and the initial very encouraging response in terms of extending Govt. facilitation and support, will extend even further, the possibilities of scaling up the ‘Aben Initiative’ to the next level(s).

Excited to be a part of the team, a part of this initiative and committed to pitching in with whatever it may take to making it a success….


Arun Nagpal

Nov 3, 2017
11:02

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We considered the possibility of sharing latest progress updates, including pictures of the SALT demo sites,  and also adding to the basic proposal, some inputs based on the feedback and comments received from the judges and visitors to the ClimateCoLab site.  

This would naturally have been best done by David Gandhi as the proposal creator. However, given that he is at the project site in Aben, which in itself is not easily accessible, and given the inherent challenges of internet connectivity and the available bandwidth, it was felt prudent from a format and data integrity point of view, that the core proposal itself would not be modified at this stage. 

As a team then, we felt that David and/or contributors to the proposal could instead, share updates and plans for the future, in the form of their individual comments, and in the form of the Summary of changes made in the ‘Evaluation Results’ section.


Caroline Liu

Nov 26, 2017
02:23

Impact Assessment Fellow


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Thank you for submitting your contest proposal.

A Climate CoLab Impact Assessment Fellow who specializes in Land Use has conducted an impact assessment of your proposal which you can find under the “IMPACT” tab. Please review the documentation and model parameters. If you have any questions or suggestions, you can contact Marissa Malahayati at marissam.


Regards,
Impact Assessment Fellows


Nitin Shah

Dec 22, 2017
09:21

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Amazing initiative, David.


Nitin Shah

Dec 22, 2017
09:23

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Amazing initiative, David.


Kumar Rajamani

Dec 23, 2017
09:37

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David- great work - hats off. Keep it up and good luck.


Yugandhar Mandavkar

Dec 24, 2017
09:02

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Kudos, David, for an important and highly relevant initiative. You are taking SALT to another level of integrated livelihoods interventions - I see the glimpses of Farming Systems Approach in your methods. Keep it up! And good luck to you and the Naga farmers.

 


David Gandhi

Dec 25, 2017
01:31

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Thanks Yugandhar.  You have summarized our initiative very well. Will keep you posted on FB.


Olawale Olaniyan

Dec 25, 2017
11:48

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Mr David & team members,

Kindly accept my congratulatory message for advancing to this stage of the contest.

Best wishes in this voting round!

Olawale


David Gandhi

Dec 25, 2017
12:58

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Dear Mr. Olawale,

Thanks for your congratulatory message and good wishes! 

We are facing stiff competition in the voting round :-)

David


Kamlakar Raibole

Dec 26, 2017
03:30

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Best initiatives. Great work.


Disuang Newme

Jan 12, 2018
07:03

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Thats a very convincing idea for livelihood and sustainable growth of the people. The concerned villages will appreciate and commit themself with utmost zeal for the common benefit. It will help reduce the barbaric activities like deforestation. Northeast being one of major carbon sink of india needs to be conserved with a blend of technology and skills. This approach will help india in reducing the carbon release and ease India towards achieving the targets of global climate accords. needs think tank to come together and look upon the prevailing agricultural issues going on.


Makarand Lele

Jan 12, 2018
02:40

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David,

I have read in detail of your proposal. I am not conversant or familiar with agricultural methods, but what you have proposed as ideas, makes great sense logically and am excited by your venture.

May you get successful in your venture.

I am happy to contribute in whatever way I can to your amazing venture!

Regards

Makarand

 


Vasundhara Rangaswamy

Jan 12, 2018
05:37

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Best wishes. Hope to visit one day!


Ashvini Sharma

Jan 13, 2018
11:29

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Amazing thought .. 

SALT is good concept and all the very best


Yatin Mokal

Jan 14, 2018
01:42

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Dear David,

I am thrilled to see your work in remote area away from Luxury. This is true work. Please feel free if you need any support. I can help you in Apiculture Projects. I got good contacts in Ministry of Agriculture, ICAR, IARI, various Agril Universities. I can also visit your work area and contribute.

Thanks & best regards,

Yatin Jagannath Mokal, M.Sc. (Agril. Entomology), P.G.Dip. Ecol. & Env.

 

 


David Gandhi

Jan 14, 2018
08:42

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Dear Yatin,

Thanks for your support. We could certainly do with help for the Apiculture and other aspects of SALT, specially related to pest management.  I am returning to the project area tomorrow and plan to spend the coming 4 months there.  Lets keep in touch over FB.


Rahul Banerjee

Jan 15, 2018
12:01

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With increasing population and fast depleting forest cover, shifting cultivation on steeply sloping lands has become less productive and nature is also unable to rejuvenate the land within the shorter time cycle allowed to it. Therefore, it is essential that a more resource conservative agriculture be practised that harmonises the earlier swidden agriculture with the needs of the time. David has vast experience in implementing soil and water conservation programmes in steeply sloping land across the globe and has many successes to his credit. In the present instance he has already implemented a pilot before formulating this proposal so it is not just armchair theorising but a practical blueprint for reviving both agriculture and the natural resource base in Manipur and simultaneously adapting to and mitigating climate change. Since it is proposed to keep detailed records of the project implementation it will help in developing a replicable model that can be gainfully spread to other areas.


David Gandhi

Jan 16, 2018
02:07

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Voting Over, Friends. After a marathon effort by all concerned, our final count was 2055 while our main competitor managed to pull in 2156. The last 30 minutes were hectic but we just could not line up so many votes all at one time. Most of our friends were at work!

Thanks to all those who stood behind us.

My wife Usha and I are leaving for Manipur and the project area this afternoon.   Will post regular updates about the progress of the work on Facebook.

Cheers and God Bless.


Kim Misao

Jan 16, 2018
03:46

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Dear David,

It's with pleasure that I vote for this initiative. It will be great to connect with you outside this platform. If that works, please drop your email id.

 


Rommel Shunmugam

Jan 23, 2018
10:47

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Hi Mr. Gandhi. I am based in Gurgaon, but will be visiting Tamenglong in the summer. Could you kindly share your contact details on my email id: write2rommel@gmail.com, so that we may connect. 

Thank You

Rommel Shunmugam


Laurie Ashley

Jan 30, 2018
10:56

Fellow


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Congratulations David!  This is an excellent proposal.  Thank you for all your thoughtfulness, responsiveness, and hard work.


Olawale Olaniyan

Jan 30, 2018
12:10

Fellow


38 |
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Hi Mr. David,Congrats to you and your team  n this achievement!


Clay Mores

Jun 30, 2020
05:08

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