In this episode, we speak with writer, naturalist, educator, and activist Yuvan Aves, based in Chennai, India. After moving out of conventional schooling at the age of 16, Yuvan pursued his self-education and cultivated a deep relationship with nature throughout life.
We have a rich conversation with Yuvan on what it means to be a naturalist, his vast experiences and learnings in environmental activism, and how stories and art help to sow kinder futures for the planet. We also talk about the campaign to save Pulicat Lake, a sanctuary for biodiversity and the second largest brackish water ecosystem in India.
Yuvan is the author of A Naturalist’s Journal (Notion Press, 2017), a collection of essays. He is the recipient of the M.Krishnan Nature Writing Award, conferred by the Madras Naturalists’ Society. He also teaches at an alternative education space for children in Chennai, as he continues to reimagine an Earth-centric and child-centric education in schools. He is currently travelling and documenting stories along the Indian coastline.
He is a contributor to the forthcoming Agam anthology, Harvest Moon: Poems and Stories from the Edge of the Climate Crisis (out later in 2021).
Follow Yuvan on Instagram (@a_naturalists_column) and Twitter (@Yuvan_aves).
_________
Agam the Climate Podcast is under the Agam Agenda: reimagining the climate conversation through stories and art. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
Produced by the Institute of Climate and Sustainable Cities and Ground Bravo Studios.
