About Us

South Asian Dialogues on Ecological Democracy (SADED) has been born out of work undertaken cooperatively by Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, CSDS, and Lokayan in India, Kepa and Siemenpuu Foundation in Finland. However, the practical work of SADED is the outcome of an even wider collaborative and creative involvement by many individuals and organisations forming a network or web of efforts, which does not have one epicenter.

SADED encompasses democratic control of natural resources and looks upon it as integral to the deepening and expansion of democracy and to the survival of humankind. In this respect the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development, 2002, disappointed all those who had any sensibility towards issues of ecological sustainability and equitable development of the humankind as a whole. Modern science, social and economic processes, and policies tend to fragment life, issues and people's ways of looking at them.

Democracy today has come to mean merely representing political structures. Despite this dominant thrust of institutionalisation over the past 200–500 years, which has culminated in the present processes of monopolistic, hegemonic, and humanly disempowering globalization, there is another perspective on democracy which is still widely espoused, intellectually and intuitively. It is an idea about relationships being based on equality, mutuality and respect for individual interaction – between family members, between communities, between human beings and the rest of nature, between genders; interaction in the market and the nation state, and between peoples across nations.

No one organisation can aspire to fulfill the need for all the various types of interventions required to realise democratic values in all walks of life. What is needed is not a structure for unifying or homogenising the diverse, but rather a way for us to relate to each other, an attempt to 'own' each other and nurture each other's democratic interventions despite differences. A space is required for enabling ideas or concerns about democracy and a platform for diverse interventions, a forum where people from diverse backgrounds can come and share their work and create new coalitions, without necessarily merging their respective institutional/organisational identities. SADED looks into the challenges for all of us is to build politics around this perspective, to channel all institutions towards ever expanding and deepening democratisation.

The concept of ‘Ecological Democracy’ is central to the work undertaken in the SADED framework. All the dimensions of life, also of democracy witin them, are inter-linked and so focussing on any one leads to the others. Since the ecological crisis is a special one for our times, and yet is inadequately recognised, SADED envisages strengthening the idea of comprehensive democracy through 'Ecological Democracy'. The notion of Ecological Democracy incorporates a democratic relationship between human beings and nature as well as an equitable distribution of nature's resources among human being within a nation and between nations.

SADED's Mission

To identify ways of articulation of Ecological Democracy in a manner that it can capture the imagination as a desirable world-view of all sections in India, South Asia and globally in the present times. This is possible only when there is comprehensive understanding of democracy i.e. democracy expressed in all dimensions of life.

The perspective is that:

There has to be a theoretical articulation of the linkages of ecological issues with all other dimensions of life within a framework of 'democracy'.
Simultaneously, it has to be in a way that it conveys the idea to as many sections of society as possible, and can influence their day-to-day actions..
Thirdly, the articulation could be politically meaningful when people who understand, and have been involved in, mainstream politics were part of the deliberations on these issues.
Fourthly, the ideas have to be articulated, and based upon, the concrete reality of people's lives in diverse settings.
Fifth, the idea will have to find articulation in diverse forms if they are to be communicated to all – from theoretical and ideological writings and discussion, to concrete manifestation of these ideas in action however fragile – in economic activities, social relationships, organizational structures and processes, cultural forms that convey shared meanings, and in political campaigns.

SADED's Objectives

(A) To explore the possibility of articulating the idea of Ecological Democracy by various modes, understand the strengths and limitations of each one; learn about threats and barriers to successful communication through each and draw lessons for future engagement.

(B) To deepen the understanding of Ecological Democracy and its practice through concrete issues in real life situations.

(C) Strengthening/generating resources (knowledge, committed persons, literature, cultural activities, networks etc.) that can continue the efforts towards Ecological Democracy.

The various modes of communication would include:

i) engaging in campaigns of the deprived – to understand the meaning of Ecological Democracy in each specific context

ii) generating dialogue across sections to evolve the idea of Ecological Democracy and how it can be strengthened in realistic terms.

iii) identifying and strengthening ecological life-styles and world-views by engaging with groups such as the Adivasis.

SADED’s goal

The goal of the SADED in 2006 - 2007 is that it prepares strategies and thematic, theoretical, administrative and practical models on ecological democracy approach for the following purposes:

- To bring to the public debate the need for ecological democracy approach in diverse fields of life as an essential part of the comprehensive democracy of life.
- To show how ecological concerns and other dimensions of democratic urges empower each other in general and in broad variety of crucial issues
- To engage with local communities'/citizens movements' initiatives, media & grass-roots views on ecological democracy to raise them through Indian Social Forum & WSF Nairobi and local- to global Afro-Asian dialogues

SADED´s working methods 2006-2007

SADED is not a formal entity, neither closed circle. It is formed by several activists, organisations and people’s movements and it is constantly open for engagement with new initiatives and partners. The support reaches variety of actors and organisations through SADED network

SADED organises lectures, meetings, workshops/seminars, parliamentary forums (also for media and parliamentarians). It plans to contribute to the Indian Social Forum and WSF process

It produces publications, publishes a web-site and an e-newsletter. It compiles struggle-notes and engages with peaceful struggles which are oriented towards shared goals and participates in non-partisan campaigns of ecological concerns.

SADED involves researchers to work with activists, people’s movements and local communities and commissions papers/small researches to empower the grass-root work and be more rigorous in its arguments in favour of ecological democracy discourse.

SADED plans to undertake travel to various civil society events at various levels. It utilises also international (including Indo-Finnish Gandhian) mutual learning & exchange and plans to contribute systematically in the Afro-Asian networking.

SADED's Activities (June 2006 – December 2007)

Over the past 1½ years SADED has attempted several tasks, all geared towards contributing to meeting this challenge. We recognise that Ecological Democracy is a civilizational challenge and articulating it to all sections is not possible for any one initiative or organisation. We can only contribute over effort in the direction we envisage as relevant at our own level.

Thematics

SADED had identified 5 thematic areas dealing with the interface of ecology with social, economic and political democracy – from local to global levels.

• Water and Agriculture
• Ecology, Dignity and the Marginalised Majorities
• Himalaya Swaraj Abhiyan
• Adivasi Survival Globally
• Inter-Continental Dialogue

Modes of Action

Meetings, campaigns, dialogues and padyatras as well as a few research studies, were organized or participated in. Writings relevant to the objectives were commissioned and resource person invited for lectures.

In all of these some principles commonly followed were:
• that voluntary participation is encouraged and garnered as a resource for E.D.
• that those with more ecological worldviews, often also from less developed regions and deprived sections were encouraged to participate, given greater exposure than their level of skills and resources would normally allow and nurture them into leadership roles.
• link the theoretical and ground level issues and debates.
• engaging in collaboration activities, supporting or enhancing impact of ongoing activities and harnessing existing energies and resources for E.D. work.
• developing and strengthening networks without building the identity of SADED
• promoting the ideas and issues of E.D. was primary, not organisational branding and credit-seeking.

Dialogue was undertaken in several modes-- through multifarious conversations across diverse sections; through formal meetings, workshops and seminars at local, national and international levels; as well as. Jeevanshalas (schools) and remedial classes for children and adolescents, padyatras (foot march across the region) and field research also providing channels for dialogue.

South Asian Dialogues on Ecological Democracy