Reimagining Self: Parables for a Liveable World

A talk by Siddharth, Founder, Pipal Tree at Azim Premji University

About the Topic
It is clear that we are facing a social and ecological crisis of unprecedented proportions. On the one hand the issues of equity and justice continue to deny a good proportion of the planet their basic dignity and rights, on the other we are plunging headlong into the human made catastrophe of climate change. While the economic and social structures we have erected are largely responsible for this state of affairs we often undervalue the cultural and ethical issues that legitimise them. Through the narration of a number of parables Siddhartha hopes to identify the crisis of values that has led to the current impasse.

About the Speaker
From his student years in Chennai Siddhartha was concerned with issues related to culture and social justice. He went on to study Social Anthropology at the Ecoles des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociale in Paris. He worked for many years at INODEP (Paris), an international research and training centre in sustainable development founded by Paulo Freire. He was first the Coordinator for Asia and then later the International coordinator. He was also a founding member of the South North Network on Cultures and Development that was based in Brussels. In Bangalore, he founded several organisations that were concerned with human rights, alternative agriculture, climate change and cultural and religious issues. For several years he wrote frequently to newspapers and journals on social and cultural issues. He is also the author of two books of essays on similar themes. Presently he is the founder trustee of Pipal Tree, an organisation concerned with climate change and sustainable futures. He lives at Fireflies Ashram, just outside Bangalore