Utopian village -- Mujh Goan & organic farming

On Saturday Feb 23, Karen, a student R, and I scouted out the village "Mujh Goan". Goan means villages, so I won't call it Mujh Goan Village anymore. This reconnaissance was in preparation for Feb 27, the day of the high school hikes at Woodstock. Every single high schooler would have the day off and be assigned to a hike. The documentary team got our own hike to this village!!!

So take a look at these beautiful farms! This village was particularly content and happy because they have tons of land, a continual flow of water, and very fertile soil. This was like the Utopian village.

(billy goat! even though billy in hindi means cat)
(women planting potatoes)
(solar powered house)

Our tour guides were Deepika and Bindeshuri who were 22 years old. Deepika had been funded by the farming cooperative to go to agriculture school for 10 months in a big city far away. She had come back with new knowledge, and her job is to visit villages and impart this information.

(Karen, Jeanne, Deepika, Bindeshuri)

(Deepika in leek farm)
(Binde with puppy)
(Deepika, Karen, and student R waiting for taxi)

For Karen's blog entry for this day, CLICK HERE and HERE

Finally, Wednesday Feb 27, and our whole group got to visit this wonderful village! We had to hike first.

(Woodstock students taking a break)
(the Principal enjoying some fruit)
(The Grade 9's setting a good example for the Grade 11's)
(Smile, documentary team!!!)

We hiked and hiked downhill. It was pretty easy. Maybe about 6k total. Here are some pictures along the way:

(AR and N resting)

(a primary school that we walked by)
(Moo.)

So, we spent most of our time interviewing the members of the women's farming cooperative. Apparently, many of them had walked hours to be at this meeting for us, and had not eaten the whole time. We got there after 1pm, but they were told that we would arrive at 9am. They were so nice, as I didn't know about this snafu until later.

This was also the first time we got to see the boys in action. Since the documentary had originally been about women's rights, the team had consisted of all girls. But now that the story is about village changes, I decided to recruit some male students. Student "A" took over the camera right away, he was great. All the students were keen on asking questions.

(R holding the mic to the village Pradhan)

(A filming and M holding the mic -- we still need a boompole)

(The village Pradhan and teacher Shikha looking at the women's farming logs.)

(AR and N interviewing the women farmers about their lives)

We asked about how their group had gotten started. Apparently, they had been introduced to an NGO that taught them about Japanese organic farming techniques, such as soaking manure for 6 months and then using the fertilizer. They then got connected to buyers in Delhi who wanted Japanese products. These women currently grow enough food for themselves, and then an excess of leek, gobu (japanese root), and soy to sell at a higher price to the city. They also make miso which we bought a few packets of miso.

The documentary team left psyched and ready to start on our mission. I can't wait until we really start interviewing and hearing their stories.

Here is a picture of Muhj Goan's expansive land. It looks like such an idyllic lifestyle. You can feel the cool breeze blowing through the valley, rustling in the leaves.

For more of my pictures from Mujh Goan and pictures from February 2008, CLICK HERE.