EcoSikh August 2012...

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August&2012&&Dharat&Suhavi:&Volume&2&Issue&7&&Waheguru&Ji&Ka&Khalsa,&Waheguru&Ji&Ki&Fateh!&

&In&Memory&of&those&who&died&in&Oak&Creek,&Wisconsin&&

!This!month!was!one!of!the!most!challenging!for!Sikhs,!as!well!as!all!Americans,!who!believe!in!the!inherent!dignity!of!all!people,!and!strive!for!love!and!acceptance,!across!all!communities,!neighborhoods,!and!places!we!call!‘home.’!!Our!thoughts!remain!with!the!families!of!those!who!lost!loved!ones!in!Oak!Creek,!Wisconsin!on!that!tragic!morning!of!Sunday,!August!5th.!They!continue!to!inspire!us!through!their!resilience,!grace,!and!deep!compassion!for!all!those!affected.!May!we!learn!from!their!courage!in!these!moments!that!test!our!strength,!and!respond!to!this!tragedy!in!the!spirit!of!chardhi'kala—enduring!optimism.!!If!you!would!like!to!support!the!families,!the!independent,!nonsectarian!Oak!Creek!Victim!Relief!Fund!continues!to!accept!donations,!which!will!go!directly!to!them.!!!You!can!also!visit!Beproud.org!to!learn!about!current!initiatives!by!the!Sikh!community!to!create!a!safe!world!for!all,!and!end!hate.!!!

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EcoAmritsar:&Stakeholders&Announce&Plans&for&2017&&

Sikhs!from!across!the!city!of!Amritsar!came!together!this!summer!for!an!historic!meeting!hosted!by!EcoSikh!to!announce!plans!for!the!greening!of!the!city,!in!anticipation!of!the!440th!anniversary!of!the!foundation!day!of!Amritsar,!by!the!fourth!Sikh!Guru,!Guru!Ram!Das!Ji.!We’ve!detailed!some!of!the!major!commitments!here:!!

At!the!launch!of!‘EcoAmritsar!2017’!Shiromani!Gurdwara!Parbandhak!Committee!(SGPC,!the!Sikh!body!that!manages!Darbar!Sahib!and!gurdwaras!across!the!northern!states!of!Panjab,!Haryana,!and!Himachal!Pradesh)!Representative!announced!that!an!environmental!proposal!submitted!by!EcoSikh!will!be!reviewed!at!their!executive!meeting!and!implemented!in!the!coming!months.!The!proposal!includes!a!plan!to!celebrate!the!foundation!day!of!Amritsar!each!year,!and!commit!to!organic!farming!on!ten!percent!of!all!gurdwara!land!in!Amritsar!District.!

Local!government!leadership!announced!its!commitment!to!water!and!energy!conservation:!the!City!of!Amritsar!committed!to!enforcing!rainwater!harvesting!in!all!government!buildings!and!areas!larger!than!500!square!meters,!collecting!rainwater!for!reuse!and!groundwater!recharge.!The!Punjab!Energy!Development!Agency,!–!PEDA,!the!state’s!major!proponent!of!solar!and!renewable!energy!will!ensure!that!ten!percent!of!the!city’s!energy!is!renewable.!The!agency!also!plans!to!install!a!solar!power!plant!at!Darbar!Sahib!and!would!soon!be!putting!up!solar!steam!cooking!system,!which!would!cut!down!liquid!petroleum!gas!consumption!in!the!langar!hall!in!half.!

Professional!associations,!including!the!Amritsar!chapter!of!the!Indian!Medical!Association!committed!to!using!LED!lighting!in!specified!buildings,!and!support!for!environmental!programs!in!Amritsar!schools.!!!

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Khalsa!College!Charitable!Society,!which!was!founded!by!the!leaders!of!the!Singh!Sabha!movement,!announced!they!will!conduct!water!and!energy!audits!in!all!buildings,!earmark!10!percent!of!their!lands!for!organic!agriculture,!and!involve!students!on!environmental!educational!projects!and!internships.!!The!respected!Baba!Sewa!Singh!of!nearby!Khadur!Sahib!will!help!with!the!projects!to!be!run!under!the!auspices!of!the!District!Commissioner!of!Amritsar.!!

Baba!Sewa!Singh!added,!“It!will!be!our!good!fortune!if!we!can!make!this!Guru!ki!nagri!green.!My!services!are!available.”!

Please!see!our!Flickr!gallery!from!the!EcoAmritsar!launch!

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Solar&Gurdwara&in&the&United&Kingdom&&&The!Leicester!Sikh!Gurdwara!in!the!United!Kingdom!has!set!the!precedent!for!gurdwaras!across!Europe!after!installing!400!solar!panels!to!reduce!its!carbon!footprint.!And!one!of!the!exciting!things!for!us!at!EcoSikh!was!to!discover!how!quickly!this!made!financial!sense,!as!well!as!being!consistent!with!our!Sikh!values.!!Each!week!the!Gurdwara!welcomes!25,000!visitors!who!come!to!reflect!on!Sikh!teachings!(gurbani),!prepare!and!enjoy!food!from!the!community'kitchen!(langar),!and!receive!care!for!families!and!elders!with!disabilities.!To!run!the!operations!of!this!fourbstory!former!warehouse,!the!local!Sikh!community!was!paying!nearly!£1,700!($2,685!USD)!monthly!energy!costs.!The!Sikh!sangat!of!Leicester!decided!to!take!a!different!course:!they!pooled!together!£125,000!($197,404!USD)!to!install!rooftop!solar!panels,!fulfilling!the!community’s!needs,!lowering!greenhouse!gas!emissions,!and&saving&£600,000&($947,!580)&in&the&next&20&years—an!effort!praised!by!the!city!and!regional!conservationists!alike.!!!In!the!end,!all!of!this!is!well!worth!it,!according!to!Surinderpal!Singh!Rai,!the!general!secreaty!of!the!Gurdwara.!"They!will!have!paid!for!themselves!within!a!matter!of!years!and!the!result!is!we!can!use!the!savings!to!invest!in!services!for!the!community.!On!top!of!all!that,!we!are!also!doing!out!little!bit!to!help!protect!our!environment."!!We!hope!that!this!example!–!and!these!numbers!–!will!inspire!many!more!gurdwaras!around!the!world!to!check!whether!solar!might!be!a!good!direction!for!them.!Please!keep!us!informed.!!&A&Special&Thanks&to&Our&Dedicated&Summer&Interns&and&Volunteers&&&EcoSikh’s!work!would!not!be!possible!without!the!stream!interns!that!work!alongside!us,!whether! it! is!through! village! level!meetings,! local! actions,! or! by! sharing! their! technical! expertise! and! passion! for! a!greener!planet,!for!all.!!!This!month!we!offer!a!special!thanks!to!two!dedicated!volunteers:!!

&Maryland,&USA!

Jaspreet!Singh!is!an!environmental!engineering!student!from!the!University!of!Maryland!and!a!regular!attendee!of!the!Guru!Gobind!Singh!Foundation!in!Maryland.!He!has!helped!EcoSikh!compile!our!‘Green!Gurdwaras’!survey!collecting!data!from!Gurdwaras!across!the!United!States,!Canada,!and!beyond.!!!!The!survey,!which!has!been!reviewed!by!the!U.S.!Green!Building!Council,!will!be!available!online!and!on!paper,!in!English!and!Punjabi,!and!will!address!the!environmental!needs!of!Gurdwaras!on!issues!such!as!energy!and!water!use,!green!landscaping,!recycling,!composting,!and!using!natural!and!safe!cleaning!products.!!

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Haryana,&India:&!Gurpreet!Singh!and!his!cousin!Karamjit!of!Haryana!showed!a!level!of!social!entrepreneurism!that!we!hope!will!inspire!other!young!Sikhs!to!help!the!environment,!at!no!cost!but!one’s!own!effort,!making!their!work!truly!sustainable.!

This!summer!they!bought!1,100!mangos,!lemon,!guava,!papaya,!jamun,!and!cheeku!trees!from!three!horticultural!nurseries!and!transported!them!to!around!30!remote!villages,!a!distance!of!30!to!40!kilometers.!They!set!up!tree!stalls!in!each!village!farms!and!gurdwaras!and!sold!the!trees!at!cost!price,!making!no!profit!themselves.!

“Any!private!nursery!would!sell!these!fruit!saplings!for!five!or!ten!times!the!price!that!a!government!horticulture!nursery!would!charge.!But!these!remote!villagers!would!never!know!this,!as!there!is!no!adverts!about!plant!rates!in!newspapers!or!on!TV!channels,”!said!Gurpreet,!who!has!built!a!good!relationship!with!horticulture!nurseries!in!Haryana!who!are!helping!out!this!mission.!“We!sell!them!high!quality!plants!at!no!profit!prices.”!It!is!better!than!giving!plants!away,!he!said.!“I!am!sure!when!people!buy!a!plant!there!is!least!tendency!to!waste!it.”!

“We!hope!this!will!certainly!be!an!inspiration!for!the!rest!of!the!small!farmers!around,”!Gurpreet!wrote!to!us!in!his!report.!!

Watch!a!picture!show!from!Haryana!about!this!news.!And!if!this!gives!you!any!ideas!for!what!you!can!do!in!your!area,!please!email!me.!

In!the!next!newsletter!we’ll!bring!you!news!on!EcoFest,!a!Punjabbwide!student!festival!to!nurture!creativity!and!study!of!the!environment.!!

Guru!Ang!Sang,!!

Bandana!Kaur!!Program!Manager,!EcoSikh!bandana.kaur@ecosikh.org!"

Please!check!our!website,!Facebook,!and!Twitter!accounts!for!regular!updates,!as!we!move!forward.!

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