Editor’s note
Dear Reader
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As yet another financial year comes to an end and as we find some time on our hands, we are back with some updates - from identifying grass to training teachers to handling snakes.
In this issue of Ainthinai, we are celebrating a special announcement - our co-founder and trustee Dr Jayshree Vencatesan is a Woman Changemaker in the World of Wetlands. In case you missed this exciting news, more details follows.
Wishing you more time in nature,
The Ainthinai Team
Ramsar Woman Changemaker | Dr Jayshree Vencatesan
A milestone moment for us at Care Earth Trust as we celebrate our 25th year. Our Co- Founder and Trustee, Dr. Jayshree Vencatesan has been recognized as one of the 12 Women Changemakers in the World of Wetlands- 2025, by the Ramsar Secretariat. This makes her the first Indian woman to break into the Changemaker list.
You can read her full interview at the link here - Ramsar website
Dr. Vencatesan’s journey in wetland conservation is a testament to her determination and a deep-rooted love for nature. What began as a personal mission with just $350 and a relentless drive has grown into a nationwide effort to protect India’s marshlands. She was one of the first to document the Pallikaranai Marsh in Chennai—once dismissed as a wasteland—bringing to light its critical role in flood mitigation and biodiversity.
On the Forest Frontlines
In February, as a part of a series of skill trainings supported by SIDBI (Small Industries Development Bank of India), ‘Hands-on training on identifying common wild grasses’ was conducted for a total of 70 Anti- poaching watchers (APW) belonging to 14 Forest Ranges and 3 Forest Divisions. The primary goal of this training was to impart basic knowledge about the common wild grasses of Sathyamangalam and Erode with the frontline workers and improving the grass identification skills. The workshop was designed by a combination of presentations, field-visits, and identification using lenses.
Following the grass species identification training, a two days ‘Hands-on training on Snake Rescue and Rehabilitation’ for APWs working in 15 forest ranges in Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve and Erode Forest division was conducted in the month of March 2025. Mr. M.V. Ravi Kumar and R. Roshan Kumar, Wildlife conservationists and Snake handling experts illustrated the dos and don’ts regarding snake bites and snake rescues.
Education, Training, and Capacity Building
Working with School Teachers
Our Nature education initiatives includes programmes for School teachers where we conducted a workshop on ‘Nature Culture education: Using Activity led Pedagogical Tools’ for NGC Eco club coordinators of government schools in Chennai and Chengalpattu districts. The Primary goal of the workshop is to highlight the role of School teachers in shaping the children minds and their relation with the environment. The workshops provided a suitable opportunity for the teachers to get use of 'Be My Happy Place: a guide to create, curate, and establish a Living Lab', Care Earth's most recent ecological learning resource for middle and high school students. The workshops were conducted as part of our project 'Youth led, Nature- Culture Living Labs in India' supported by SwedBio, a programme at Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University, Sweden.
Local youth as Nature Guides
As a part of our ‘Nature Wings’ project, the first session of the Nature Guide training programme for the local youth of villages of Vedanthangal and Karikili panchayats commenced on March 22, 2025 at Vedanthangal. The project is supported by Sun Pharma and has been implemented in consultation with the Tamil Nadu Forest Department and Vedanthangal Panchayat. The main aim of the project is to enhance the eco-livelihood opportunities to communities living near Vedanthangal and Karikili Bird sanctuaries, who are the key stakeholders in their conservation.
That’s a wrap on Margazhi
Our sixth edition of Margazhi Birds Thiruvizha was bigger and better with 12 walks across 6 locations and over 200 participants. For the first time in our Margazhi walks, we held an all women’s walk at the Nanmangalam Reserve Forest , for women and led by women – something we plan to make a regular feature in the upcoming editions
Events
Infosys BioConverse : Care Earth presented its work across campuses of India at the Infosys BioConverse Summit in Bangalore in January.
Yaanai Thiruvizha: a grand celebration of the Asian Elephant and its habitat through art, culture, and dialogue in Guindy National Park, Chennai was held on February 7-8, 2025. This is part of the larger Gajutsav Campaign by WTI, focused on securing the Rights of Passage for Elephants by engaging communities and stakeholders to address human-wildlife conflicts and habitat challenges. Care Earth was a collaborating institution for the Chennai edition.
Wipro Urban Waters Forum: the goal is to support the implementation of participatory water management practices. The fourth edition of Urban Waters Forum was held during February 5-7, 2025, at IIT (ISM) Dhanbad. The event brought together 65+ participants from academia, civil society organizations and journalism. Care Earth was represented by Anjana Vencatesan
Anjana Vencatesan participated as a panellist at the Conference on Sustainable Solutions for Urban Water Management: Challenges and Innovations held on 26th February 2025
Volunteering in Vengathur : snapshot from when employees of the NatWest Group joined us for the maintenance of the afforestation patch that they had undertaken in November last year.
