Editor’s note
Dear Reader
We are at the halfway mark of 2025 and we hope you are able to still steal an occasional walk outdoors despite the heat.
This edition we bring you updates from our classrooms - all the way from Chennai to Vedanthangal. April - June is also filled with important dates commemorating our natural wealth - the International Day for Biological Diversity (22 May) and the World Environment Day (5 June). This year, we were thrilled to lead and participate in multiple events around these dates - read on to find out more about these !
Our team soon heads out in various directions for field works across Tamilnadu and we can’t wait to hear each others stories and share them with you in our next issue
Till such time, wishing you more time for birdwatching,
The Ainthinai Team
Translating Pedagogy into Physical Space - Youth led Nature-Culture Living Labs
Supported by SwedBio, a programme at Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm
University, Sweden
We have been bringing into fruition the most significant part of the Youth led Nature-Culture Living Labs project, the ‘living labs’ itself. A living lab is a space dedicated for solving research questions or real-life challenges. In educational contexts, it is often a space for hands-on experiential learning where students can test what they have learnt and observe things in a natural setting. The enquiry-focused nature-culture curriculum delivered earlier through in-campus learning programmes and field visits as part of the SwedBio project informed the approach to the living labs being created.
The living lab site is located in Unamancheri village, whose panchayat and community have been very supportive. The site is in proximity to a wetland, scrub forest, and agricultural land, offering the chance to observe different kinds of flora and fauna. Featuring a small amphitheatre, hut, observation deck and a bridge where students can gather and observe their surroundings, the site was made physically ready by June. To mark its inauguration, on World Environment Day, elected representative of Chengalpattu district and member of the legislative assembly (MLA), Ms. M. Varalakshmi, planted a sapling at the site, accompanied by the elected leader of Unamancheri Panchayat, Mr. Mahendran. Students and teachers from Govt. Middle School, Unamancheri, one of the most significant stakeholders of the site, were also present.
Plantation strategy for preparation of green corridor
Supported by IG3 Infra Limited and in collaboration with Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) and Tamil Nadu Forest Department
Care Earth Trust is working with Chennai One IT SEZ IG3 Infra Limited, Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) and Tamil Nadu Forest Department to create a green corridor along Thoraipakkam Radial Road. This project mainly focuses on the northern side of the road and aims to enhance greenery by adding more trees and plants and also reduce problems including loud noise and dust pollution. In this process of greening, native tall saplings and their impact on local animals and the environment are prioritised. Each tree has a support stick and a tree guard. We have planted 150 tree saplings, added bio mining soil, bio fertilizer, and a pre mixed soil to help them grow. This careful way of planting helps create a healthier, greener city.
From Students to Stewards of Their Sanctuary – Local Youth as Nature Guides, Nature Wings
In collaboration with Tamil Nadu Forest Department, Supported by Sun Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
“I’m writing our discussions down carefully so I can teach my son when he’s ready”, says one of the participants from Care Earth’s nature education sessions in Vedanthangal. Both her specially bound notebook and an enthusiastic chorus of questions from her and her classmates are a consistent part of the classes conducted as part of the ‘Nature Wings’ project. Held for youth aged 18 to 33 living near Vedanthangal and Karikili Bird Sanctuaries, the sessions aim to equip participants with the skills to become nature guides as an eco-livelihood opportunity. Spanning from March to June 2025, the classes focused on providing an understanding of wetlands, their importance, and the ability to identify common birds, amongst other things. The sessions were primarily held by Dr. RJ Daniels, co-founder of Care Earth Trust and Ms. Rosella Daniels, zoologist and science teacher. An introductory book to common birds was written in Tamil by Dr. RJ Daniels especially for the participants. Other community- centric designs in the programme, such as provisions for childcare, helped ensure significant and consistent participation from women, largely of daily wage and unemployed backgrounds.
Post programme support and materials such as binoculars, caps are being provided for to ensure that participants get recognised as guides and are able to fulfil their roles easier. A felicitation ceremony has also been planned to celebrate the cohort’s completion of training and the potential to utilise their unique position as stewards of ecologically significant sites.
Biodiversity assessment in Subramanya lake
Supported by Alcon Architects
Subramanya lake, originally known as Rettaikeni thangal, and once utilised for irrigating the agricultural fields in the coastal stretch of Shollinganallur, requires attention today, as the wetland has been shrinking due to the burgeoning urban infrastructure. The wetland spanning across a 17-acre water holding area has been surrounded by many high-rise apartments. For assessing the status of life thriving in the wetland, a biodiversity survey was carried out in the second week of June. The survey yielded diverse plant species from the wetland and its surroundings; as many as 90 species of Angiosperms were recorded of which many are exotics. The soil around the wetland is saline with the presence of many Suaeda monoica undershrubs. The water is healthy with good population of aquatic species like Hydrilla verticillata, Nymphaea nouchali and Najas indica. This wetland holds a good population of the latter species, a hydro annual plant despite it becoming very rare in other parts of Chennai. The wetland becomes busy with the onset of birds’ migratory season, with raptors like Harriers and Shikra frequenting this lake. The team observed some resident waterfowls like Spot-billed Ducks, Little Cormorants and Little Grebes apart from terrestrial urban birds.
Trees and stories - what connects Pala Indigo to the Care Earth team’s unwritten ritual ? Find out in this short blog post by Anjana Vencatesan
Events
World Environment Day (June 5)
Former Collector of Chengalpettu Thiru S. Arunraj I.A.S., and Ms. M. Varalakshmi M.L.A Chengalpettu inaugurated the restoration of Unamancheri Chitteri in the presence of PWD officials, village panchayat office bearers, and the Care Earth team
Earthwatch Institute India launched a booklet on 15 wetlands in Chennai , co-authored by Care Earth. Muthu Karthick, our Programme Head– Biodiversity Research was one of the panellists of the event and shared valuable insights on wetlands and the importance of conserving them
International Day for Biological Diversity (May 22)
Care Earth Trust with the support of National Biodiversity Board (NBA), Tamil Nadu Biodiversity Board (TNBB), Tamil Nadu Biodiversity Conservation and Greening Project for Climate Change Response (TBGPCCR) and Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) organized a two-day program on 21st and 22nd May commemorating the International Day for Biological Diversity 2025.
Day one saw events at multiple locations across Chennai - Street play titled ‘Iyarkai Thaai’ by Nilal Kalai Kuzhu in Anna Nagar and Pondy Bazaar and an exhibition on indigenous rice diversity in collaboration with CIKS at Guindy Children’s Park
Day 2 saw the culmination of the celebrations at Amma Arangam , Ripon Building featuring eminent speakers, performances by students of Vidya Vanam School, Anaikatti and Vayali Bamboo Music.
