Month in Review: October 2019
We started October on a high note by hitting the 1000 follower milestone on Instagram! We thank you for your continued support.
Cultures of Peace is an annual, event based project Zubaan has been collaborating on with Heinrich Böll Stiftung (India) since 2011. On 12 October, as part of Cultures, we held a series of discussions in Imphal, Manipur on the intersections of feminist and ecological activism. With a set of short film screenings at Manipur University on 11 October and a following day of conversations, we discussed the role of women’s activism in raising awareness of the socio-political and ecological effects of dam construction, women’s roles in sustainable agriculture and farming practices, and how local and indigenous communities are integral to the way in which efficient conservation practices work.
Facilitated by theatre practitioner Mallika Taneja, a script development workshop was held from 22-23rd of October at the Sahbagi Shikshan Kendra in Lucknow. Through warm up exercises and open discussions, Mallika assisted the groups in creating scripts that centred around various issues like sexual abuse and violence. On the second day of the workshop, the groups presented their performances.
This month, various performances that centred around the themes of sexual violence and impunity were also held in Manipur and Bangalore under the Stepping Stones and Body of Evidence projects.
As some of you may know, we have a series on Instagram where we focus on exploring and understanding different kinds of impunities. This month, we started looking at evidence and how its collection process reinforces certain kinds of impunity. With a special focus on the evidentiary process in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, we aim to unpack the idea of evidence itself, and debunk the notion that it is neutral and objective.
In continuation of our #WednesdaysforWomensHistories series on social media, we posted three new essays written by the grantees of the Zubaan- SPF Grants for Young Researchers from the Northeast. Make sure you’re following us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook so you’re always in the loop!