This project is a collaboration between Cafe Oikos and FERAL to make urban wildlife more accessible to the urban citizen.
Cafe Oikos will expand its series of talks by a series of nature walks in Bengaluru, showing how much is there to discover in your immediate neighbourhood and how to keep track of it using nature journaling. They will also make short video clips on citizen science initiatives in India. This is set to inspire people to go out, observe nature, and contribute to science helping Bengaluru to build a comprehensive report on its urban biodiversity.
*In light of the COVID 19 pandemic, the film concept and nature walks concept got modified and the team began to work on a book on urban wildlife as a resource.
Project Start Date: May 2020
Contact:
Anisha Jayadevan, anisha.jayadevan@gmail.com
Manini Bansal, maninibansal107701@gmail.com
Status Report & Updates:
The Living Museum book imagines nature in cities as though it were a living museum. It depicts the diverse species in our environment. The jumping spider is the guide and through the course of the book, takes the reader along to understand what critters live in our backyards, our living rooms, the compost and the pavement. An exciting resource for children and adults alike, this book is made by a team of young women with rich knowledge on urban ecology and is paired with fascinating illustrations by Sunaina Coelho.
At the end of the tour, the book covers different ways in which people can engage with the Living Museum— by observing it, understanding the great changes it is going through, and contributing data to national and global citizen science initiatives. It also gives a short glimpse into the professional work of a few people, that intersects with urban biodiversity.
The book was published by the Foundation for Ecological Research, Advocacy and Learning with additional support from the Nagarathna Memorial Grant. You can order The Living Museum from Champaca Bookstore, Goobe’s Book Republic or Lightroom Bookstore, Bengaluru.
Articles and coverage:
https://cafeoikos.wordpress.com/book/
To know more about the journey of creation with the book, you can listen to this episode on the Thing About Wildlife Podcast.