Water is the key

Auroville Today: What was the reason for organizing this charette?

Mita: This workshop grew out of a feeling that divisions and differences in approaches to town planning, the Galaxy, etc had been hindering Auroville’s growth for too long. We need to find a way forward, to bring Aurovilians together in an envisioning, unifying exercise which would give a new fillip and energy to living in Auroville and in particular to Town Planning.

Friederike: After the Matrimandir was finished, there has been increasingly a sense that while Auroville has so many wonderful projects, something was lacking to tie it all together. A fresh, unified approach to town planning going beyond differences could provide a new unifying centre for Auroville.

Why was it structured as a charette?

Jana: The charette is a key element of the participatory planning methodology which aims to bring all people of a community together – stakeholders, decision makers, experts in different fields etc. – to be inspired to plan their living environment. The main element is to work together to integrate peoples’ visions. From a common vision a way forward is derived. At ‘hands-on’ planning tables participants work to prepare a way forward beyond polarities, to create a new solution which integrates all the different levels and perspectives. The experts act as mirrors, listeners and inspirers, as happened with Herbert Dreiseitl’s water experiments.

So what were the most important take-aways from the workshop?

Fabian: The last presentation of the workshop revisited the Galaxy from a wider perspective, including a focus on essentials such as water and green spaces and existing ground conditions like village settlements. I was quite touched by the apparent simplicity of it. It showed me that maybe/hopefully not much is needed to get united behind one renewed and updated vision of the city. Still a galaxy (I believe the Galaxy was ever-present throughout the workshop), but allowing for movement, adaptation, fluidity … And with that, I believe very much in the spirit of Roger.

Similarly, when I saw Herbert’s final presentation, it was the first time that the concept of the Matrimandir lake opened up for me. I could never relate to the confined geometric concept, but now I could see an administrative zone with beautiful buildings and towards the southern part of the lake, where he suggested the topography opens up and there could be small islands, it was beautiful. The other thing that was really interesting was the proposal to create a buffer zone around Bharathipuram where we can work together with the villagers on issues like water.

David: The workshop felt like the first step towards the next 50 years. In the early days, there was a focus on things that brought the community together, like planting trees and building the Matrimandir. However, when the visiting experts talked to older Aurovilians, what came through from them was a feeling of loss of common purpose. The Galaxy concept could theoretically be that overriding purpose, but it’s too amorphous; it doesn’t have enough tangibility for the average Aurovilian.

But what came through the charette is that water could be that focus for years to come. After all, without water there will be no Auroville. And someone like Herbert Dreiseitl, who seems very interested to keep engaging with Auroville, could help guide us forward.

Friederike: For me, what came out strongly is that what they call the blue-green focus cannot be an add-on: it has to be the basis of all town planning.

Peter: Another topic which Joachim brought forward and which we have never touched in our planning is the necessity to work with the unseen energy fields. We have to be careful not to get into occult fantasies, but this could be an interesting way to link with the villages and their traditions.

Fabian: I found it very beautiful that someone of his professional standing says that every tree has a faun on top and is convinced we need to heal the land as a first step.

Friederike: The very strong insight I gained from the experts was that the big problem in the world today is that the mega cities are prioritised while the rural areas are neglected, and that Auroville is an ideal place to be a role model for rural-urban integration. Some who favour the original Galaxy plan said we’re not here to construct an eco-city, that this can be done anywhere in the world. Of course, Auroville is more than that, but I think you can’t develop it without it also being an eco-city.

Peter: An inspiring moment for me happened on the first day when we went to Darkali and talked with Gopal.

Jana: It was inspiring because Gopal was saying it’s not about building a city but about developing our selves, and the need to let go of the ego if we are not to be stuck with the same problems.

David: In other words, the speed of the growth of consciousness will dictate the speed of the growth of the town.

Herbert said that water is always moving but our minds are always stuck!

David: The reference to the Galaxy and the movement of water really got me thinking. These days, as architects we’re being requested to come up with very flexible solutions because evolution is moving so fast on so many different levels. One hundred years ago, the modern movement in architecture emerged as a response to the demands of that time. The new architecture and urban designs will respond to the different demands of our time. What that will look like none of us know but the next leap will include a higher level, spirituality, which it hasn’t done before.

Peter: For me the main effect of the charette was that it was a catalyst for us working together on many new levels.

Jana: The participatory process offered a fast knowledge exchange. Even if the search started with mostly different opinions, here people managed to listen to each other, to bring all the problems and conflicts to a platform where could be looked at together, in order to go beyond and create new perspectives. All played together, experiencing the joy of being part of a wonderful orchestra.

It was a magical moment when the water expert gave a demonstration of changing forms in the flow of water. It was a simple demonstration of what happens when rigidity is given up in a flow without edges, the ever-changing form of galaxies.

And some practical proposals emerged from this. For example, a blue-green park in the heart of a nearby village as a model for water recycling and beautification.

How do you communicate the inspirations and ideas coming from this workshop to the larger community?

Fabian: The final open presentations were made late, and many people left before the end, so it would be good if another presentation could be made very soon to bring it to the awareness of the larger community.

David: Yes, because now it’s up to the community to come together. The experts were there to give feedback, to share their knowledge, but actually the community has to decide ‘we’re going to go in this direction’. And these workshops offer opportunities to catalyse a new sense of togetherness and direction.

Jana: I felt that in this workshop the process has started. One of the successes of this event is the realization that it is possible to create the ‘city of the future’, and that we can do it with joy instead of us feeling over-challenged and tired and upset. The other one for me is that a lot of people have been encouraged to look for a new orientation for our community now that the Matrimandir and afforestation projects are completed: a new focus which creates togetherness and unity to overcome all the social and environmental challenges in our rapidly changing environment.

If we sit around this table one year from now, what do you hope will have happened?

Friederike: The most practical suggestions all seemed to centre around water and the need to widen awareness and participation. So I hope that Auroville makes 2019 the year it focuses upon water.

Fabian: It would be wonderful if the problem of excessive water usage at the Matrimandir was solved. If we can deal with the spirit of water around the Matrimandir as well as be part of that participatory experiment with the local villages, it would be something.

Jana: Water knows no borders. For this reason I would like to see us collaborating in regional water initiatives beyond the villages in our city area. For example, in water recycling projects with Pondicherry and neighbouring villages. It seems the perfect time to create replicable models to prevent the disaster of the pollution of our groundwater.

Mita: That’s exactly what I wanted to say. We need to work on a water plan for the bioregion. We had wonderful contacts with the Panchayat leaders and young people in the context of the Highway Task Force, and there was a real opening when I said that the next step is to talk about the water. We already have a presentation about hydrogeology in the area which is being translated into Tamil, and one of the village youth said if we bring the presentation he’ll arrange for us to show it in the Kuilapalayam temple.

In this sense, the highway was a big catalyst to take our relationship with the villagers to another level. It’s good to have teamed up with our neighbours against the highway, but that’s not enough. We have to take the next step, to team up for our collective future, and this means, above all, water security.