Economy

In the recent ruling of the Supreme Court of India, the learned judge, regarding the need for Auroville’s development vis-à-vis environmental protection, stated that “…while the right to a clean environment is a guaranteed fundamental right under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India, the right to development through industrialization equally claims priority under fundamental rights particularly under Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India.

Manuel Thomas, a long-time friend and well-wisher of Auroville, left his body peacefully in his sleep during the night of January 26th. His passing is a great loss for Auroville and for his many friends and admirers.

Recently longtime Aurovilian Divakar circulated a paper entitled ‘Auroville and its destinies’ in which he suggested a possible way forward which seeks to integrate the present reality as a way of continuing our collective progress.

A project evaluation by Aman who grew up in Auroville and at present is studying in the USA.

A recent British Academy report on the U.K. post-pandemic situation concluded that “We are in a COVID decade: the social, economic and cultural effects of the pandemic will cast a long shadow into the future... there are a set of deeper impacts on health and wellbeing, communities and cohesion, and skills, employment and the economy which will have profound effects upon the U.K. for many years to come”.

In January and February, Auroville’s Budget Coordination Committee (BCC) conducted a series of public meetings with the community. One purpose was to clarify the budgetary allocations; another, to help the BCC understand to what extent those allocations serve the needs of the community.

Many view the disruption caused by the lockdown in Auroville as an opportunity to radically transform our economy, governance, food provision systems etc. and a number of proposals to achieve this have already been made.

The COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown have brought large scale unemployment, poverty and hunger to the rural villages and urban slums of India.

The Coast India initiative is a national work of civil society organizations concerned with the welfare of vulnerable migrant populations. Aurovilian Bindu along with other volunteers formed the Tamil Nadu team of Coast India, and here she shares her work.

When the lockdown started across India in late March, economic activity ground to a halt in Auroville, and individuals, commercial units, and community services had to take a rigorous look at their expenses to see how they would survive.

Recently, Suryamayi Clarence-Smith, who was born and brought up in Auroville, completed a Ph.D in International Development in the University of Sussex, the world-ranking institution in the field.

Manuel Thomas is a senior Chartered Accountant who works with Auroville groups and commercial units in various consultative capacities. He is also co-author with Henk Thomas of a history of Auroville’s economy, Economics for People and Earth: The Auroville Case 1968-2008.

Auroville’s Funds and Assets Management Committee (FAMC) held two general meetings in November in an effort to come closer to the community.

Universal Basic Income (UBI) is a model for providing all citizens with a guaranteed cash allocation, regardless of their income, resources or employment status.

Money, in any of its forms, stipulates a hierarchy of values, which creates separations between people as well as between humanity and the environment.

On 5th December, Auroville Consulting launched the Solar Village Search Engine to help fund its Solar Village Initiative, which aims to power 100 villages in Tamil Nadu with solar by the year 2030.

Looking at some of the old issues of Auroville Today, it’s fascinating to see how some of the articles could have been written just last week.

An important meeting in terms of planning for the larger bioregion took place on 11th September in Pondicherry. Hosted by Citizen’s Action Network, PondyCAN and the Puducherry Planning Authority, with participation of civil society from all the sub-regions, the consultation meeting was also addressed by Lt.

In March, 2015, we interviewed three Aurovilians, Gérard Maréchal, Janaka and François Gauthier, who had journeyed to Auroville in the first caravan in 1969, to learn more about the caravan story.

The Sustainable Livelihood Institute (SLI) is a joint project of the Government of Tamil Nadu and Auroville to promote rural development based on the principles of sustainable development .

Auroville’s Galaxy Plan is marked by so-called ‘Lines of Force’, long building structures. The Line of Goodwill is a project to build the longest Line of Force of the Galaxy Plan, which extends from the outer ring road near the Visitors Centre parking to the edge of the planned Matrimandir Lake.

It is this ‘decisive action direct from the Supreme’ and it alone that makes possible what used to be impossible. It is by tuning to this new and higher consciousness which has descended that the Aurovilians were able to be Mother’s instruments – and will continue to be her willing servitors.

Jean-François Noubel recently visited Auroville. He assisted key working groups and gave public workshops and presentations on collective intelligence and a new form of economy.

The result of the U.S. election generated some interesting responses. One of these was a perceptive essay written by the economist, Charles Eisenstein, called “The election of hate, grief and a new story”.

Recently, a group of Aurovilians concerned about the direction of our economy discussed alternatives. Anandi is part of the management team of Pour Tous Distribution Centre, Jocelyn is on the Santé team, Nicole is a member of the BCC and management of the Visitors Center, Isha coordinates the Auroville Board of Services, and Manohar is the webmaster of the Auroville website.

Peter Klingspies, a young Aurovilian who returned to Auroville in 2012 and works in Sumark Construction, shares his thoughts on his life and what it means to work in construction in Auroville.

On Wednesday April 20th, the Residents’ Assembly Service announced the results of a vote called by the Auroville Council on a new Entry Policy and a new mandate for the Funds and Assets Management Committee (FAMC).

Money has become an integral part of the exchange between Aurovilians and the increased monetization of our interactions is a genuine cause of concern.

The Joy of Learning is an experiment in collective learning which addresses a wide range of themes associated with life in Auroville. It tries to (re)familiarise the residents with important issues in a stimulating and respectful learning environment, and is supported with funding from Stichting de Zaaier.

Tapas Bhatt has long been associated with supporting the arts in Auroville and, in particular, with connecting Auroville to the world and the world to Auroville through the arts.

Over the past two months, Aurovilians have been invited to participate in a new experiment called The Joy of Learning. What is the idea behind it?

Candles around the Banyan tree, Russian voices at the bonfire, and even a few drops of rain. Yes, the New Year felt special this time.

“For in this ideal place money would be no more the sovereign lord. Individual value would have a greater importance than the value due to material wealth and social position.

Aren’t we an economy Of butterflies and bees? A colourful autonomy Is what fate for each decrees. Butterflies sip precious nectar And enjoy it on the spot