Teachers

Nadine Fabret passed away in France on 7 August 2025 at the age of 59. A valued member of the Sve Dame community and a unique spirit, she could be warmly social yet also deeply comfortable in her own company.

Tucked away in a small room at the back of Auroville’s Vanaville unit is Michel’s bookbinding sanctuary — a quiet space where hundreds of worn books have been given a new lease on life.

In May 2024, the Governing Board of the Auroville Foundation approved the creation of the Auroville Physical Education Board (APEB), and allocated an in-principle budget of ₹2 crores (approx.

Donald “Don” Kelman (91) passed away on 30 January 2025 at his home in the Prarthana Community in Auroville. He had valiantly fought dementia for several years with the support of his loved ones and a community of dear friends.

It is 10 am and I hear the joyful pitter-patter of toddlers running for their snacks. I am not at Summer Camp, but it feels like I’m on holiday, nevertheless.

Lakshmanan Krishnan passed away on July 12th at JIPMER hospital after an accident, at the age of 44. He was a true Auroville youth, born and educated in Auroville.

Auma is a second-generation Aurovilian, born to Indian and French pioneers, Marie Babu and André Tardeil. While she raises her third generation child, she shares insights with us about what makes Auroville unique to her.

Sylvia Zimmerman, who lived in Surrender, passed away in the evening of February 4th. Sylvia had come to join Auroville in 1999, after a long worldwide search and experiences in different spiritual places and communities.

On October 13th, Colombian Lucas Posada arrived with his 10-year old son Salvador in Chennai to start his Newcomer year in Auroville. His wife Gloria and their 14-year old daughter Gaia would follow a month later.

Maurice Shukla grew up as a child in the Mother's School and now helps wherever he can be useful at the Ashram: translating, editing, teaching and, evidently, forever learning.

Audrey Wallace Taylor, one of Auroville’s eminent artists, left her body on August 18th during a family visit in the USA. She had just become 90.

Sumitra passed away in the morning of Saturday 12 August at Jipmer hospital due to chronic health issues. She was 54. Sumitra hailed from a Gandhian family of Thengampudur, Nagercoil district.

Bonjour! My name is Nivetha Narayanaswamy, and this is the story of how I came to master French. Growing up in Auroville, I never could have guessed the journey I would be taking when my father expressed his desire for one of his daughters to speak French.

On the occasion of Sri Aurobindo’s 150th anniversary, the Sri Aurobindo Centre for Advanced Research (SACAR) in Pondicherry received a grant of Rs.12 lakhs (approx.

On April 2nd, Dutch Aurovilian Anna Oijevaar passed away. She was a lively, energetic and much appreciated Aurovilian, who came here first in 1988 and was registered as Aurovilian in 1993.

On February 3rd, former Indian Independence fighter and Auroville’s oldest resident Mahalingam Sangukrishna left his body, at the age of 103.

Cristof Alward-Pitoëff, who met Mother in 1969, passed away in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram on 28 February. In the early years, Cristof stayed in Auroville for a short while after which he went to live in the Ashram for good and functioned as head of the French section of the Ashram Press, SAICE professor, translator and theatre director.

In the early morning of Wednesday 18 May, Bhaga (Christiane Odile Gabriau) peacefully left her body at the age of 77 in her Luminosity flat.

Deepti Tewari joined Auroville 47 years ago and teaches at Last School. She is editor of the Bharat Nivas Journal. Earlier she had edited the Matrimandir Journal.

Since joining Auroville in 2016, Anandi Zhang has taken up various work in the community. But she feels the most important work is that which she is dong upon herself.

Tatiana Sineeva joined Auroville in 2014. Here she talks about her background, her work teaching Hatha Yoga, her discovery of Auroville, her educational experience at Deepanam school and her work as a member of Auroville’s Residents’ Assembly Service.

Selvi, a teacher at Last School, grew up in Auroville. Her studies in political science took her to Chennai, but it's her frisbee prowess as part of India's national Ultimate Frisbee team, that became her ticket to travel the world.

Everyone here knows the expression “Children of Auroville”, but they’ve grown up since, and some now have children themselves! As various waves of ‘children of Children of Auroville’ – i.e. youth that has grown up in Auroville to parents that have themselves grown up in Auroville (monikers: GenZ, iGen or even Zoomers) are born and grow up here, the older ones now represent a category that is starting to be more vocal in the community.

Even before India entered one of the strictest lockdowns in the world, among the first measures it took to stop the spread of COVID-19 was to shut down schools across the nation.

On Tuesday May 26th, Vijayamala, a long-term volunteer at New Creation's Crèche and Boarding School, passed away due to a heart attack at JIPMER at the age of 51.

On February 1, 2020, Subash (M.S. Subash Chandra) passed away in the Mahalakshmi Home. He had just become 74 and had been battling Parkinson’s disease since several years.

On January 7th, Ingo H.W. Torp left his body at the age of 77 in Santé, after staying two days in the ICU in the Pondicherry Institute of medical Sciences.

Gildo Maria Pivetta left his body on April 5th, in Belgium, surrounded by his wife and children. Gildo (most people know him as Guido) had been quite unwell lately and left Auroville in March 2019 for Belgium where it was found that a terminal cancer had rapidly spread throughout the body.

In November this year, Aurovilian Dr. Mira Aster Patel, in recognition of “her invaluable contribution in developing Auroville”, was awarded the Auro Ratna award from the Overman Foundation in a ceremony in the Hall of Harmony of the Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram.

Auroville Botanical Garden’s Educational Programmes are teaching local students the importance of conserving our local biodiversity.

On August 22nd, Aurovilian Karpagavalli Selvanambi left her body in a Madurai nursing home to which she had been taken after a stroke in 2013.

On July 8th, Damien L. Hedley left his body at the age of 67 in Canberra, Australia, after a struggle with cancer. His funeral was held on July 13th at the Australian National Botanic Gardens.

Michael Neville, a long-term Ashramite, passed away on 22nd January. Michael, known as ‘Michael Redbeard’, ran the early Auroville transport service and taught in the first Auroville school.

On April 25th, Paulien of Vikas passed away in the Intensive Care Unit of the East Coast Hospital in the presence of her sister Mariette and her friend Betty.

On April 1, Rauf Ali passed away in his house at Aurodam, at the age of 62 due to leukemia. He was lovingly surrounded by close friends and his sister-in-law.

My name is Manjula, I was adopted at a young age by Sanjeev and Miriam, who have lived in Auroville for a long time. The Auroville experiment on human unity in diversity started right at home.

With the demise of Dr. Kireet Joshi on 14 September 2014, the Aurobindonian firmament has lost one of its brightest stars. Born on 10 August 1931, he studied philosophy and law at the Elphinstone College under the University of Bombay.