Seventeen years ago Yorit and Avriam Rozin and their children moved from Israel to 70 acres of arid desert in India with the aim of restoring the land into a forest. The aim also was to create an area that would sustain a vegan lifestyle for those living there.
Today the Forest is Regenerating
The work that began on December 19, 2003, is paying off. The couple trekked up a mountain last Sunday to get a good cellphone reception to talk to my Adult Education Class at the San Marcos Universal Unitarian Fellowship. What I learned is that the hard work of 17 years is not just paying off but spreading.
More than just a Forest
The vision of the Rozins was to transform 70 acres of severely eroded, arid land on the outskirts of Auroville. According to the Sadhana Forest website, “In a spirit of human unity, their aim is to introduce a growing number of people to sustainable living, food security through ecological transformation, wasteland reclamation, and veganism. Our energy and resources are focused on the creation of a vibrant, indigenous Tropical Dry Evergreen Forest.”
Volunteers Welcome
Every year some 1,300 volunteers from throughout the world visit Sadhana. They receive free room and are asked to pay $6 per day for three vegan meals. In addition to the original forest site, the Rozins also have started a second project in India, as well as one in Haiti and Kenya.
Recognized for Their Work
Sadhana Forest won the third place in the Humanitarian Water and Food Award (WAF) 2010. The ceremony took place in the Marble Hall of the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, on November 25th, 2010. Shri Ashok Kumar Attri the Ambassador of India to Denmark honored Sadhana Forest by attending the ceremony.
How Do You Start?
Rozin said each project begins with water reclamation and retention. If water can be held in channels and reservoirs, then plants will naturally begin to grow from seeds dropped by birds and mammals who also return to the area. But the project places an emphasis on planting trees of choice from Sadhana’s own nurseries. These are then nurtured as the forest rebuilds.
Why Vegan?
The vegan lifestyle is emphasized because the main reason for deforestation around the world in the first place is to grow animal feed, Rozin said. If the local populations can live on the restored grounds with their own gardens and with trees that bear fruits, then the deforestation problem is solved.
Travel by Motorcycle
The couple’s mode of travel from Sadhana to get supplies is via motorcycle, although the organization owns a car.
“I Live in a Hut”
A story about life in Sadhana is portrayed in the video, song and book “I Live in Hut,” which can be found on the www.sadhanaforest.org website, along with more information about the organization. The song, book and video are the work of Mrs. Rozin and are aimed at helping educate children around the worldl.
Impressive Dedication
The Rozins have shown impressive dedication to their life-sustaining work. Life can’t be easy where they have chosen to live, but by bringing an arid place back to life they are showing us all what can be done. Climate change is a threat to everyone and their children and grandchildren. But it stares right in the face of the villagers the Rozins are helping today in three countries. Wow, just Wow!