T[h]inkering Thursday

Being sustainable means meeting our own needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. In addition to natural resources, we also need social and economic resources. Sustainability is not just an environmental term. In most definitions of sustainability we also find concern for social equality and economic development.

This is where the three pillars of sustainability come into play: environmental, social and economic sustainability.

This time, T[h]inkering Thursday is about social sustainability. Our host Gaurav Juyal from ‘Thoughts and Bolts’ will be in conversation with Banamallika Choudhury, the well-known feminist development consultant and activist from Assam, India.

For most people, sustainability is about the kind of future we leave for the next generation. Sustainability as a value is shared by many individuals and organisations who demonstrate this value in their policies, daily activities and behaviour. Indeed, individuals have played an important role in the development of our current environmental and social conditions. Therefore, it is up to each one of us to contribute and create solutions towards sustainable practices providing significant impact in the long run.

Join us on 7 July as our panel of experts discuss social sustainability and how it is an essential part of our lives as individuals and as a society.

About the speaker:

Banamallika Choudhury is a feminist development consultant and activist from Assam, India. She has been working on gender and human rights issues in the North-East and other parts of India and countries in the Asia Pacific since 2000. Banamallika has worked extensively with marginalised women and their communities like the sex workers, tea garden workers, women farmers, women with disability and women from the char areas of Assam. She has also worked on issues of gender, gender-based violence, sexuality, health, education, land rights and climate justice. Banamallika has expertise in feminist participatory action research, writing and programme development, management and evaluation.

Banamallika has worked with a number of national and international organisations like the National Network of Sex Workers (India), Rural Development Services Network (South Africa), ActionAid India and Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development. She is currently working as a Grant Consultant for Malala Fund and is editing a feminist anthology for Zubaan publishers. She is also the founder of and runs a collective for art, culture and social justice called NEthing in Guwahati, Assam.

This programme will be live-streamed on the Goethe-Institut Facebook page at 6:30 pm.

T(h)inkering Thursday is a monthly series of events on sustainable behavior organized by the Goethe-Institut / Max Mueller Bhavan Kolkata in collaboration with Thoughts and Bolts and cultural facilitator and manager Laura Cardio.

The online sessions take place on the first Thursday of every month and provide a forum for the exchange of thoughts and ideas as well as concrete actions on the topic of sustainability. Experts from South Asia and Germany are invited to share their insights and experiences on sustainable living. Moderator Gaurav Juyal meets people who are seriously committed to sustainable strategies and actions and engages them in conversation about sustainable practices. Tips and tricks will be collected on how each of us can make conscious choices in everyday life that positively impact our society and the future of our planet.