Urban Leaves India: 2016

Wednesday 2 November 2016

COMPOST-YOUR-KITCHEN-WASTE : 13TH NOVEMBER 2016 [Registrations Open]

Change the way you look at veggie scraps generated in your kitchen ... a great resource and not a discard ... and start composting your kitchen waste.  

Approximately, 60% of the waste that we send to the landfill is biodegradable; can be dealt with at source and recycled back to earth. Each kitchen generates some kitchen waste. An opportunity exists in every home to contribute to a green environment and protect it for our future generations.

Many of us have begun composting with all green intentions at heart and then given up halfway, due to not being able to deal with few problems associated with the process - offensive smell, fruit flies, worms, compost becoming yucky with leaked leachate staining floors, to name a few. 

We at Urban Leaves, have worked on simplifying the process for homes.The method endeavours at imitating nature; uses naturally available material and does not use bio-enzymes or worms. If followed to the detail, it promises to fill your senses and your soul with the divine fragrance of rich, earthy compost that will pamper your plants. 


Urban Leaves presents a Compost-Your-Kitchen-Waste Workshop where you will learn the theory and practicals of composting with a low-cost kit that can be put together at home. 

DATE & TIME:
Sunday, 13th November, 2016 - 9:00 AM TO 12:30 PM.

VENUE:
AV Hall, Ground Floor,
Don Bosco Provincial House,
Don Bosco School Campus,
Matunga (East),
Mumbai – 400017.


CLICK ME TO VIEW THE PAYMENT AND REGISTRATION DETAILS

CONTRIBUTION: 

DONORS:
Payment made on or before 11th November 2016:  Rs. 700/-
Payment made on or after 12th November 2016: 1100/-



NORMAL PARTICIPANTS:

Payment made on or before 7th November, 2016: Rs. 700/-
Payment made between 8th and 11th November 2016 (both dates inclusive) : Rs. 900/-
Payment made on or after 12th November 2016: Rs 1100/-

Please note that seats are limited and confirmation of registration is subject to realisation of payment. Please note that payments are non-refundable. 
EXPECTED AGE GROUP: 
Above 12 years.

REGISTRATION AND PAYMENT DETAILS
Please fill the form at the link given above to register for the workshop. Please ensure that you fill in your proper email address as further communication from us will be sent to this address.
Payment can be made via Bank Transfer/NEFT or Cash payment to a volunteer.

BANK TRANSFER/NEFT DETAILS
(We recommend this mode as it is the quickest and requires the least effort. It can be executed through net-banking or through your bank branch.)

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS OUR NEW STATE BANK OF INDIA ACCOUNT and not the old STATE BANK OF HYDERABAD account. If you have the old account of SBH added as a payee, please use the details below for adding the SBI account as new PAYEE.
Bank:
STATE BANK OF INDIA
IFSC Code of Bank:
SBIN0000533
Address of the Branch:
Sunbeam, 18th Road, 
Chembur Mumbai 400071
Account Name:  
VIDYA VAARIDHI TRUST
Type of Bank A/c:
Current
Account No:
34994910641
PAN Number of Trust:
AAATV2294B

Please DO NOT deposit physical cash in our account through a CDM(Cash Deposit Machine) or at the counter by visiting a SBI branch as this method attracts a transaction charge levied by SBI for physical cash transactions. If you do end up using this method please note that the debited transaction charge will be recovered from the participant.


CASH PAYMENT TO VOLUNTEER
Cash can be deposited with Urban Leaves volunteers located in specific parts of Mumbai. Please select a location convenient for you from the available locations in the registration form. You will be emailed the details of the Urban Leaves volunteer to contact for depositing the contribution.

For any questions please email: events [DOT] urbanleaves [ AT ] gmail [ DOT ] com.

Tuesday 16 August 2016

Agro-biodiversity talk on World Kitchen Garden Day, 28th August 2016

Preeti shares ... 'Although I come from a catering background, I was unaware of the many local, seasonal and traditionally grown crops that I was introduced to, through our rooftop organic farms'.

While on one hand we are proud of the “Unity in diversity” in India and bask  in its various forms, whether in the physical features in its geography or the cultures, festivals, religion, costumes, flora fauna or food, our diets are becoming more similar – what we call a globalised diet. Diets today are composed of big major crops such as wheat, rice, potatoes and sugar. Crops like soybean have also suddenly become very important . We see a variety of imported fruits flooding our markets but fruits like Guava, Jamun (Black Plum), Jackfruit, Starfruit, Rose Apple, are rarely found. The young generation are quick to recognise a Broccoli or Zucchini but hardly recognize a Purslane, or a Kantol.
With technological advances promising to improve food security for an ever increasing population, we find that poor still don’t have access to nutritional food and urban population struggles with rising obesity in children.

Those of us who grow our own food organically are aware of the dangers of modern agronomy, plant breeding, pesticides and chemical fertilisers and other technological developments that have caused widespread ecological damage and negative human health effects. 

Whatever be the cause of problems which has brought us to this situation, there is no question that the worst hit has been the loss of biological diversity. Paradoxically it is this diversity which ensures the sustainability of our healthy food productive systems.We can no longer afford to ignore this loss.

  • What role does agricultural biodiversity really play?  Why do we need to know about this?
  • What are the short and long term impacts of this loss and how does this loss affect the farming systems and farmers?
  • Does it affect our day-to-day lives in the city ? What can we do to conserve this natural asset?
Come and join us on 28th August for a talk and interactive discussion on Agro Bio-diversity. We are fortunate to have Neeraja Havalagi, from Portland, USA share with us, her knowledge and experiences on World Kitchen Garden Day. 

Neeraja has formal educational degrees from University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore; Clemson University, USA; Akamai University, USA, and was raised in a predominantly agriculture and education-based family in India, with a social and environmental conscience. Her current work is on Agro Bio-diversity. Details of her education, work experience, conference papers/publications are at www.neeraja.net

The talk will be followed by screening of the Film : DIRT!.
Watch the trailer at http://www.dirtthemovie.org

The day also gets us urban gardeners to take a break from our daily/weekly work schedules in our urban farms/gardens, to meet each other, exchange and share green gyan...and enjoy each other’s company in the midst of fun, games and food.

This talk will benefit all our friends who grow their own food, on rooftops or land, in urban or rural areas; and all those who support sustainable agriculture.

DATE & TIME:

Sunday, 28th August, 2016 - 9:30 AM TO 2:00 PM.

VENUE:
AV Hall, Ground Floor,
Don Bosco Provincial House,
Don Bosco School Campus,
Matunga (East),
Mumbai – 400017.

CLICK ME TO VIEW THE PAYMENT AND REGISTRATION DETAILS

CONTRIBUTION: 
DONORS:
Payment made on or before 26th August 2016:  Rs. 900/-
Payment made on or after 27th August 2016: 1300/-

NORMAL PARTICIPANTS:

Payment made on or before 21st August 2016: Rs. 900/-
Payment made between 22nd-26th August 2016(both dates inclusive): Rs. 1100/-
Payment made on or after 27th August 2016: 1300/-

Please note that seats are limited and confirmation of registration is subject to realisation of payment. Please note that payments are non-refundable. 
EXPECTED AGE GROUP: 
Above 14 years.

REGISTRATION AND PAYMENT DETAILS
Please fill the form at the link given above to register for the workshop. Please ensure that you fill in your proper email address as further communication from us will be sent to this address.
Payment can be made via Bank Transfer/NEFT or Cash payment to a volunteer.

BANK TRANSFER/NEFT DETAILS
(We recommend this mode as it is the quickest and requires the least effort. It can be executed through net-banking or through your bank branch.)

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS OUR NEW STATE BANK OF INDIA ACCOUNT and not the old STATE BANK OF HYDERABAD account. If you have the old account of SBH added as a payee, please use the details below for adding the SBI account as new PAYEE.
Bank:
STATE BANK OF INDIA
IFSC Code of Bank:
SBIN0000533
Address of the Branch:
Sunbeam, 18th Road, 
Chembur Mumbai 400071
Account Name:  
VIDYA VAARIDHI TRUST
Type of Bank A/c:
Current
Account No:
34994910641
PAN Number of Trust:
AAATV2294B

Please DO NOT deposit physical cash in our account through a CDM(Cash Deposit Machine) or at the counter by visiting a SBI branch as this method attracts a transaction charge levied by SBI for physical cash transactions. If you do end up using this method please note that the debited transaction charge will be recovered from the participant.


CASH PAYMENT TO VOLUNTEER
Cash can be deposited with Urban Leaves volunteers located in specific parts of Mumbai. Please select a location convenient for you from the available locations in the registration form. You will be emailed the details of the Urban Leaves volunteer to contact for depositing the contribution.

For any questions please email: events [DOT] urbanleaves [ AT ] gmail [ DOT ] com.

Saturday 9 July 2016

NUTRITION PACKED IN SMALL SPACES: SUNDAY 24TH JULY 2016 [Registrations open]

Do you love salads?
Would you like to add to your basket of fresh ingredients?
Have you wished for a regular supply of natural-nutrients?
Or wanted to grow your food but have limited space? 

If the answer to any two of the questions is a YES, then Urban Leaves has the answer for you.....

We are back with "Nutrition Packed In Small Spaces - A Micro-Greens Workshop" where you will learn the why, do the how-to-grow  and savour the taste of micro-greens. You will get a starter kit so that you can put into practice all that you learn. You could also visit our urban rooftop community-farm after the workshop.

DATE & TIME:
Sunday, 24th July, 2016
9:30 AM TO 12:30 PM.

VENUE:
AV Hall, Ground Floor,
Don Bosco Provincial House,
Don Bosco School Campus,
Matunga (East),
Mumbai – 400017.

CONTRIBUTION: 
DONORS: Rs 700/-

EARLY BIRD: Registration and Payment done on or before 17/07/2016 : Rs. 700/- 

NORMAL: Registration and Payment done after 17/07/2016 and on/before 22/07/2016: Rs. 900/- 

WALK-IN: Registration and Payment on the day of Workshop: Rs 1100/- (Registration cannot be guaranteed and will be confirmed only if logistics permit it.)

PLEASE NOTE THAT SEATS ARE LIMITED AND CONFIRMATION OF REGISTRATION IS SUBJECT TO REALISATION OF PAYMENT. ALSO WE WILL BE UNABLE TO GIVE A REFUND IN CASE A PARTICIPANT DOES NOT ATTEND THE WORKSHOP HENCE PLEASE REMIT THE PAYMENT ONLY IF YOU PLAN TO ATTEND THE WORKSHOP.

EXPECTED AGE GROUP: 
Above 12 years.

REGISTRATION AND PAYMENT DETAILS
Please fill the form at the link given below to register for the workshop. Please ensure that you fill in your proper email address as further communication from us will be sent to this address.
MICRO-GREENS WORKSHOP REGISTRATION FORM.

Payment can be made via Bank Transfer/NEFT or Cash payment to a volunteer.

BANK TRANSFER/NEFT DETAILS
(We recommend this mode as it is the quickest and requires the least effort. It can be executed through net-banking or through your bank branch.)

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS OUR NEW STATE BANK OF INDIA ACCOUNT and not the old STATE BANK OF HYDERABAD account. If you have the old account of SBH added as a payee, please use the details below for adding the SBI account as new PAYEE.
Bank:
STATE BANK OF INDIA
IFSC Code of Bank:
SBIN0000533
Address of the Branch:
Sunbeam, 18th Road, 
Chembur Mumbai 400071
Account Name:  
VIDYA VAARIDHI TRUST
Type of Bank A/c:
Current
Account No:
34994910641
PAN Number of Trust:
AAATV2294B

Please DO NOT deposit physical cash in our account through a CDM(Cash Deposit Machine) or at the counter by visiting a SBI branch as this method attracts a transaction charge levied by SBI for physical cash transactions. If you do end up using this method please note that the debited transaction charge will be recovered from the participant.


CASH PAYMENT TO VOLUNTEER
Cash can be deposited with Urban Leaves volunteers located in specific parts of Mumbai. Please select a location convenient for you from the available locations in the registration form. You will be emailed the details of the Urban Leaves volunteer to contact for depositing the contribution.

For any questions please email: events [DOT] urbanleaves [ AT ] gmail [ DOT ] com.

Wednesday 20 April 2016

#SaveALeaf : Solution 2 - Composting

Urban Leaves launched the ‪#‎SaveALeaf‬ campaign in December 2015.

The fires at the Deonar landfill since then, have affected all of us in the city and have created an awareness of its hazards. A valuable resource like leaves is being burnt in our localities or trashed and burnt at the landfill along with other biodegradable and toxic waste. Our campaign hopes to build awareness about the value of these leaves and offers solutions on how to use them. 

Solution 1 launched in January 2016 was about Mulching - a top priority for healthy plants. 

It's now time for Solution 2!

Approximately, 60% of the waste that we send to the landfill is biodegradable and can be dealt with at source. We are glad to present #SaveALeaf Campaign - Solution 2 which is about Composting Kitchen Waste and deals with a significant part of this 60%. 



Join the #SaveALeaf Campaign by sharing and implementing our solutions. Together, let's
  • Clean Our Air.
  • Build Our Soil.
  • Green Our City.
  • Grow Your Food
The video of the presentation can also be directly viewed through the following link: http://bit.ly/SaveALeaf-2-Composting-ppt

CLICK HERE to view the Solution 1 in the #SaveALeaf Campaign.

Thursday 11 February 2016

AMRUT MITTI WORKSHOP: 21-FEB-2016

In solidarity with the #SaveALeaf campaign, our Amrut Mitti workshop this year, requires you to bring 1 bucketful or 1 sackful of DRIED leaves that you would have saved from being dumped or burnt - a symbolic gesture to show you care.



Come join us to learn the art of making this miracle soil, Amrut Mitti in a workshop at UL-DBPH Community Farm, Provincial House Roof-Top, Don Bosco Campus, Matunga East, Mumbai. You will get hands-on experience in addition to an interactive session.

DATE & TIME:
Sunday, 21st February, 2016.
8:30 AM TO 11:30 AM
(For maximum benefit, participants are advised to attend the soaking of leaves session on Saturday, February 20th, 2016 from 8.15 AM - 9.15 AM)

VENUE:
Don Bosco Provincial House Roof-Top,
Don Bosco School Campus,
Matunga (East),
Mumbai – 400017.

CONTRIBUTION: 
EARLY BIRD: Registration and Payment done on/before 16-Feb-2016:
Regular participants: Rs. 600/-
Donor participants: Rs. 500/-

Registration and/or Payment done on/after 17-Feb-2016 and on/before 20-Feb-2016:
For all participants: Rs. 800/- 

PLEASE NOTE THAT SEATS ARE LIMITED AND CONFIRMATION OF REGISTRATION IS SUBJECT TO REALISATION OF PAYMENT.

EXPECTED AGE GROUP: 
Above 14 years.

REGISTRATION AND PAYMENT DETAILS
Please fill the form at the link given below to register for the workshop. Individual registration is needed for each participant. Please ensure that you fill in your proper email address as further communication from us will be sent to this address.
AMRUT MITTI WORKSHOP REGISTRATION.

Payment can be made via Bank Transfer/NEFT and Cash payment to a volunteer.

BANK TRANSFER/NEFT DETAILS
(We recommend this mode as it is the quickest and requires the least effort. It can be executed through net-banking or through your bank branch.)

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS OUR NEW STATE BANK OF INDIA ACCOUNT and not the old STATE BANK OF HYDERABAD account. If you have the old account of SBH added as a payee, please use the details below for adding the SBI account as new PAYEE.

Bank:
STATE BANK OF INDIA
IFSC Code of Bank:
SBIN0000533
Address of the Branch:
Sunbeam, 18th Road, 
Chembur Mumbai 400071
Account Name:  
VIDYA VAARIDHI TRUST
Type of Bank A/c:
Current
Account No:
34994910641
PAN Number of Trust:
AAATV2294B

CASH PAYMENT TO VOLUNTEER
Cash can be deposited with Urban Leaves volunteers located in various parts of Mumbai. Please select the desired location in the registration form. You will be emailed the details of the Urban Leaves volunteer to contact for depositing the contribution.

Tuesday 9 February 2016

Soil Solution to Climate Problems

IT'S ALL ABOUT THE SOIL ... Soil is a living miracle.
We are only beginning to understand this complex system. However, we are accelerating the loss of this essential system through not only ploughing, deforestation and erosion, but also through callous handling of natural resources in our environment, which have left our air, soils, and food in dire shape.

Our air, our soil and our food are so deeply interconnected. Our learning through our productive organic rooftop food farms, our experience with the nutrient and microbial-rich Amrut Mitti, made by using dry leaves and biomass in our surroundings, has opened our eyes to this wonderful resource of dry leaves, which today, we see being trashed in the city. The recent burning of garbage at the Deonar dump, resulting in toxic polluted air, has brought into focus the pressing need to take sustainable measures to Clean our Air; Build our Soil; and Green our City.

The short-film : Soil Solution to Climate Problems (a must-watch film) narrated by Michael Pollan is one with which we deeply connect and identify with. We are grateful to Ajay Mahajan of Vividhara for sharing it with us.



Our UL community rooftop farms are lush green and great carbon sinks in this mega city today. Over the years, our volunteers have been collecting heaps and tons of dry leaves to make Amrut Mitti. The miracle of increased carbon in our soil, feeding the microbes and in turn our trees, blessing us with rich harvests is a dream realised on our farms.

Dry leaves which are dumped, burnt and perceived as a huge problem in the city are truly part of the solution to our ever increasing environmental problems. Join our ‪#‎SaveALeaf‬ Campaign to save 1 bucket/1 sack/ 1 drum/or more leaves. 

Save the Date- February 21st, 2016, to learn the art of making this miracle soil, Amrut Mitti in a workshop at UL-DBPH, Provincial House Roof-Top, Don Bosco Campus, Matunga East, Mumbai.

More details will be posted shortly.

Sunday 24 January 2016

Meet Urban Leaves at Prakruti 6 - Bhavan's Nature Festival 2016

​​Urban Leaves is happy to announce its participation in Prakruti 6 - Bhavan's Nature Festival 2016. We have 30-minute mini-workshops running through the day on 30th and 31st of January, 2016.


SCHEDULE​

​​11.00 am​​​: ​ Visit to an Urban Farm​​

​​12.30 pm​:​ #SaveALeaf-Build Our Soil : Your Plants Need Mulch

​​02.00 pm​:​ Microgreens Made Easy Workshop

​​03.30 pm​:​ #SaveALeaf-Clean Our Air : Plate to Farm - Kitchen Composting

​​05.30 pm​:​ Visit to an Urban Farm  

Registration is required as seats are limited. Please register at: 
​​BNAC TEL Nos: 022-65611987​ ​/ 022​-​65294633 
​or​
​​Email:​ ​prakruti.festival@gmail.com

For detailed workshop descriptions, do check out: 
www.prakrutinaturefest.com/workshops​

Hope to see you there. 

Wednesday 13 January 2016

#SaveALeaf : Solution 1 - Mulching

Urban Leaves is a group of passionate urban farmers. We have, down the years, experienced abundance on our community farms. Abundant produce, abundant joy and abundant friendships. We owe this to Amrut Mitti, a nutrient-rich soil, which is made with different varieties of leaves.

As we collect leaves from around the city for our farm, we are saddened to see how they are being treated in our city. We see sweepers cleaning the streets, completely disregarding this important natural resource. Instead of being utilised, the leaves are being burned; a sight that we are pained to see. Not only are the leaves not rejuvenating our soil and crops, but the burning further pollutes our choked city.

But this is a pattern we can stop. The world’s leaders just acknowledged in Paris that climate change is a grave threat and that they are serious about tackling it. But solving climate change will take the participation of each and every world citizen.

Come join The Urban Leaves ‪#‎SaveALeaf‬ Campaign to:
  • Clean Our Air.
  • Build Our Soil.
  • Green Our City.
  • Grow Your Food
Throughout our campaign, we will bring you simple, doable solutions, one by one, that will help transform leaves from a cause of pollution to a valuable resource.
And today, we are excited to present our first solution : MULCHING! 

Have a look at the video of the presentation below to learn all about it, share with your friends and stay tuned for more!



The video of the presentation can also be directly viewed through the following link:
http://bit.ly/SaveALeaf-1-Mulching-ppt

CLICK HERE to view the Solution 2 in the #SaveALeaf Campaign.