A Green Brigadier - Spreading Shades of Green

Namaste everyone - this is the 100th post on Ishas, and as fate would have it, we have an awesome post to feather this cap. I am typing this with a sense of pride, for it reflects what a single person can achieve with consistent commitment. This is the story of Prakash, who started a small nursery of a few hundred plants at his home for Project Green Hands, then proceeded to plant trees all through his street, then became instrumental in setting up a nursery at his organization, which eventually was inaugurated by the CEO of his company when he visited Chennai, and finally, very recently got acknowledged for his efforts all through his organization (60,000 strong as of writing). What follows is a personal account of his story in his own words.

Hats off Prakash, to you and your committed team behind you.

Note: I have had to edit out some organization specific details. Otherwise, it is quite true to what Prakash had written originally. Some additional notes:

1. "Go Green", "Green Brigade" are organization specific terms
2. TCO is the name of one of the branches of his office

Finally, as coincidence would have it, we have active PGH work going on at Tiruppur with the culmination function on 23rd Aug. I am including it here on account of the perfect context. It is still not too late to participate. Details here:

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This is my first blog. My mail boxes is full almost by now with 100’s of mails. All congratulating mail due to the Go Green mail hit the Global mail box. This is a very odd experience for me indeed, when I saw the mail I felt honored. I could not able to reply immediately to all those souls who took time to read and congratulate me. I had lot of questions in the mails I thought Blog will be a good thing to do so I could answer here so that every one will be benefitted.

First of all the credits and wishes go to Sadhguru - Founder of isha foundation (one of the most 50 influential people in India). He is the man behind all my activities, my inspiration. I am just like a tool to create this Green world. Who have given me the wisdom of looking more than routine basic day to day activities. And many unknown faces who helped me and lot more people who created this wonderful society I live in. And It is not of human quality to leave those wonderful people who are behind the scenes and made to reach so many people. The most impressive thing is that Cognizant is recognizing such things and sending a global mail that too for a programmer analyst level. I feel happy that it is more focused on the people rather being too business. Of course business is important but we spend the most active part of the day 9 – 6 in office. I feel that’s is why cognizant is shining through the fog. It is people who drives it not the money.

Here you go my full green story. Want to let you all know who are all behind the scenes. And addressed the questions I got.

In October 2006 I witnessed a record in Guinness World Book of Records for planting 856,000 trees by Project Green Hands – A project by isha foundation. I happen to attend this meet at the Music academy, Chennai. Sadhguru was talking about the Global warming and the implications and how it affect us. He said that we live because of this breath. What we inhale the trees inhale and what they exhale we inhale we are not aware of it most of the time. In fact they are our relations in a way air relatives. This gotten deep in me. I have been to velliyangiri hills (In Coimbatore) the streams, the healthy biological thick forest. The breadth I took in the forest gave me a feel of freshness. Which I never got in the city. I always go these treks like Tada AP. Nilgris, Yercadu and I have been to many hills like this in western ghats (Good to see that such activities are carried out by the adventures team in cognizant in Chennai). Want to let the Software engineers know that just coding is not the whole life (It is just a part) the life is lot more bigger. After all we have small life we need to live it fully. So I made a strong decision I must do something that makes the society a better place to live. What if we have such trees in Chennai???? . One of my friend Mohith he had his son and mother affected by the cancer. I happen to donate the blood i know how it was painful for the father to be. One main reason is the unhealthy environment that we have created (due to pollution). If we have lived sensibly we would not have got this painful things at all. This must change. I thought i must do something. This is the reason why I started growing the saplings.

Then I got the technology of how to grow a sapling and taking care of a nursery form Project green hands. I stayed in a rented house so I asked my owner Moni and his son naveen a very nice people for allowing to grow saplings in the terrace. I am really really greatful to them. I thought he will say no to my surprise he said yes roommets VaradharajanP.K (take care of me like a brother in a way), Sribalaji (Like a baby in a way for me bcz of his naugty character), Vignesh (A best friend in a way), Hariharan (He will always there in my hard times next to me), Selva (inspires in the way he give himself to others), Rajesh (A nice personality) Mani (good heart), Siva (Busy bee). Then Every weekend we started organizing the activity. We prepared the mother bed in valarmathi akka house with the help of siva & Mouli (Project Green hands volunteer). There are many others who behind the scenes Govinda swami, Vinodh hari, Dilip, Ani, Annamalai, Murugesh, Anjana, Saradha, Ramka, Mekala, , Dinesh, Guna, Siva, Sankari, Deepak, Arumugam, Ramar Suresh, Harini, Pandian, Sudha, Arun, karthick, praba, shyamala, Sathya, prabhu, Nithya and many more this could not been possible without them. The very first day when we organize I called more that 30 people but only 2 came Lakshmipathy and pooja early in the morning started at 4 am and reached my house at 6.00AM in the morning in the cold mist. I was moved by the way to see their punctuality. But these two souls will always be there no mater what happens. Really these people really touched me a lot hats off to them. They helped me getting the funds from many for nursery. In fact I learnt so many things from them. The strength of people increases day by day. We started organizing the games in the early morning then we prepare the nursery needs in the mud. Then we will have our breakfast together. These people I call them gems because they worth it. Gems are something you hard to find these people too. We had lots of fun those days it was in the year 2007.

The plants started growing and we are happy to see those small green babies coming out. And it is really good to see a positive change in me since you are seeing and living in a place where something grows everyday. I feel the patience, and the consistency they have.Things that i got it from this are

Patience – you know main thing if you want to grow is that patience. You need to wait…. Wait… and wait…. to see some thing tremendous grows out of nothingness. Not just in the saplings in you also….

Commitment – you always need to be there in time when you plan for such an activity(plantation at school, distribution). You need to water it every day. It takes a lot from many.

Determination/Challenge – There are many moments during plantation we may be in a start we need to do lot of physical work in the sun. The volunteers who came are more determined. I learnt lot of things from them.It is very challenging to create a awareness that plantint a tree. The determination helped to over come these challenges.

Lot of friends – You need to keep in touch and always keep the people alive and happy. In the process I got truly fantastic valuable people.

A great source of relaxation – I hate people saying I am stressed. I feel this as a wonderful source of relaxation because you almost live with a living being. When you put so much efforts in weeks and months when you see something growing a blast of happiness will flow in you. Each and everyone of us must experience this and see.

Regularity – You cant miss even a single day attention. You must water it everyday and watch out for the weeds that are coming up. I almost see them as my childrens 5000 in number. Its is a fantastic thing to be in a feel of a parent. I realized how my mom and my day feel for me. This is not something to be in words but to be experienced. For watering it you need to cut some important commitments I had.

Value of my life - When we go to the super markets we always use big shopper bags(to avoid plastic), and when I going out near by we mostly use public transport. My friends used to ask me why do you go in MTC if you have a bike. We use 2 dust bins one for degradable and non degradable. Degradable will go to the garden don’t take print outs if not necessary. I will shut down the PC, lights in my home when not in use. dont exploit any resources unnessarily. Some times people dont takes it serious. But I know what it takes to grow a tree. Its my world i need to take care.

Entertainment - I hardly been to any movies in the last couple of years. The main reason is not because i dont like it. It is because my life is more intresting and and always sourrended by fantastic people it never occured to me that i need entertainment. I am not intrested in some one else story (mostly illusion and fiction). I chose to live in reality than in a illusion. I felt i was doing really some thing worthwile.

My Softskills – As in the process we need to talk to so many people for getting volunteers and getting the grown saplings planted in a safe place. We some time seed to give speeches to a large masses. I developed the skill set of addressing a large crowd. We had planted saplings in the villages near chengelpet. Schools in OMR, ECR… and many orphanages. Each are a different story. May write is different blogs later…

Management – There are many moments in the process you feel that this is the end of it. If you are inviting 50 people and plan for a event some times only 4-5 will turn out. Need to plan for your time in all the activity. I had many moments like that’s In those tough times I learnt how to handle it. Barely ay of the best things a B-School could ever teach. You must vivit the NGO Isha foundation, Poondi, Coimbatore the way things are managed amazes me. If you are a manager reading this you must visit this place once. All very young people taking up huge projects. It was the 2008 New year. We some mo my friends(lakshmipatty, Pooja (known them already), Sankara (Dreams alive group enthusiast one of my inspiration), payal (sankaras wife) darmaraj(isha volunteer), and few others ) planted the trees in my street and we went to every single home and planted the saplings by the hands of the residing people. This is one of the best things I have ever done useful in my entire life time. In this process it have given me lots of people as friends in my street. Can you imagin if you live in a street full of friends. All known faces. Now its is almost 18 months it all grown more than my height. I experience the feeling that how a father will feel when his son has grown more than his shoulders. It is a fantastic feeling. What else a human being wants. I feel very happy now. We have mini nurseries in many homes as a part of green hands. Mine is just one of it. Even now for my friends birthday my sisters wedding we planted trees. They felt very happy. There are many moments I had tears in my eyes out of happiness.

I always dreamed why don’t we have a Nursery in TCO. It was a strong thought from the year 2007 - it was the TCO where we have the nursery right now is the place I dreamed off. I approached many people but no hope. But the urge in me was so strong. I don’t know whom to contact and how to do it. But this came in to the reality in 2009 when our CEO Frank came and inaugurated the nursery. And planted trees that we have grown as a part of our Green hands planted by our CEO. Prem said we are planning for 10000 but frank said why only 10000 we have 22000 associates In Chennai we can plant one for all of them. That’s the moment he deserved a highest place in my heart. It was a fantastic day in my life. He was the one was who behind all these for Go green in cognizant - Pandurangam, Premkumar. I am really amazed the way he had plans for the future. According to me he is a fantastic guy with right kind of approach. He just talk to us like friends. I don’t have words to say at that moment. I happen to meet many senior level people in a same place. I happen to met Kartheeban (Everest one of my inspiration as well he don’t needs an intro we planted the saplings as a part of everest activity) we have contacted many number of times bur this is the first time i am meeting him. I realized that if you have a intense thought then no matter what happens things will fall in place when the right time comes.

I did all these is creating a beautiful atmosphere outside. You can always create this when you have a fantastic inner climate within you. Yes I happen to attend the inner engineering program (http://www.ishafoundation.org/). It gave me all the necessary platform to have a healthy life and a sound inner atmosphere. It have given lot about food habits (If you are in ID you must know this). From this I learnt that if you are managing some thing bigger than you first this you need is that you should have a good management over your inner nature. If you cant do this it is not worth managing any situations. Thanks to isha for bringing me lot of positive changes in my life.

Please visit the TCO Nursery (Near the main Gate). If you have not yet visited. Please see those green children waiting to grow. Am sure you will experience something different in that space. If you are stressed out this is the place you must be!!!!!!!

(my note: You cannot, this was intended for the folks inside the organization)

Please plant one tree before you die - then you know the worth of it it lives even after you are dead!!!

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I also took the liberty of making a movie of the pictures he had taken in the process into a movie. The pictures are anyway available for public viewing here.

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