Greener Pastures, a sustainable travel company based in Northeast India, has successfully concluded it's first responsible tourism project, a fundraiser to assist the forest man of India in planting trees.
(TRAVPR.COM) INDIA - July 10th, 2013 - Jadav Payeng, a milkman in the state of Assam in Northeastern India, has for most parts of his life lived solitarily, along with a wife and later, two children, to accompany him in a life in an island in the Brahmaputra River. His mission was and continues to be to grow trees. So, for the past 3 decades, Jadav has been growing trees, and his efforts have resulted today in a marvelous forest, which impossibly happens to be the creation of one sole individual. Unbelievable as it is, it was only a few years back when Jadav came into the limelight as people across the world learned about and appreciated his efforts. Since then, loads of accolades have come to him.
More than a year back, members of Greener Pastures, a startup ecotourism company based in Assam, learned about Jadav’s endeavor and like anybody else, were left inspired. So much so, as their first responsible tourism project, they started a fundraiser for Jadav to help him grow more trees. This endeavor of the small startup concluded successfully recently when two of the team members took the road less traveled and arrived at Kokilabari Village deep in the heart of Assam to meet Jadav Payeng.
The small team at Greener Pastures is proud and enthusiastic about the achievement. As Vaivhav Todi; the director of the startup, explains “It has been a remarkable learning and inspiring experience to have got to meet Jadav. I was very much looking forward to it, but waited for the fundraiser to finish. It took some time though and much of the funds are from our profits. We wanted to give back something of value to Jadav in return for his long philanthropic endeavor for the environment. Even with all the publicity he has received recently, it was little upsetting to see that Jadav is not so well financially. I am sure the funds given to him will help him and more trees will be grown. The gravity of what Jadav has created comes to light when you actually see the forest. I was left speechless, as the jungle, known locally as Mulai Forest, is more than 1000 acres big and as Jadav explained, it has an astounding biodiversity, which includes tigers, elephants, rhinos and deer. I was lucky to spot deer. Eventually, meeting him has been a boost to the team’s morale. We are now all the more inspired to grow trees and plan to engage in such activity in the future. It has been satisfying to complete our first responsible tourism project, a first step towards the aims our business has set out for.”
There is a report on the ecotourism project in the company’s blog, with pictures and a profile on Jadav Payeng. Though the fundraiser has now ended, Greener Pastures will still be glad to help individuals who want to reach out to Jadav Payeng. For more information, contact them through email at info(at)thegreenerpastures.com. Visit their website at www.thegreenerpastures.com.
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