When Nature was Yuvan's Mother and Father

Yuvan's early life was anything but smooth. A child, whose heart danced to the rthymn of nature's song but spirits fractured by the cruelty of his stepfather. Yuvan's mother followed a Montessori style of parenting and was a keen observer. However, his biological father was a wretched man, rarely at home for weeks or months and providing little support to the family. He would be with other women and is a wife beater. Young Yuvan always found family a very difficult place and sought refuge in school where he found it safe. At the age of 11, his stepfather came into the picture after his mother’s divorce and all hell broke loose within the family.

Yuvan’s stepdad, who was a self proclaimed naturopath and astrologer, hated him so much, subjecting him to intense hardship. Each day brought a new wave of terror at home. His stepdad's fists rained down upon him, inflicting physical abuse and resulting in multiple grievous injuries. He was used for sweeping and mopping the house every day, washing vessels, washing clothes, buying cigarettes for him and also doing cooking. Yuvan had torn lips and wounds on body. Literally it was bloodshed every week at home. The blood from his mouth would stain the walls of his house and on weekends, Yuvan would be asked to clean the blood stains with a knife. Yuvan slept for only 3 or 4 hours in night most of the days due to fear as his stepdad would awake him from sleep and beat him. His stepfather's anger knew no bounds. Once he jammed a gate over Yuvan's face and his eye was filled with liquid...in another instance he was kicked on the side of his head, tearing the eardrum and fluid oozing out. Every piece of furniture in the house was used to thrash Yuvan. This torture continued for 5 years.

At a certain juncture, Yuvan feared that his education might be abruptly stopped, and he could be compelled into domestic labour. Yuvan's mother, feeling powerless in the given circumstances, found herself entirely under the sway of a man who held a dominant position in the household. Although she now stands as a lioness, assisting numerous women in legal battles to liberate them from their hardships.

The boy witnessed the shortcomings of his biological father, the trauma caused by his mother's divorce, the demon within his stepdad. His stepdad would make him tear his notebooks and put it on fire. Many more atrocities followed and with each blow, a flicker of defiance ignited within him. Until one day, he took a bold decision to flee.

Gaining complete courage to run out of home, on September 11, 2011, Yuvan with a handful of coins tucked inside his pocket, decided to leave under the cover of darkness. He had finished Xth standard and was into XIth. He thought of heading to Auroville or Ramana Maharishi or where ever. Yuvan refrained from informing his mom, understanding her socially weak position and broken financial state.

Having no idea where to go, Yuvan could see uncertainty in front of him. Feeling lost and knowing nothing of the real world, something pushed Yuvan to leave...it could be Nature. He boarded 2 buses and found himself sitting on the Besant Nagar platform. The time was 9.30 in the night. He walked to his school, with a knock on the door, the principal, G Gautama - an educational thinker and school director at that time - welcomed him. Yuvan told his story. Gautama assured him, ‘From now on, violence stops for you’. The following day, his mom was informed, and to Yuvan’s surprise, she did’nt deny the situation. Instead, she requested Gautama to take Yuvan under his care.

The next five years Yuvan spent his life on the lush green campus of Pathashala, a residential school under the Krishnamurti Foundation. Yuvan did home schooling for XI and XII taking guidance from teachers whenever he needed. He was part of the Nature-based learning for the children of the school. The school asked Yuvan to do nature projects for children, as extra curricular work.

Yuvan used to take long walks and discovered that his life lies in this. When Yuvan takes long walks, the village boys used to walk along. Mainly because Yuvan had a camera and binocular. He would explain to the children the identity of trees, birds and ask then to study about the local fauna and then explain it to him.

Three rural schools started running the biodiversity-based programme started by Yuvan which was linked to science learning. When Yuvan was 16 years, he created modules around local landscape for children. He would go out with children, observe, find English and Tamil names of different species, draw them, describe and question it. Yuvan’s intention was to connect children to the local living landscape.

Yuvan became popular among the boys of the locality. He would show them the picture of birds or trees, tell them to observe it and ask them to write down what they see. Yuvan wanted to make the local landscape a fascinating place to kindle the interest of children. The skills of children transformed through this and the school was happy and even the headmistress told me that the general curiosity of children was improving. Yuvan felt that nature-based learning works better than the classroom based traditional learning. Everything was done in Tamil.

Today, Yuvan is conducting a study to show that children's cognitive intelligence improves with nature-based learning.

Yuvan sometimes shows profound philosophical insights. Observation helps him to get out of the dark and wounded place. Yuvan had encountered sleepless nights with nightmares and was under tremendous pressure too. Also, there is a conscious awareness to see the intricate architecture of trauma, and upon recognition, a transformative process unfolds. Yuvan poses a thought-provoking question, "Can you look at your sadness like you look at a flower, with both curiosity and intensity?" This keen observation ability, is a gift from nature itself.

For two years, Yuvan dedicated himself to this wonderful work. After completing school, he was to attend college, marking the beginning of an interesting journey, as Yuvan aptly puts it. He commenced college education through distance learning, with Zoology as the main subject. In the second year, he shifted to Physics, and decided to relocate to Chennai to finish college studies.

Yuvan dreams of a policy intervention to incorporate nature-based learning into school curriculum in Chennai. He believes that children not only require nature but should consider it an essential learning space. Likewise, nature benefits from the presence of children. As they grow, it builds connection and sparks curiosity.

Palluyir Trust
After completing college, Yuvan collaborated with activist Nityanand Jayaraman, his mentor and friend in Chennai, to embark on the Pulicat campaign. Campaigning against building of Port which will destroy the coastal community, Yuvan started the Velachery-headquartered Palluyir Trust for Nature Education and Research. The Trust is actively involved in promoting this vision of nature-based education. They conducted comprehensive studies and documented all coasts along Tamil Nadu with a dedicated team of 14 persons. Yuvan highlights an example where people commonly refer to a crab without identifying it by its specific species. His aim is to revive a deeper understanding for the diverse species found in these coastal areas.

Yuvan highlights how children from the fishing community used the coastal environment as a rich learning space. "Educators Handbook for the Coast" was published through Palluyir Trust, incorporating coastal biodiversity and the local language.

Yuvan has also developed a guide aimed at connecting people with various wildflowers seen along roadsides. His goal is to rekindle appreciation for their diversity, inorder to protect them. The wayside flowers needs to grow wildly, Yuvan underscores the need for their uncontrolled growth.

In addition to this, Yuvan has meticulously documented a comprehensive collection of common marine fishes in Chennai. He has also compiled a field guide encompassing 160 species of common coastal fauna in Chennai and the surrounding districts.

Kerala visit
Yuvan has visited many States as part of learning the coast. During his time in Kerala, he visited Kumbalangi and conducted a study of the wetlands. My documentation works for Tamil Nadu are complete, while I venture to other coasts to gain insights into wetland ecosystems, he says. He, however, expresses concern, stating that our coast is under threat.

According to Yuvan, Kerala's Vizhinjam coast is eroding and that is due to the expansion of the Vizhinjam port. There is no beach in Kovalam, which is not shrinking due to these developments. Dozens of fishing villages in Kerala have been erased out of the maps. He contends that beaches act as bioshields under the ground. They trap rainwater and push out the sea water.

Yuvan is unhappy by the destruction of biodiversity in Chennai and has initiated action. He filed three cases with the National Green Tribunal, winning one in 2022 against the Kaliveli harbour.

Intertidal
Yuvan’s deep love for nature is evident in his latest book Intertidal: A coast and Marsh Diary. In Intertidal, Yuvan delves about the adverse effects of indiscriminate construction, extremely high cost of development, showcasing the writer's own inner and outer world. The book emphasizes the importance for each and every one of us to look into our own sufferings and recast. He has recounted the darkest period in his life in the book. Sufferings needs to be brought to light through various forms. The book is a blend of memoir, information, observation and vivid personal experience.

Yuvan also shares insights into his traumatic childhood in the book, offering readers a glimpse into his personal life and the wounds he sustained. There is a beautiful metaphor he uses to describe himself to be a detrivore. “I have found essential meaning in the work of these creatures, which takes dead matter and turn it into something fertile so that it can grow. In my own path towards healing and turning life's difficulties into opportunities for growth. Can we turn our shit of life and make it fertile.”

Having authored three children's books, Yuvan reveals that he chose a diary format for his latest book to encourage repeated engagement, inviting readers to revisit and reflect on its contents.

In the book, Yuvan describes how fate took an unexpected turn, and he found himself responsible for performing his stepdad's last rites since there was no one else to fulfill this duty. Reflecting on the last rites he performed in 2019, memories resurfaced of his stepfather's elder brother approaching him to share painful memories. In their troubled past, his stepdad’s father, working in the forest department, would bring a rifle home and point it at his own children, subjecting them to physical abuse. Yuvan describes all this in Intertidal.

Challenges facing ecological conservation
Yuvan argues that the climate is the least threatened, yet everyone blame it. Few discussions center around the biodiversity crisis or any other, with climate change taking the brunt of accusations. He asserts that the floods in Chennai are not solely due to climate change, but are a result of its geographical location on the Southeastern coast. Chennai experiences most of its rainfall from the unpredictable Northeast monsoon, intensifying every 4 to 5 years and causing floods.

For the first time in India, a study is being conducted to explore how local-based learning enhances cognitive skills and interpersonal abilities.

Yuvan says he is grateful for the sufferings he endured as it compelled him to go deeper into mind and work harder. He attributes his success to the suffering which was his driving force.

In a few years, Yuvan predicts a scarcity of sand. Sand Watch, a portal, actively monitors illegal sand mining. Cities have reached their upper limit in terms of holding capacity. We have to decide what is a good life.