I still remember my first exposure to CFL. My father and I had driven to Shibumi and as we walked through the gates I wondered whether he had gotten the wrong address. The campus reminded me more of our farm than the schools that I was used to seeing in the city. We wandered around, peering into the classrooms and looking at the various trees that were growing. While the older students were in class, many of the younger ones were outdoors, playing on the jungle gym, climbing trees and generally having a blast. Everybody looked so happy. I wanted to be a part of it. Luckily, a couple of months later I was accepted as a student and went on to spend an incredible ten years at the school, a period in my life which has really defined me as a person.
After graduating from CFL, I went on to complete an undergraduate degree, a post-graduate diploma in Journalism and a Masters from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences. I have now applied to a PhD program.
Although I valued my time while I was still studying in CFL, my appreciation for the school grew after I graduated. Joining the rat race made me realise that I had not left a school, but a vibrant community where each person was given the time, space and where necessary, support they needed to discover themselves. The myriad extra-curricular activities on offer and a large campus to explore really gave one the freedom to find and follow their passion.
At times, I was a slow learner but that didn’t stop the teachers from putting in the extra time and effort needed to bring me up to speed. This was in sharp contrast to my time in college where it was very easy to be left behind. The fact that the number of students in my class was almost twice the number of students in the whole of CFL didn’t help!
Although days at CFL were structured, there was never a sense of rigidity. It never felt like we were forced into doing things. A part of the daily routine at CFL, quiet time, was something I enjoyed and still find the time for a couple of
times a week. Being at CFL, one was naturally connected to the land. This still remains. We have a number of plants both within and on the balcony of our home.
The time we were afforded to explore the flora and fauna on the campus has left a permanent mark on the way I think about the relationship between humans and their natural surroundings. After completing my master’s I have worked with organisations which have been involved with issues of forest governance, forest policy, tribal rights, food security and agriculture. I am currently working with an environmental research organisation in Bangalore where I am exploring how current approaches of wildlife conservation are affecting the livelihoods of people.
Looking back, what I appreciate the most are the values that were instilled: the respect for fellow human beings and the natural world. Finding like-minded people is something that I have found hard to come by which is why my closest friends are still from CFL