Eco-activists root for bamboo

As Kerala reels from the latest round of incessant rains and deadly landslides, as families see their homes wash away and others pack up their meagre belongings to leave the backwaters forever, 17-year-old Naina Febin sways her head and sings a song.

It is all she can do to stop the emotions she feels swelling up inside her, seeing parts of her home state wash away.

But the Malayalam words she sings are full of hope and ideas. One solution in particular keeps rolling off her tongue – the power of bamboo.

“Do you know that bamboo releases 35% more oxygen than other trees? Or that bamboo was the only plant that survived the Hiroshima bombing and was used for re-greening of the city? It has nutritional and medicinal benefits too. That’s why I want to go on planting bamboos,” Febin said, who has been planting bamboo since she was an eight-year-old.

The young musician and activist is one of a growing number of environmentalists calling for bamboo to be planted in areas where climate change and intense weather is accelerating  soil erosion – to deadly effect.

“Bamboo’s roots can prevent soil erosion and landslides. We need to plant them, as torrential rains and landslides are becoming common in Kerala,” said Abhayam Krishnan, director of Abhayam, an NGO.

Krishnan and other environmentalists have joined hands with Febin to get bamboo planted in their state.

When most people were listless during the lockdown last year, she and her friends were contacting nearly a thousand of Kerala’s panchayat leaders, seeking their support to plant bamboo saplings in their villages. Their plan is to develop bamboo-friendly villages with the help of panchayat leaders, eco-clubs, environmentalists and workers engaged through the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).

The girl with the bamboo nickname

“Come, Naina, listen to this bamboo story,” Febin’s mother used to say to her as a child whenever she was hurt or upset or in a mood to sulk. These words from her mother would always make her cheerful again.  

It is no surprise that she planted her first bamboo sapling in her backyard when she was in class IV.

“I watched it grow into a shrub and then a cluster, which attracted birds,” she said. “To me, wind blowing through them and the rustling leaves are music.”

Observing her fascination for bamboo, Jayakrishna Sathi, a family friend, told her that most natural disasters were a result of our actions and suggested warding off calamities with bamboo. So Febin started learning more about bamboo and its benefits. 

Soon her own garden was not enough. She was planting saplings in the houses of friends and neighbours. Then she grew the perennial evergreen plants in public places too.

Before long people began to call her “mulayudethozhi,” meaning friend of bamboo.

Beyond bamboo baskets  

The passion for bamboo extends beyond the forests. It is increasingly the go-to alternative to plastic.

This grass variety is being promoted by many agencies because of its resilience against climate change. From its traditional uses of timber and household articles, it is becoming a lifestyle product used to make a wide range of items.

No longer just a material for weaving baskets, cultivated and processed bamboo is turned into plates and cutlery increasingly found in trendy city cafes and picnic parties. Surprisingly, the fibrous plant is also processed into yarn for bedsheets and pillows. Some are even experimenting with using it as an alternative to willow cricket bats.

Dubbed by some as “green gold,” bamboo has many nutritional and medicinal uses too.

Plant just one sapling

But activists, like Febin, feel the environmental benefits of bamboo offer a more important benefit to the urgent problem of soil erosion. That is why she created the marupacha (bamboo greenery) initiative. The idea is to increase bamboo cover by encouraging families to plant at least one sapling.

When Febin told families about her marupacha idea, they asked how it would benefit them.

“In Kerala every house has a coconut tree. For people who get coconuts or money from selling them, bamboo trees didn’t hold much appeal,” said Febin.

But when activists explain how the root structure of bamboo prevents soil erosion – and thus landslides, never mind how the tree-like grass can release 35% more oxygen than other trees, people become convinced.

And, sometimes, it is just the visual, graceful appeal that wins them over.

“Impressed by the ambience around her house, people no longer think bamboo’s a useless plant,” said Jayakrishna Sathi.

Crooning for bamboo  

The marupacha team plant ten of Kerala’s 28 species, buying saplings from the Kerala Forest Research Institute, Kerala Forest Department and private nurseries. But the costs add up.

Febin’s mother, a teacher, and her father Haneefa, a lab technician, initially helped her buy saplings. But then Febin decided to use her angelic voice for the good of bamboo. She not only creates awareness through her songs, but any earnings from the music goes to fund her bamboo initiative.

Her band, Ochha, which means sound, was started in 2014 when she was in class V. So far, Ochha has performed 200-odd shows. 

“We sing about bamboos’ importance and the need to grow them, using bamboo musical instruments,” said Febin. “People contribute generously, helping us plant more saplings.”

Many of her friends buy saplings and plant wherever possible too.

“We’ve planted in many places, including the banks of the River Thootha,” said Krishnan.

Roots and recognition

When Febin was 15 years old she became the youngest person to receive Vanamithra Award for afforestation from the Kerala Forest Department, since she had planted more than 2,000 saplings in 10 years.

Her tenacity is infectious.

“Being inspired by Naina, many plant bamboo – a feasible plant for social forestry. Her only motive is to protect our earth,” said K. Abdul Razak, range officer, Mannarkkad.

It is no wonder Febin also had a documentary made about her, Bamboo Ballad, produced by Calicut University.

“Her eco-initiative is very unique. Besides planting bamboos, she promotes them through music, a powerful communication tool,” said Sajeed Naduthody, the director.

Working towards a bamboo-covered state

Febin believes in collective effort for a greater impact. Of the 941 panchayats the environmentalists have contacted for their bamboo-friendly villages project, 250 have responded positively.

She loves using her own village as a showcase. Houses where she planted saplings years ago attract many visitors, most who notice the cooler temperatures in the bamboo wood, not to mention more birds.

For saplings planted near homes and schools the survival rate is 100%, but that decreases along river banks and vacant lands that do not have ownership. But when there is collective responsibility, Febin believes the survival rate in those areas will improve. 

K. Rajendran is a freelance journalist based at Thiruvananthapuram.