Interview: Chandra Shekhar Balachandran

We got talking to Chandra Shekhar Balachandran, author of Geography, Everywhere!

Dr. Chandra Shekhar Balachandran is a geographer with over 35 years of teaching experience. In 2000, he returned to India and set up TIGS. He tells his students that he ‘eats, drinks, blinks, breathes … lives geography!’

How did you get interested in geography? What kind of books and people in the field interested you?

In 1971, when I was in the 8th standard at National High School, Bangalore, the Bangladesh war broke out. Our Social Studies teacher, Sri B Narasanna, held us spell-bound for the duration of the war explaining to us the geography and history of what was unfolding daily. We didn’t touch the textbook for all those days. The seeds of my interest in geography were sown then. However, I didn’t realize it until I started teaching geography as a doctoral student at Kent State University (Ohio) in the mid-1980s where I had come under the tutelage of my next geography guru, Dr Surinder Mohan Bhardwaj.

Before that, I don’t recall any books inspiring me to become a geographer. I did rethink many books from a geographer’s perspective and found new meanings and connections in them. In graduate school, of course, we had readings of geographers such as the legendary Dr. Yi-Fu Tuan, and others.

My own guru’s writings on pilgrimages and sacred geographies continue to be a huge influence both in my life and in my geography education work. My interests today are largely shaped by the latter.

Tell us about TIGS.

I started TIGS (The Institute of Geographical Studies) as a project in 2000 when I relocated to Bangalore, after having studied and taught in the USA for twenty years. When I returned I observed how dead school-level geography education is in most of the academic endeavors. Inspired and inspiring geography education was there, but very rare. Alas, it still is.

I wanted to share what my teachers (both Sri Narasanna and Dr. Bhardwaj) had taught me with pupils and teachers alike.

Under TIGS, I began offering workshops that showed how textbook concepts connect to our lives in many interesting ways.

Over time, TIGS has been offering a variety of other activities including field trips, lectures, documentary film screenings, non-formal geography education online (a course called G.o.D. – Geography over Distance), weekly geography essays published for several years in the Deccan Herald Student Edition, online readings, quizzes, assignment ideas, and our flagship annual event: International Geography Youth Summit (IGYS). IGYS is the only formal academic geography conference for school children (standards 7 and above) in India. It has become very popular with children because they get to explore geography by conducting a project on a topic of their choosing.

Why are you on a mission to educate children about this subject?

Every discipline we engage with comes with a set of ethics and human values. When school education goes from teaching subjects to teaching disciplines, children see the value of what they are learning, and how they should use their knowledge for making a difference for the better in the world around them. Far too often, school education is about getting high marks and becoming ‘successful’, not much about how to be a good citizen of the world at all scales ranging from the family to the world.

Every discipline can offer such frameworks. I just happen to talk about geography. It is not only interesting in and of itself, it is also a naturally integrating discipline. It helps us see how things are interconnected in this world. Recognizing and engaging with these interconnections make the discipline that much more powerful. This is called PDK (Powerful Disciplinary Knowledge). Geography’s PDK empowers children to be both critical thinkers and compassionate human beings.

There are many anecdotes and tidbits in the book Geography, Everywhere! Tell us about them.

Every waking moment, I keep reflecting on what might be teachable. Thanks to my gurus, my geography lens is always helping me see how beautifully geography connects with everything. So, no matter what happens, one track in my mind is always discerning the geography aspect of life. That is a joyous experience.

I just share that with anyone who is interested.

 Tell us about your writing process.

Generally, I work better when I have deadlines! I look at the goings-on in the world and in my own life to see things that illustrate geography concepts. I use these to introduce my readers to geography concepts. Through these, definitions of the concepts are tied to real-world phenomena. Sometimes, they are not real-world! I have explored cyberplaces, fiction, dreams, mythologies, psychologies, and so on through geography.

Nothing escapes the geography treatment!

I have done a lot of slice-of-life kind of writing (mainly online). Several of these have appeared in an e-zine. Here, I have to put in a lot of effort to keep the geography discourse out! These are musings from my own life.

In all cases, it is merely observing, not much digging.

How is the approach toward geography different in the west?

‘The west’ is a very broad term. Generally, in Europe, for example, teachers have a great deal more agency to develop, design, and deliver curriculums. In the USA, there is considerable political meddling in the social sciences curriculum. The effects of this are far less on geography than the other social sciences. There is much more hands-on learning because class sizes are usually small.

 You have talked about zoonotic diseases in one of the essays in your book. In pandemic times, what role do you see geography playing in the spread of COVID-19?

One of the subfields of geography is medical geography. It shows how place matters. Specifically, in the context of COVID-19, geography appears in many different ways. Starting with the place of origin of the various species and their interactions with their ecosystems, we look at where the species end up and how humans interact with them (e.g.wet markets). What are the characteristics of a place that facilitate zoonosis? For instance, poor hygiene, dense human populations, transportation connections (modes of transport, frequency, etc.), and so on. The characteristics of places matter a lot!

Check out some essays related to this crisis at the TIGS blog.

Tell us about your experience with Pothi.com.

I can’t remember how I came across Pothi.com It may have been through searching online about 1½ years or so ago, when I was compiling some of my essays into a book and was looking for possible publishing avenues. In the event, we ended up publishing it from TIGS in July 2019 at the International Geography Youth Summit-2019.

Subsequently, mainly due to COVID-19, we wanted to get an eBook version published with some corrections and updates to the print version. I returned to Pothi.com to see if they could do it.

They did it! And did it well. The sequence of production was very methodical. I had never published an eBook, so the learning curve was rather steep. However, team Pothi.com very patiently helped me through the process. And now there is an eBook version of Geography, Everywhere!

Future projects.

I’ve begun work on a book primarily for school children (class 7 and above) on how they eat and drink geography. Literally. I am hoping to have this out by end of 2021. I can’t say more at this time.

Seven of my online students are collaborating with me on a very interesting documentary that connects geography with the life and works of Karnataka sangītam composer of 18th-19th century. COVID-19 has really slowed us down, but we hope to have this completed as soon as possible when we are able to travel and work safely.

We are working to have an International Geography Youth Summit-2021 entirely online. TIGS’ students are helping with this also.

Finally, we are in the process of revamping our website to make it offer more interactive spaces for school children to explore geography in their own lives.

Thanks so much for talking to us about this unique subject and we wish you luck in your mission to spread the love of geography everywhere!

Lockdown Safety: Home Delivery in a COVID-19 World

UN Illustration for Covid-19 Lockdown Protocols
UN Illustration for Covid-19 Lockdown Protocols

The fourth iteration of the coronavirus lockdown is in full swing in India. Lockdown 4.0 has already relaxed many of the restrictions we have been facing over the last two months. But it is clear that social distancing needs to continue for as long as this pandemic does.

Needless to say, staying away from crowded stores and ordering online is an excellent way of maintaining social distancing. And now that e-commerce for non-essential goods is allowed, you can buy a wider range of products without undue stress.

Among the little pleasures that had to be sacrificed during the COVID-19 lockdown was the feeling of holding a newly arrived print book in your hands. The lifting of the ban on e-commerce for non-essential goods is thus welcomed by avid readers all over India.  But the question remains: How can you safely handle the packages you receive from your favorite online service?

Here are a few simple steps you can follow to keep yourself and your family safe:

  • Pre-Pay Online: Avoid cash on delivery and credit/ debit cards wherever possible.
  • No-Contact Delivery: Arrange for your packages to be delivered at a designated location outside your home. This way, you can keep both yourself and the delivery executive safe.
  • Dispose of the packaging safely: Dispose of the outer packaging immediately, preferably in a separate designated location.
  • ‘Quarantine’ your Purchases: Establish a separate space for your orders. Leave them there for 24 hours in case of non-perishable items.
  • Wash your hands: After handling the package, be sure to wash your hands thoroughly. Avoid touching any surfaces inside your home aside from the established ‘quarantine’ zones until you’ve done this. (You can check out the WHO guidelines on correct hand washing protocol here.)
  • Sanitize: Wipe down the product with disinfectant (such as sanitizers containing at least 70% alcohol) before use.
  • Enjoy your product! 

 

Safety First! Pothi.com’s COVID-19 Lockdown Protocol

While you do your part, we are sure to do ours! As we resume delivery of print books from our Online Store, here are a few rules we follow to ensure your safety:

  • Protective Equipment: Face masks and gloves are used at all times during the handling of packages.
  • Sanitized Work Environment: The work surface used for the packing of books is sanitized regularly.
  • Quarantining Packages: All books received from our printers are quarantined for 24 hours before being packed..
  • Essential Staff Only: We are operating at the minimum required staff strength on our premises to maintain social distancing. The majority of our team continues to work from home.

So fear not! We have your back. Now you can put away any niggling fears you may have and look forward to getting back on track with your favourite quarantine activities: reading, publishing, and selling your books on Pothi.com.

Free Resources for Your Lockdown Leisure

COVID-19 has taken the world by storm. Never before has an invisible enemy created such a global catastrophe in recent history. Countries are going into lockdown and the daily rut of pre-coronavirus days seems like privilege. But on the flip side, whether we are social distancing, in self-isolation or under quarantine, those of us who stay in a safe environment have an opportunity to introspect and work on creating healthier routines.

The silver lining of this crisis is the large number of institutions and individuals who have gone on a knowledge-sharing spree. We are especially grateful to everyone who has gone out of their way to make this dystopian present more meaningful.

Here’s a list of some free resources to keep you occupied and to help you get through these hard times.

Wordnomics: Books and Writing

  • Writing during lockdown: If you have tried writing 50,000 words for the NaNoWriMo, you may want to use this lockdown to pen down a chapter, a short story or the outline of a novel. Try to achieve a daily word count with #StayathomeWrimo. It isn’t easy and you don’t have to beat yourself up if you don’t get the required word count but even a paragraph can stand you in good stead.
  • Read at Home Initiatives: Although books are now considered non-essential commodities, there is a huge supply of books and stories online: 
    • Fatima Bhutto and Sanam Meher are presenting short reads by writers in different genres. 
    • Roli Books has also organized live conversations with well-known authors.
    • For children, the #ThodaReadingCorona project driven by Bijal Vachharajani encourages children to listen to stories. You can catch authors reading their stories on the facebook group Reading Raccoons
  • Many publishers are sharing great reads.
    • Juggernaut – This publishing house is offering books on their mobile app platform for free. You can spend your lockdown leisure diving into historical fiction like Rebel Sultans by Manu S. Pillai and romantic comedy like Combat Skirts by Sahana Ahmed at the tap of a finger. Read quick!
    • Audible – The audiobook store is also sharing plenty of free book content And if self-isolation isn’t perfect time to listen to classics and children’s fiction, what is?
    • Digital subscription to Amar Chitra Katha and Tinkle – If you are a fan of Amar Chitra Katha and Tinkle or you want your children to read what you loved as a child growing up in India, this is the option for you. Subscription lasts for a month from signing up and you can read the comics on your mobile!



Virtual Wisdom and Documentaries

Many libraries and presses are providing free content access during these trying times.

  • JSTORThis digital library features the best of peer-reviewed scholarly journals and research reports, and has announced that all their open access content is now available without having to login. Catch up on your academic reading while in lockdown.
  • Oxford University Press – The biggest university press is providing free access to its educational resources to students and teachers, to aid efforts at creating a home learning environment for kids while schools are closed.
  • ScholasticOne of the world’s largest publishers and distributors of children’s books has also launched a website towards this end.
  • The Internet Archive- This library has even courted controversy by suspending waitlists for 1.4 million+ titles to create a National Emergency Library for the benefit of displaced readers and of those in quarantine. 
  • Library of Congress: The largest library in the world has select works on offer.
  • Project Muse– Publishers who wish to make their works available at this time are able to do so here.
  • The KKV Repository – You can also browse through Supreme Court lawyer K. K. Venugopal’s personal library archive. 

The Google Arts and Culture site is mind boggling. There are scores of museums, artworks and street scenes that are on view. If you feel too cooped up in the house, hop into the Uffizi Gallery and browse through Renaissance paintings or visit the Museum of Modern Art and examine the passionate brushstrokes of Van Gogh’s The Starry Night.

Miscellaneous

Chat apps are a great way of being with friends or colleagues even in this time of isolation. 

  • Bunch:  A group video chat app for live mobile games. 
  • House Party– A video chat app that enables you talk to up to eight friends in real time.
  • Zoom– An app that is now being used all over the world to conduct office meetings for those working from home, as well classes and workshops on various subjects.
  • Netflix Party – This simple Chrome extension allows you to watch Netflix episodes and movies at the same time as your friends, and the chat function lets you comment and react to what you’re watching in real time. Who said isolation had to be so… isolated?

The Metropolitan Opera is running its Live in HD series of free streamed performances every night this week. You can check this week’s schedule here.

For those of you who are tired of seeing only your pets, you may want to explore some nature documentaries  of peaceful places here in India. Check out these youtube channels for more:



Let us know how you are getting through quarantine. Stay home and stay safe!