Local Futures

  • Home
  • Media room
  • Blog
  • Store
  • Contact

The Economics of Happiness

Donate
Menu
  • About us
    • Who we are
    • Founder, Helena Norberg-Hodge
    • Our history
    • Get involved & support us
    • Close
  • Projects
    • Economics of Happiness
      • The film
      • Economics of Happiness conferences
      • Powerful talks
      • DIY Economics of Happiness workshop
    • Global to Local
      • Voices from the Field
      • Localization Action Guide
      • World Localization Day
      • Local Futures Podcast
        • Jeremy Lent: Shifting Paradigms
        • COP, carbon and high-tech: who is setting the agenda?
        • Beyond Conspiracy: Framing Meaningful Activism
        • Unpacking Global Empire from an Indigenous Perspective
        • More than Just the Vegetables
        • Food Sovereignty in the Global Economy
        • Transition, Tradition, and Trade
        • Not-for-Profit Businesses
        • Love, Values, and Wellbeing Economies
        • Growing a Farmers Market from the Ground Up
        • Beautiful Places: A Conversation with Wendell Berry
        • Creating the Framework for a New Economy
        • From GDP to GNH
        • Rebuilding Healthy Communities: The Growing Ecovillage Movement
        • Seeds of Resilience, Seeds of Sovereignty
        • Why Local Ownership Matters
        • Local Alternatives to Globalized Development: A View from India
        • How to Feed the World? A Political Agroecological Approach
        • Helena Norberg-Hodge on how corporate ‘free trade’ deals threaten local communities and economies worldwide
      • Webinars
        • Sacred Activism in a Post-Trump World Webinar
        • Talking Climate Webinar
        • People Power: Democracy and the Economy Webinar
        • Beyond Trump: The Path to Real Change Webinar
        • Bringing the Food Economy Home Webinar
        • A World Without ‘Free’ Trade: What it would look like and how to get there
        • Beyond ‘Free Trade’ – Alternatives to Corporate Rule
        • Education: Promises, Myths & Realities Webinar
        • Debt and Speculation in the Global Economy Webinar
        • A New Activism Webinar
        • Climate Change or System Change Webinar
        • Going Local Webinar
      • International Alliance for Localization (IAL)
        • Join the IAL
        • IAL members
          • IAL member organizations
          • IAL Listserv
      • Planet Local
        • Culture
        • Eco Communities
        • Ecology
        • Health
        • Local Business & Finance
        • Local Energy
        • Local Food, Farming & Fisheries
        • Local Policy & Community Rights
        • Place-based Education
        • Sharing & Repairing
    • Our work in Ladakh
      • Past work in Ladakh
        • Experiences in Ladakh 2018
        • Experiences in Ladakh 2017
      • Local Futures’ history in Ladakh
        • Women’s Alliance of Ladakh
    • Close
  • Events
    • Upcoming events
    • World Localization Day
    • Economics of Happiness conferences
    • Other past events
    • Close
  • Action resources
    • Learn about our work
      • Globalization – drivers and impacts
      • Localization – a solution-multiplier
      • Big Picture Activism – rethinking basic assumptions
    • Action tools
      • Localization Action Guide
      • Covid-19 response: let’s localize like never before
      • Maps of alternatives
      • Organizations for change
      • Independent media sources
      • Films for change
      • Recommended readings
    • Close
  • Books, reports & videos
    • Books and reports
      • Local is Our Future by Helena Norberg-Hodge
        • Endorsements for Local is Our Future
        • Translations of Local is Our Future
      • Ancient Futures by Helena Norberg-Hodge
      • Free reading materials
      • Newsletters & annual reports
      • Translated resources
    • Films and short videos
      • LOCAL: A Story of Hope short video
      • Going Local: the solution-multiplier animation
      • Insane Trade short video and factsheet
        • Insane Trade! & factsheet translated
      • The Economics of Happiness film
      • Ancient Futures film
      • Planet Local short film series
        • 1 – Introduction: The new local food movement
        • 2 – Diverse farming systems
        • 3 – Local food webs: Exploring systems of distribution
        • 4 – Local food processors: AKA making delicious food
        • 5 – Challenges & solutions
        • 6 – Ecovillages & networks for new farmers
        • 7 – and finally… Here’s a little more inspiration
    • Close
You are here: Home / Coronavirus / Lockdown in Ladakh

Lockdown in Ladakh

October 8, 2020 by Tsering Stobdan 1 Comment

I returned to my village in Ladakh when the Prime Minister announced the first lockdown in late-March. I ended up spending the whole lockdown period in the village assisting my family with various agricultural and pastoral tasks. This was the first time I had spent so much time in the village since my childhood. This made me reflect on the idea of development itself.

For over 10 years I have worked in the tourism sector, like most of the young people in the village. However, this year the COVID-19 pandemic underlined the fact that tourism remains an unsustainable and unreliable source of livelihood. In the past, when I would return to the village, I would only meet the elderly as all the young people had left the village to pursue livelihood or educational opportunities. However, during the lockdown I realised that people in the village are constantly busy in productive work and have little time to worry about things like COVID-19. I spent my time working on the farm, planting fruit trees and tending to the garden. As a result, I became much fitter than I was earlier. I also ended up meeting and speaking with more people in my village and neighbouring areas than I have in the past.

I noticed an interesting trend during the lockdown period. Many young people had returned to the village for the first time in their adult lives. They were surprised to realise that it was much cheaper to live in the village where they are able to grow their own food. Like me, they also admitted that they became physically fitter in the village where they engaged in physical and mental work on a regular basis. At the same time, all of us were eating much healthier and more wholesome food as most of what is grown is organic. I could not help but think how this lifestyle may have boosted our immune system and substantially reduced the risk posed by viruses such as SARS-CoV-2.

I also noticed that having everyone back in the village had a very positive impact on its social and economic life. This year, none of the households had to hire daily wage labourers for any chores as there was a surplus of family members present. I saw and heard of numerous cases where families have revived and cultivated land that they had left barren for several years.

Many of the youth mentioned that they are now faced with a simple choice of either looking for a government job or finding a more sustainable and reliable source of livelihood. During the lockdown, my villagers started re-distributing barren land amongst the youth for irrigation and cultivation. I was surprised to see how much these youth seemed to enjoy farming and working on the land. The period of the lockdown was used productively as these youth managed to learn various skills needed for farming, orchard plantation, management of irrigation canals etc. In this time of uncertainty, this not only ensured that these youth were productively engaged but also ensured that they contributed to the well-being of the village.

Over the last few decades, most development in Ladakh has been centred on the capital, Leh. As a result, many people from rural Ladakh migrated to Leh in search of jobs and educational opportunities. However, none of us expected our world to be turned upside down in the manner that COVID-19 has done. Many people have now started appreciating that rural life is more sustainable and fulfilling than life in urban areas like Leh. I have heard many people announcing that they now intend to return and stay in their villages for longer periods each year to practice farming, nurture plantations, and irrigate fields.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been an important wake up call. It has helped people evaluate their lifestyles while appreciating the importance of rural life and underlining its sustainable nature. It has also forced people to realise the need for sustainability in an unpredictable world. The realisation of the fickleness of current frameworks is probably one of the biggest lessons of COVID-19 for Ladakh. It is also an opportunity to help people value the importance of happy and fulfilling lives over one based on earning money. In my opinion, the UT [Union Territory] Administration should use this opportunity to push for a more sustainable form of development for Ladakh in the wake of COVID-19, with the rural economy at its core.

 

This post originally appeared in the Ladakhi newsmagazine Stawa.

Photo by Tsering Stobdan.

 

Share this:

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn

Related

What to Do When the World is on Fire
How industrial food makes us more vulnerable to COVID-19

Filed Under: Coronavirus, Development, Food and Farming, Health, Livelihoods and jobs Tagged With: agriculture, culture, development, farming, health, livelihoods, well-being

Author: Tsering Stobdan

Tsering Stobdan is part of the editorial team at Stawa, a print and online news and opinion publication based in Ladakh, India.

Comments

  1. Robert MacNeil Christie says

    October 9, 2020 at 8:44 am

    Thank you for the thoughtful and insightful post, Tsering Stobdan.
    You provided solid “on the ground” evidence for what my sociological analysis had for quite a time led me to believe true.
    In many subtle ways, the COVID-19 pandemic is a harbinger of things to come in the impacts of the intensifying climate emergency.
    For many, survival will require turning to the land and to local villages and learning to live in harmony with the conditions of a changing Earth System. For many others, the urban-industrial world will no longer be able to sustain its large populations.
    So much to do, so much to re-organize, and so little time…

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I accept the Privacy Policy

Subscribe to the Economics of Happiness Blog

Sign up for our email updates

Latest Blogs

  • Pandemic Blues

    April 20, 20224 Comments
  • The Radical Roots of Community Supported Agriculture

    April 6, 20222 Comments
  • Repairing broken economies

    March 31, 20221 Comment
  • The Flower of Transformation

    March 23, 20221 Comment
  • On Ukraine and the failed Pax Capitalis

    February 28, 202213 Comments
  • Attending to the world

    February 23, 20221 Comment

Blog posts by Category

  • Capitalism (10)
  • Cities (2)
  • Climate Change (54)
  • Community (32)
  • Consumerism (6)
  • Coronavirus (19)
  • Democracy (4)
  • Development (24)
  • Economic Growth and Degrowth (34)
  • Economics of Happiness Conferences (4)
  • Education (9)
  • Energy (2)
  • Environment (43)
  • Food and Farming (68)
  • Free Trade and Globalization (43)
  • Happiness (5)
  • Health (25)
  • Indigenous worldview (16)
  • Inequality (7)
  • Inner transformation (16)
  • Livelihoods and jobs (38)
  • Local energy (9)
  • Local finance (5)
  • Local food (11)
  • Localization (55)
  • Nature (4)
  • New economy (19)
  • Resistance and Renewal (18)
  • Technology (36)
  • The Economics of Happiness (17)
  • Transportation (1)
  • Uncategorized (4)
  • War (1)

About
Contact
Store
Blog
Privacy Policy

Projects
World Localization Day
Localization Action Guide
The Economics of Happiness

Sign up for our email update

Donate

Local Futures © Copyright 2022 | site by digiflip
 

Loading Comments...
 

    loading Cancel
    Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
    Email check failed, please try again
    Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.