For centuries, Bangaloreans have had close economic, social, and cultural relationships with nature. Early settlers transformed Bengaluru’s semi-arid landscape into a “Garden City” by digging tanks and wells to provide drinking water for the growing population. Since the introduction of piped water from external sources over the last century, the lakes have deteriorated into reservoirs for the city’s waste or have been drained to make space for new development. Responding to the depletion of nearly 80 percent of the water bodies over the last four decades, a growing number of citizen groups have formed to restore those that remain.

During my nine months in India, I will be documenting the ever-changing peri-urban landscape through photography and videography and conducting interviews with scholars and community members about innovative solutions for a healthier and more vibrant while accommodating an influx of nearly 10 million new people over the next few decades. The goal of this body of work is to be published to bring awareness to the innovations of community members residing in this region who are most impacted by the rapid and unregulated development.

For the last week, I’ve been examining the city from a birds-eye perspective. I’ve been mapping the changes in the landscape and trying to find corresponding stories from the ground to give me a fuller picture. I’ve traced the lines of development along valleys and basins, into jungle and stream. I’ve scoured stories of hope and hardship—stories of villages whose water sources have dried or become polluted, of farmers who have sold their cows off one by one when the lake turned into a park and the wetland grasses were no longer accessible, of kids who used to play in the mud of the summer lake who no longer have access as it is filled with “greywater” that has curious levels of foam atop its surface, and heard stories of elephants looking for pasture in the agricultural land of the neighboring farmer. I’ve seen photos showing forests of fruit trees displaced by soaring palms that line the street’s edge and dot the entrances to the tech parks. Don’t worry, it hasn’t all been stories of pollution, displacement, and conflict. I’ve also encountered stories of hope embedded in a trip to the farm where an artist named Suresh has developed an organic farm. I’ve walked alongside Preeti and her students on a dirt road with a freshly-picked piece of tamarind in my hand, admiring its similarity of flavor to a Sour Patch Kid™️. Each day, when I arrive at school, I’m surrounded by students and faculty that make it their life work to seek equity in all they create and give back to their community. I’ve been generously invited to sites and lectures and to collaborate on research. And most importantly, I’ve found people who are genuinely interested in who I am and what I hope to do with this time on earth.

Thank you for following along on my journey. If you’re interested in the day to day, follow me on Instagram, @insta__gann.

l—ttle b—rd