Explore Spiti, Contribute to Sustainable Development: Calling for Applications of Interest now!

Introducing Ecosphere and Spiti:

Gold Award Holders' Society of India and Ecosphere present a unique opportunity to Award participants to complete their adventurous journey and their residential project (Gold Level) in Spiti this summer. Contribute to reducing your carbon footprint and to the community by participating in the construction of a solar facility. This project promises to provide an interesting insight into Spitian life, culture and Buddhist heritage and provide an opportunity to be a part of the environment preservation initiative taken by the community.

Spiti is a home to some of the oldest Buddhist Monasteries and temples in the world. It is located at 4000 meters above sea level with trai

ls along some of the highest villages in the world. These villages have Rolling Meadows comprising of grazing pastures of the local livestock and hunting grounds of the snow leopard and the Himalayan wolf. Spiti has an interesting culture and the life of the people here is distinctive due to the cold- dry desert like landscape.

Ecosphere is a social enterprise which is a collaborative effort of the local community of Spiti and professionals from diverse backgrounds, with a wide spectrum of skills and experience, effectively spanning the bridge from the general to the niche. With focus to create sustainable livelihoods that are linked to nature and culture conservation, Ecosphere addresses the triple bottom-line of conservation, development and economies.
Your hosts will be the local people of Spiti, accommodating you in their homes to enhance the sojourn in Spiti. As you will traverse through many villages along the trail, you will experience and visit unique and ancient Buddhist monasteries and temples dating back to over a 1000 years encased in the legends and folklore. The home stay accommodation along the trail further enriches the experience by giving one an authentic understanding of the life and culture in a Spitian home.

To know more about Spiti and Ecosphere, do feel free to visit the website- www.spitiecosphere.com.

Trip Itinerary-
11th to 25th June (14 nights, 15 days)

DAY-1: A breath-taking journey from New Delhi to Manali (2050 meters above sea level), covering a distance of 550 km by an overnight bus. Manali is situated near the end of the valley on the National Highway leading to Leh. Its beautiful landscape is well defined by snow-capped peaks and clear water meanders which makes it a popular resort for adventure lovers.
DAY-2: Explore Manali, local sightseeing

DAY 3: The journey continues from Manali to Kaza(3600 meters), covering a distance of 212 kms by a public transport. Kaza is the only place in the Himalayas, which is connected by road throughout the year unlike certain places that get blocked due heavy snowfall.
DAY-4: Start the day at K

aza with a brief orientation and transfer to site for start of residential project.
DAYS 5, 6, 7,8: Solar Bathing facility building work at project site with interactions with local villagers, immersion of their customs, etc.
DAY-9,10, 11: Depart from Project site for expedition to the famous Key monastery (located on top of a
hill at an altitude of 4,166 meters (13,668 ft) above sea level), treks to nearby villages including Komic Village (Asia's highest village) and Dhankar Lake, among others.

DAY 12: Return to base in Kaza; stay overnight

DAY 13: Travel from Kaza to Manali by the means of public transport and halt over for the night.
DAY-14: Travel back from Manali to New Delhi.

More about the Project:

• This Project promises to be a fun, life changing experience!
  
• We welcome all Gold Award participants and Award Holders from across the world. 
• Total cost of the trip Rs 25,000/- all inclusive (excluding costs of travel to/out of Delhi prior to /after expedition) for minimum group of 18 people. Costs to decrease with increase in number of participants

Ask us for more information and the application form at ai@iayp.in or call us at +91 11 2649 7154 or at +91 888 234 1668.

Nominee for President GAHN India - Ishita Khanna

This is our GAHN President.
Ishita is a young dynamic development professional and an Ashoka Fellow. Her experience of working at the grassroots and passion for the environment and mountains has been the driving force for both Muse and Ecosphere. She was also recently chosen as MTV Youth Icon for 2008. She is striving to improve life in remote Himalayan villages by building a green economy. In response to the region’s growing environmental degradation and threatened cultural preservation, Ishita has developed a collection of new income-generating and ecotourism opportunities designed to improve environmental management and promote the pursuit of more sustainable livelihoods. Her quest for striking a balance between human capitalistic progress & the sustainability of all life on earth has merged the region’s most marginalized communities with the market-based economy and created an incentive to conserve the region’s dwindling resources. She is, thus, paving the way for the region’s most isolated communities to retake control of their resources and retain primary ownership over them, proving that better environmental management can be a profound source of economic growth. For Ishita, the peace and quiet of Spiti is the life she likes and chooses to live.

MESSAGE FROM ISHITA...

Hi everyone,
It is with great pleasure that I would like to inform you that Ecosphere has been nominated for the CNN-IBN Indian of the Year Award in the Public Service category. We are truly humbled this year by this nomination and would like to take this opportunity to request you to vote for us. Please vote by following these simple steps:

1. follow this link http://www.indianoftheyear.com/index.php

2. register

3. go to the public service section and find ecosphere

4. click on the round tab below ecosphere and then click on submit at the bottom of the page.
The voting is open till Dec 11.
You can also vote through your mobiles by sending the SMS – IPUB4 to 51818
Thank you for all your support over the years that has brought us to this point.
Many Thanks and Warm Regards,

Ishita