TIST
December 2007
CHEZHUMAI
TIST India wishes you all a Merry Christmas, Happy New Year 2008 and a Very Happy Pongal.
Tindivanam Center There are 16 Small Groups in this Center. This is a new center. Four Small Groups have planted teak and casuarinas trees. Totally there are 2,007 trees in this center. Groups like, Ellaiamman, Sivaji, Muthu and Arunachalam have planted teak and casuarinas in their groves. Villages like, Manda Kolathur, Peru Kadapathur, Carekottai, Kolavam, Narthampoondi, and Kateri are under this center. TIST requests the members to introduce your friends and relatives from these villages to join in TIST Program and get benefited.
From Charlie Williams Dear TISTFamily, Thank you for the hospitality you showed me on my recent visit to India. It was a privilege to meet so many of you at the meetings I attended. I was impressed by all the trees you have planted and how well they are growing. Yo u r h a r d w o r k a n d dedication to the program is obvious. I hope that you will continue your efforts and plant many more. Wish you all a Happy and Prosperous New Year 2008. I look forward to seeing more of you on my next trip.
Visit of Charlie Williams
Charlie Williams from CAAC, USA had visited the TIST India Program areas from 27th to 29th November 2007. He visited the tree groves of Semboondy, Vandhavasi, Mel Kodungalur and Placepalayam centers and also saw few nursery in Mel Kodungalur and Semboondy.
1. In Semboondy Center, Charlie visited the following Small Groups tree groves:
- Sakthi Vinayagar Small Group
- Ellaiamman Small Group
- Pavalam Small Group
2. In Mel Kodungalur and Vandhavasi Centers, Charlie visited the following Small Groups tree groves:
- Roja Small Group
- Balaji Small Group
- Arulagam Small Group d. Lotus Small Group
3. In Placepalayam Center, Charlie visited the following Small Groups tree groves:
A.Jeyamma Small Group
Charlie attended five meetings with the Small Groups of Semboondy, Mel Kodugalur, Vandhavasi and Placepalayam Center
1. At Semboondy 54 members participated in the meeting
2. At Mel Kodungalur 64 members participated in the meeting
3. At Katchur (Placepalayam Center) 72 members participated in the meeting
4. At T.B Puram (Placepalayam Center) 32 members participated in the meeting
5. At Placepalayam 67 members participated in the meeting .
The meetings were organized in the local Government School, Village Panchayat Office and Church. All together, about 289 members participated in five meetings, which all started with a prayer by TIST quantifier & Small G r o u p m e m b e r s . Charlie was happy to see the SGMR books, which the groups carry with them to the Node meeting. This book has (1) an introduction page about the group & group members, (2) copy of the GHG agreement and (3) SGMR forms for 5 years. Every small groups carry this SGMR book with with to the Node meetings and this book is useful while opening a saving bank account in the bank to receive the voucher from TISTIndia.
The members were excited to see Charlie. Charlie was introduced to the members in the meeting and he gave a short and crisp speech.
“This is my first visit to TIST India. I am here in India for two reasons, (1) to see the development of TIST India & to develop it more and (2) we are working for the Host Country Approval from Indian Government and I am here on getting the approval. We have already got approval from the Indian Government, now it is time for us to get a world-wide certificate/approval for our project. There is a say in TIST Kenya, “TIST Program is for the small groups and by the small groups”. I welcome you all to the TIST family and make use of the opportunity. Those of you who have very less trees, plan to plant more trees effectively, so that, you would also get more vouchers. Moreover, plant fruit bearing or some useful trees like cotton, which would give you continuous good yield in long run. In Africa, we are working towards women development and I am happy to see lot of women participants in TIST India. As of now, we are in four countries; our target is to spread TIST in forty countries in next 10 years. The approval we got from Indian Government is a special one, because we are the first project to get such approval in this field. We tried to get this approval from India, because we had lot opportunity and the Government was supportive. Do plant lot of trees and get benefited, even if you do not want to join TIST, still plant trees, which are good for you.”
Charlie answered the following questions raised by the members:
1.When will you increase the voucher amount?
Answer: As of now, we have very little trees and the price for the carbon credits is very low. Moreover, we have very less tree and those trees are very small in size and so we have very less carbon credits. You all should plant more trees and in the long run, these trees would grow in good size to hold more carbon credits. By that time, the market for carbon credits would also get stronger and we can increase the voucher amount gradually during that time. I hope that you all have signed the GHG agreement, in which, we have mentioned that 70% net profit would be shared to you. In the long run, the Governments would also try to implement rules on vehicle owners to contribute for reduction in global warming and this would also increase the carbon credits value in the world market. You all should plan to work with TIST for long period and it is sure that you would enjoy the income from your trees and TISTIndia too.
2.Is it possible to construct a good water tank for us?
Answer: You all know that we are running this project in a low budget and it is not possible to construct water tanks. Try to dig a farm pond in a simple way and those ponds would surely hold some amount of rain water. This will certainly help
3.When will ethanol have good market?
Answer: First the Governments should take initiative to switchover to alternate energy wherein the burning of fossil fuel is reduced. Moreover, the general public should also try to change to the alternate energy. Perhaps, if such situation comes, ethanol would find a good place in the market.
4.Few of us have planted eucalyptus. Eucalyptus trees will grow even after cutting. Will you count the trees that would grow after cutting?
Answer: First of all, we do not encourage cutting the trees in short time. We look forward to see your trees standing for decades. When you plant a seedling, the seedling would be a size of a pen, which would hold just 0.1 gm of carbon. We would be getting a good amount of carbon in a tree only after 15 or 20 years and that's the time when we can market your carbon credits. If you cut down your trees, it will not be possible to market the carbon credits. We are also expecting to get buyers in advance on your trees and we will be projecting to the buyer that these trees would be standing for decades. If you cut your trees in short time it is a problem. We would not count any trees which grow after cutting down.
5. We have planted trees, we have signed the GHG agreement, and we are coming for the meeting. Why do you want women members to come for the meeting?
Answer: TIST is not only encouraging to plant trees. TIST is doing several other activities to uplift the small hold farmers to come up in life, and one such activity is women development. We want women members to come forward and be equal to men in all ways. They too have lot of ideas, which would certainly be useful for the program. TIST India conveys it's thanks to all those who helped for the meeting hall arrangements in Semboondi, Mel Kodungalur, Katchur, T.B.Puram and Adison Puram (Placepalayam). Also, TIST India expresses its heartfelt thanks through this news letter to the Mel Kodungalur Panchayat Head Sri. Narayanan, Adison Puram Church Pastor & Saviour Fr.Vedakkan, Katchur Dr.Ambedkar Training Hall Owner and Director of Rural Dalit Women Development Society, Sri.Sathya Sundaram, Katchur Panchayat Head Sri Rajendran who delivered special speech in the meeting, Katchur Share & Care Organisation's in-charge Mrs. Lilly who gave a felicitation to the small group's members and to all the small groups members who participated in the meeting.
Thurinjapuram Center
Thurinjapuram Center, which was started few months back have picked up now. More than 30 Small Groups have been registered in this center. These Small Groups are from villages l i ke, Thurinjapuram, Koothalavadi, Kallakurchi, Otteri, Puthumallavadi, Kodikuppam and Velungananthal. TIST requests the members to introduce your friends and relatives from these villages to join in TIST Program and get benefited.Three Small Groups have planted teak trees during November.
1.India Small Group have planted 58 Teak Trees.
2.Panjalaiyamman Small Group have planted 242 Teak Trees.
3.PSankar Small Group have planted 294 Teak Trees 4.SBalaji Small Group have planted 1,456 Teak Trees.
The quantifiers have already made baseline quantification on 24 Small Groups and the four Small Groups who have planted trees are also quantified.
Useful Tree to Grow
The Pomegranate (Punica granatum) is a fruitbearing tree growing to 610 m tall, which is multi stemmed, spiny and extremely long lived. The pomegranate is native to the region from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran to the Himalayas in northern India and has been cultivated and naturalized over the whole Mediterranean region and the Caucasus since ancient times. Pomegranate is not fussy about soil condition, in its native environment in Northern India and Iran it is found growing in rocky gravel.
After opening the pomegranate by scoring it with a knife and breaking it open, the arils (seed casings) are separated from the skin (peel) and internal white supporting structures (pith and carpellary membrane). The entire seed is consumed raw, though the fleshy outer portion of the seed is the part that is desired. The taste differs depending on the variety of pomegranate and its state of ripeness. It can be very sweet or it can be very sour or tangy, but most fruits lie somewhere in between, which is the characteristic taste, laced with notes of its tannin. Pomegranate juice is considered to be a rich drink. Pomegranate gives 16% of an adult's daily vitamin C requirement per 100 ml serving, pomegranate juice is also a good source of the B vitamin. Scientists say the leathery-skinned, orange-sized fruit with the sweet-tart juice may help with heart disease, cancer and problems associated with aging. The best quality fruits are obtained in those areas where the period of development and maturation coincide with high summer temperatures.
In the global functional food industry, pomegranate is included among a novel category of exotic plant sources called superfruits.
In the Northern Hemisphere, the fruit is typically in season from September to January. In the Southern hemisphere, it is in season from March to May.
In Chennai, the cost of one Pomegranate is about Rs.25/-.
Nursery at Semboondy
About 10 Small Groups of Semboondy Center have joined together and started a Nursery with 6000 Teak Seedlings. All seedlings are kept in polythene bags. These seedlings are presently kept safely near their home, roof top and in empty water tanks. The groups are planning to plant these trees by December 2007.
Best Practice to Follow
Quantification is one of the most important activities in TIST Program. Counting the trees helps calculate the amount of carbon sequestered by the trees. Make sure that your trees are quantified once in three months. When you fill in your SGMR, do not copy the quantifiers report to fill in the tree column. You should personally count your trees once in a month to find out how many live trees you have and those details should be entered in the SGMR. During the quantification, atleast two members of the group should accompany the quantifier and help the quantifier in quantification. If you have any doubts in quantification, clear your doubts then and there get the quantification report without fail. Your quantifiers are your friends, your co-members, who have taken the additional responsibility to quantify your trees, so help them during quantification and boost them with refreshment.
Name Plate for the Groves
It is very important to have a name plate for the groves. Few Small Groups have placed a name plate. The name plate should have the Name of the Group, Group Center, and Name of the Grove. If your grove is named as “Kollamedu” during the first quantification then during every quantification your grove should be quantified in “Kollamedu” only. Few members forget their grove name. It is not possible for the quantifier to remember all the groves by name. It would be a good act to have the name plate for the groves with all the required details in it. From the next quantification cycle, your quantifier will not quantify your groves if there is no name plate for the groves and this may affect your voucher payment as well. TIST requests all the Small Groups to immediately put up a name plate for every grove.