Our high-altitude programme in the Indian Himalaya has been working with local communities to protect the unique wildlife of the region. As part of the outreach and education activities of this programme we wanted to develop a material that truly belonged to the region. So, we came up with the idea of tapping the artistic talent of Spiti’s schoolgoing children. We conducted a painting contest in 10 schools of Spiti valley in which about 350 students (classes V to VIII) participated. These beautiful creations of children were judged by Maya Ramaswamy, a self-taught and highly talented wildlife artist. Four paintings were chosen based on variety of themes in terms of wildlife depicted, pictorial value and representation of different schools and age groups to make these posters. We are happy to send you the poster set which is an outcome of this process. We intend to use these in generating awareness about the high altitude Himalayan wildlife and ecosystems.

We will distribute some of these posters to schools, other educational institutions, concerned NGOs and Government Departments in Spiti and other high altitude Himalayan areas. Majority of the remaining posters will be marketed by youth groups in Spiti and Ladakh to raise funds for conservation, village development and livelihood generation. A small portion would also be available for sale to raise funds for conservation outside the Himalayan states. We would be keen to get your feedback on the posters.

Contact Rakhee Karumbaya to place your orders. Cost: Rs. 50 per poster.