Desert Memory Project Rajasthan

Living in Rajasthan, I’ve watched traditional relationships with land slowly disappear beneath urbanization, groundwater depletion, and ecological fragmentation. I became increasingly interested in how ecological restoration is not only about planting trees, but about restoring relationship, memory, and community connection to place. So I developed the “Desert Memory Garden: Restoring Native Medicinal Ecology and Community Knowledge in Rajasthan” This is a community-led regenerative garden and water stewardship initiative in Rajasthan focused on restoring native medicinal and pollinator species while preserving traditional ecological knowledge through intergenerational gatherings and workshops. We document and revive disappearing seed traditions, medicinal plant knowledge, folk ecological stories, and land-based feminine practices through community gatherings and regenerative planting.