Santosh Passi, (PFM 1993-95), Executive Director, Kaaya Learning Centre

Q. How has been your journey from IIFM to this role?

A. In retrospect, I must say it is an exciting journey, more as a seeker than as a professional.  For a small towner who left home comforts for the first time, IIFM was an intense phase of experiential learning, not only from the classroom but also from the context in which I spent two years. Now, I am back in Dehradun, my hometown, created Kaaya, near forest, river, and mountains exploring nature-based solutions to offset imminent crisis. From a career perspective, the journey was not linear, probably cyclic. It is not a story about middle class aspirations, cracking MBA, getting into some sector, and making it big there. It is more about making sense of the world around me, experiencing, engaging, and expressing at times. This is one such attempt to express, in the hope that it is of some relevance to younger IIFMites.

Q. What were some of the key milestones/learning in this journey that you would like to share with us?

A. In IIFM I was naturally drawn to the subject of ecology. And I was equally fascinated by the Campus eco-system. It was the beginning of my observations towards how we behave around ‘structures’ whether its architecture, or the vipers we found in our way, or the rules & norms set by college and even dynamics of groups evolving within the campus, excited me. Those learning and impressions eventually set the direction to where I am today.

Seva Mandir, an NGO was one such choice that I made right after IIFM. There I was working along with some of the finest subject experts engaged in addressing development challenges. It was a ground where-in various school of thoughts intersect. As an IIFM’ite, I was trained more in ‘structure of knowledge’ than the ‘knowledge’ itself and it would have been professionally wise to pick a project or program to focus. But instead, I took up a study on Social Capital, trying to figure out given the same amount of ‘development options’ why one village score over another? What stops the other one to absorb more developmental inputs? It was an intense micro level study of two villages, and I failed miserably to put my fingers on. Finally, I got totally burnt out and left Seva Mandir as a lost soul.

Interestingly, it is the social capital I accumulated in terms of old friends and batchmates who supported me after Seva Mandir. Some provided me shelter, some money for food and some pushed me to carry on exploring and even sponsored financially. I spent two years on that life support that saw me selling water purifiers, cracking UPSC prelims, failing in mains, as well as supporting others in need. It was a struggle to find out where my ‘expression’ lies or what will break the inertia I felt I was in. The professional break was provided by Ajay Rai, one of our senior who sent me to Orissa villages to do some case studies on behalf of ECC, his consulting firm. There I was supposed to spend two days in a village, understand their natural resource management issues and write a case study. The very fact that I could put my finger on these village in just two days, surprisingly freed me. The relationship between micro and the macro emerged as an insight while sitting at the beach in Konark.  I could see that in Seva Mandir, I was inside the maize field, trying to figure out why it not blooming, while in Orissa, I was looking at the same maize field from a drone, figuring it out from a distance. This visual imagery finally lifted the burden that I was carrying from Seva Mandir days. I felt at peace.

So, 5 years after passing out from IIFM, I was back in Dehradun, to live with my parents and to start from scratch. Tried getting a job, but it was difficult to get commensurate salary. Even when I got one at People’s Science Institute (PSI), I realized that I am not cut out for a 9 to 5 job. That was a freelance phase of my life, where-in I began to volunteer, supported smaller NGOs and explored mountains in the process. This time I was learning more about the ‘agency’, its constraints as well as drive, the structural framework within which transactions happen in development sector. The shift from volunteering to paid consultancy happened during this phase. In an interesting turn of events, triggered by a referral of my name to EU project leader again by Ajay Rai, our senior, I found myself doing the Impact assessment of training provided under EU supported Haryana Community Forestry Project as a freelance consultant. Soon, I was doing it for the World Bank supported DASP project in Uttarakhand, conducting evaluation of other projects and writing sectoral briefs for grant making bodies. That was also the time when I met Pushplata, my immediate Junior from IIFM who was running a small NGO in Rudraprayag. Later, we decided to undertake life journey together and got married in 2004.

Sometimes, the things that seem ‘binding’ can also set you free. I was bound to Dehradun because of my parents, however, after marriage, it is Pushplata, who encouraged me to go for higher studies. In 2005, I got selected in the Ford Foundation International Fellowship Program to pursue mid-career program in Public Policy from Duke University in US. It was specially curated program for International Bureaucrats and a few NGOs representatives. At Sanford, I found a new avenue for my experiential learning whether in classroom sessions or life at US in general. It was fascinating to draw from the field insights while configuring program design, evaluating policies, or participating in international trade or climate negotiation drills. Within the narratives and meta-narratives, I could see the missing ‘meso-level’ in development discourses (where the actual transactions among macro and micro takes place, remember the maize field, the meso part in that is the ‘transactions’ among external variables with the maize crop). When I was offered PhD, I thought this is the zone where I could be of relevance, but I also realized that this is also the ‘space’ where I have little experience.

So, again I was back in Dehradun after Duke with a vague idea of experiencing more. The notion that I could do a job was there too but somehow job markets always managed to elude me. Pushplata was in full time job then, and I was permitted to take risk. So, with whatever savings I had, I invested in setting up a small handloom enterprise in the mountains, with the idea to connect women to tourism highway. I thought an enterprise is the best vehicle to explore meso world. And, indeed, it was. Soon I found myself opening to altogether new dimensions of thread counts, mandis, adhat, suppliers, traders, markets, experts etc. I was a tiny player in the market, looking at the development world from the other side of the fence. The project was ‘live’, when we resolved supply side constraints, marketing became issue. When marketing was sorted, I ended up becoming a trader, couldn’t match demand now. Scaling up required finance but the files had a different pace than the enterprise demanded. By the time funds cleared, the back of the business was literally broken. My partner who was the lead in the production side met with an accident and that was game over for us. I also realized, if I must start all over in enterprise mode, I should do it near my home rather than eight hours away in the mountains. Thus, I eventually ended up creating Kaaya Learning Centre in Dehradun near my home.  

Q. What is the most satisfying part of your current role?

A. Just imagining Kaaya as a ‘space’, the ‘structure’ around which myriad ways can emerge and it can be sustained on its own is I believe quite satisfying. 

Kaaya began as an experiment; a small parcel of land was purchased in a village far from the city. There was no blueprint, the idea was to see how it evolves. The space was named as Kaaya, in Hindi it means ‘body’, the outer form wherein the person who visits rubs off its soul. A small building was created using locally available material with our local team. 

Initially, we bought urban visitors/ school kids to the village (not connected with tourism) and introduced them to the process of farming, traditional wisdom, and nature’s creation. It is the village that became the teacher, sharing how they grow food, take care of cattle, and engage with nature. They saw the light of appreciation of their work in the young one’s eyes. Also, the village kids, who generally aspire to migrate to cities began wondering why the city people are coming to their village. Kaaya is connecting the rural-urban.

Soon it became Kaaya Learning Centre, a space for living, doing, sharing, creating, build, learn farming, or buying directly from farmers. However, as we are evolving, we couldn’t help but notice that the river streams are drying up; land erosion looms large over sloping fields and the biodiversity is being lost gradually in our neighborhoods. So, we began imagining Kaaya as a ‘learning ground’, where the people who are its residents take responsibility of their immediate neighborhood environment? To be hands on, learning as well sharing and showing others a way.

Kaaya is emerging as an eco-system; it is supporting people if they chose to invest in community based micro-enterprises and ventures that promote sustainable practices around Kaaya. A ‘community living project’ constituted from members drawn from different fields but all share ‘sustainable living’ as a common theme is taking shape and we are quite excited for the possibilities it holds for future. 

Q. Has your learning at IIFM helped in shaping how you approach your professional roles?

A. The course curriculum at IIFM was different than mainstream MBA’s. We were not only learning about ‘structure of knowledge’ around certain efficiency criterions but were also exposed to ‘knowledge’ itself through exposure to ecology, forestry, and rural sociology. This was further reinforced through interesting field work components and OT’s (at our times, now I heard it changed).   I recall at one time being sympathetic to forest guard when attached with Forest Department; we literally ran after poachers with him wielding with just a lathi. And, at another time, seeing the same forest guard as power broker to vested interest within village community when attached to a local NGO. IIFM did provide the ground for often conflicting thoughts and approaches to co-exist and those preliminary impressions informed the choices I made later in my life.

Q. Who (or what) are the biggest influences or drivers in your careers. What would be your advice to freshers and IIFM graduates who are looking to choose similar sectors/roles?  

A. Right after IIFM, choosing to join Seva Mandir (they didn’t come to placement that year, I just walked in there) was the best decision I took. It was like an extension of IIFM with field work component on one hand and theory classes on the other. I was working along with different school of thoughts, disciplines, and perspectives. I did flourish there, even though I burnt out eventually.     

I don’t think I have much to offer as advice to those who are already sorted. Who want the best package or the industry placement that is in the offing. In fact, I have great admiration for them. But, for those who are still tentative, doesn’t feel arrived yet or are a bit unsure, my advice will be to first dissociate yourself from what others are planning. Your career trajectory is not starting from IIFM, it had already begun the day you were born. Your aspirations are not alone, they also respond to your community’s expectations as well.  One of my Batchmate, was not happy despite getting the best package and industry placement, because, within his community, going to Canada was valued more. Eventually, after a couple of years later, he was in Canada. Secondly, try to find out what moves, excite or drive you, however vague or nascent it is. Building upon that should be your priority and for that you must seek out an enabling environment. Please don’t hesitate, even if it means volunteering first, don’t worry, money will come eventually. You will find many examples like me, have faith in your instincts.     

Q. What are your favourite memories during your IIFM days?

A. The IIFM nights remain still etched in my memory. That freedom to be and to roam in the campus is somehow stuck. Coming from a small city, a secure public sector/ middle class protected environment, the IIFM Campus captivated me. I was too busy soaking in everything, its architecture, the layout, spaces, its ecology, people around, friendships, the group dynamics and so on. In retrospect, during IIFM days, I find myself more as a sponge, an observer, rather that an active participant in campus life.  Still, I have seen some of the best friendship and mutual respect despite being different individually. Sorry, not possible to write it all in here.

Q. In hindsight, what was the biggest contribution (courses, faculty, library, friends, and alumni. Anything else!!)  or take away from IIFM that you think played a critical role in shaping you as an individual or professional?   

A. We were such a small group that almost everything had an effect, whether the connect with the faculty or staff, the visiting alumni, or the friends among friends. My escape to this cocooned life lied in the library and the weekend getaways to Bharat Bhawan.   

Grade wise, I just managed to scrape through IIFM. Was never the brightest or the smarter of the lot but had tremendous fun in my own way. In hindsight I realized that the roots of my academic explorations that emerged later in life were being formed then. 

The friends that were formed then became buddies for life. Even today, we are connected. When I first floated the idea of community living, it is my room mate who responded first. Remember, in these two years at IIFM, some of the best form of social capital will be generated that you will be able to draw upon even after 25 years. I feel gratitude to all the alumni that touched my life one way or the other and still give me hope. Will need to write another chapter, if I begin to name them and describe the kind of impact they had upon me. So, if you are at IIFM now, consider reconfiguring your positions with respect to each other now.

Q. What is your typical day at the office?  (We want to know what your day job looks like)

A. At Kaaya, there are no office hours, you are simply living day to day. Tending to things that matter right now. Much of the planning and thinking is design based, re-configuring what ‘we have’ here and building upon that, rather than stressing over what we don’t have. The best part is I don’t have to write a report.

Q. IIFM is driven by alumni’s passion and commitments towards its goal. How would you like to contribute to IIFM or IIFM alumni, students?

A. Kaaya is an open space. Sort of an evolving eco-system wherein one can simply plug ‘n’ play. As an IIFMite, there are ways of engagement. If you don’t have a job or are in between jobs, you can come over and volunteer. If you are finding yourself stuck in your job for long, need a break, a short stay at kaaya can be inspiring. If you want to pilot a research project or study and need a local field area. If you have some entrepreneurial streak, or a hobby, you can try and test it out here. If you want to experience community living, get in touch now. If you would like to do Internship, we always have some positions open. 

Kaaya is also a ‘space’ with accommodation and dining facilities up-to 30 people. When we are not doing our own events, we double up as a retreat or as a venue to host other events     

Q. What do you think is different at IIFM now vs when you studied there? What do you think is a positive change and what is not?

A. I guess IIFM alumni is a major force that is changing IIFM within. When we were in IIFM campus, we were just 50-60 students at any given time in entire campus. The seeds that were sown then were deep and well-spaced. Later, when IIFM saw the expansion phase, many of us from the earlier batches were busy in our own settling down process. Now, I am seeing the beginning of an Alumni phase that has acquired a critical mass, and it is consolidating on its own. The stage is set for the right leaderships to emerge as there are layers, hierarchies, agendas, and diversity that may need some re-alignment.   

Q. Any suggestions on who you want to get profiled/interviewed here?

A. I guess those who have created a niche on their own, locally, and are still following their passion, should also get to be profiled here. Would like to hear more about K. Ramnarayan (92-94) and Ajay Deouskar (93-95) to start with.