deepa preeti natarajan
in college i was an anthropologist, seeking out adventures to remote places meeting village healers and learning about the plants they used for traditional medicine. my work and my motivation took me to eritrea, in east africa, where i spent a summer, learning from village and herbal healers, known as "habesha," and also spending alot of time with the younger generation, who knew of many plants used by their parents and grandparents, but had no interest or support to pursue this as a profession with degrees, jobs in the cities and abroad their number one priority.
in rajasthani worked with "guni," the local word for village healer. i worked with an organization, jagran jan vikas samiti, based in udaipur, that not only supports guni, but also conserves traditional plants in botanical gardens, educates the public on the knowledge of these guni, and documents the location and various guni into a directory for people to use.
after spending nearly 5 years working for the university of california botanical garden at berkeley, as the program and tour coordinator, furthering my pursuit of ethnobotany and presenting a wide variety of courses and events in traditional medicine, natural dyes and fibers, paper making, soap making, cooking and many other uses of plants, and also coordinating the garden's first ever "green gala," a sustainable fashion show, i have come to india on a sabbatical with my husband.
i believe that gardens can be a source of all things we need, from foods to medicines, garments to shelters, beauty and inspiration.
the simple and profound pursuit of tending a small area of land is a noble career, whose salary is infinite, when we shift our perception of wealth toward health and happiness.
we are based in the bay area, where i love to garden.
i hope you like my blog. i love connecting with anyone who shares a common love for plants.
please contact me for all things botanical: deepa at permacouture dot org
please contact me for all things botanical: deepa at permacouture dot org
