Reflection

My submission encompasses my relatives struggle back in India to obtain water for farming, with drought consistently affecting their crop yields due to the effects of climate change. At home, I would frequently hear my dad talking with my Grandma, speaking of how the 'varsham" or rain was constantly being pushed back, as temperatures soared. This led me to think of the village in India my dad is from and how they would deal with a lack of rain, from a cultural and religious standpoint. I asked my dad what rituals were performed to alleviate the dire conditions, and his answer surprised me. He described a "puja" where people would tie a toad to a stick along with leaves, march around his village, and pour water on the toad. He described this as symbolic of rains returning to the fields and allowing the plants to grow again. Though this "solution" is not scientifically plausible, it shows my experience with climate change, more specifically how this phenomena affects my culture. My submission attempts to portray this experience, and it acts as a direct representation of this "toad puja". Within my piece the stick is angled diagonally, two toads and grass is tied to this stick, with water being poured from a basin in the top right corner. This water subsequently falls from the toad into the hands of the women seated in a dry field, representing the return of the rain, and the end of the drought. I use oranges throughout my piece to portray the lifelessness of the land, and emphasize the blue of the water, as it is what gives life and support the livelihoods of the farmers. My message to my viewers is that human condition, more specifically culture, is also greatly affected by climate change beyond just nature. Supporting a sense of community, whether it may be religious or not, is what allows us to tackle the bigger issues of the world, namely climate change.