Auroville Land Fund 1,000 X $1,000
Campaign |
In order to help secure its physical
base, Auroville has initiated a 1,000 x $1,000 Campaign
to raise one million dollars ($1,000,000) from friends
and supporters of Auroville around the world. Initially
set for August 15th, 2003, the deadline
has been extended till Mother's birthday, February
21st 2004.
|
If 1,000 donors commit themselves
to $1,000 each, we can stop commercial, profit-driven
development and buy the needed pieces of earth for
Auroville, the “City the Earth needs”.
We invite you, as a friend and supporter of Auroville,
a believer-in-human-unity, to help us in this campaign
and pledge
to donate $1,000 or actually donate
$1,000 with your credit card by February 21st,
2004 (click on the graphic to the right).
If you can’t donate $1,000 yourself, you
can help in your own creative way. How? By devoting
one day a month during the next six months for the
Auroville Land cause. You can use that day to make
things to sell, or encourage other people to take
up the challenge, or write to friends for help,
or give a day’s wage for six months to the
Land Fund.
For more information: please visit
Auroville's website to read
more about the Land Fund and to read some Frequently
Asked Questions, or else email
or call us at
(916) 927-4279, or toll-free from within the
US: (866) 2HELPAV.
You can also download our recent mailings: Appeal
Letter, Deadline
Extension Letter and FAQ. |
|
Updates
Aurovilians and friends of Auroville around the world have
already pledged or donated over $350,000 to the Land Fund
since this campaign began.
The deadline has been
extended till February 21st, 2004.
Won't you help complete this campaign and making
a donation today? It's easy, just click
on the cylinder above!
Frequently Asked Questions on how to
raise $1,000
Q. What is all this we hear about raising a million
dollars by February 21st, 2004?
A. Well it is as simple as that, we are trying
to do it.
Q. What for?
A. To buy the land that is currently on offer to
Auroville.
Q. Why now?
A. Well actually, the situation with the land has
reached another one of those critical moments. This time
it is a combination of lack of funds, pressure from real
estate developers, and also one major landholder in the
city area is willing to sell 15 acres. All this plus the
fact that in order to maintain the momentum in the past
couple of years, Land Fund received a credit line to buy
land, and now it must be repaid.
Q. Are the 15 acres the only land on offer in the
city area?
A. No, in fact there is much more. If funds were
available it would be possible to acquire around 40 acres
within the next year. All the land in the city area is important
to buy, but some of the land in the 15 acres is along roads,
and so it is even more critical to secure it whilst we can.
Q. And the threat from the real estate developer
is real?
A. As real as the wall that he built on the 50
acre plot in the greenbelt, and the electricity line he
brought in within the last few weeks. The information we
have is that if we do not come through with the money he
will begin to develop a country club with swimming pools,
tennis courts and house plots. At this point he is still
willing to sell the land, but once again it is our lack
of funds that is preventing the deal being closed. Obviously,
as a businessman, he is not going to wait forever.
Q. I suppose that this is not the only land available
in the Green Belt?
A. Absolutely correct. There are many pieces on
offer, some more urgently needed than others, meaning more
or less related to already existing Auroville land holdings
in the Green Belt. The more critical pieces are those areas
that would link up existing forest and farm areas, and create
large contingent blocks of forest, or agricultural land
that would bring us closer to that elusive goal of growing
our own food.
Q. So what are the actual figures we are talking
about?
A. For the land adjacent to the botanical gardens,
we need about $200,000, the 40 acres in the city would require
at least $400,000, the credit line repayment is just under
$200,000, and the other land within the Green Belt easily
would require another $200,000. So this is totally one million
dollars.
Q. How are we going to raise the money? A million
dollars is a large amount for anyone.
A. We agree it is not going to be easy. In fact,
when we first came to realize the actual situation it looked
impossible to us, a figure far too large to contemplate.
However, one of us began playing with the figure 1,000,000
in his head and came to realize that it is seemingly impossible
simply because we cannot visualize a number this big. So
we began to wonder what number is conceivable, and came
to 1,000. It became simple: we need to raise $1,000 a thousand
times! Then it followed that if we could find a large enough
group of people who would take on the challenge we would
succeed. We looked at Auroville and the worldwide Auroville
community and figured that as a family, a group of people
with a heart connection, we have 5,000 people. From this
point the task looks manageable. It is not so much about
large sums of money, but more about getting people to join
in.
Q. And how far have you gotten with this?
A. Pretty far actually, because we realized that
it is not about money, but about time. We figured that if
everyone manages to commit one day a month for six months
then we are well on the way.
Q. One day? What will people do with their time?
A. Anything, talk to people, make things to sell,
write letters, encourage other people to join in, make a
show and entertain people, or simply give a day's wage,
once a month for four, six or 12 months. When it is presented
like this, it suddenly becomes manageable. It is simply
the question: “Can you give the value of two hours
a week, eight hours per month, to the Land Fund to help
raise the money we need to realize Mother's dream?”
Who can say no to this?
Q. Are people joining in?
A. Yes, and it seems to be gathering momentum.
We have just had an art exhibition called Creations for
Land. It began with the idea of one artist, she spoke to
a few friends, and then by the time the show was over 30
artists had contributed, and we had raised over $2,000.
Two shares gone, 998 to go.
Q. You mean to say that is the only money you have
raised?
A. No, no. In fact, in the first two months of
this year $40,000 came in from other efforts of the Land
Fund team and we have pledges for over $50,000. So in actual
fact we are one tenth of the way to the target. This idea
is complementary with the ongoing efforts of the Land Fund
team who have been hard at it for years, raising awareness
and building up support. In Auroville itself, we now have
over 250 Aurovilians giving a regular monthly contribution
to the Land Fund. That in itself generates a share of $1000
a month. All we need to do is widen the support base.
Q. So, we should all go out and find a rich friend
to help the cause?
A. Not necessarily! This is more about everyone
joining in, joining in on an equal basis. This concept means
that we all give according to our means. If our wage is
$5 or $50 OR $100 a day, we just can give that: one day
a month over a period of four, six or 12 months. And then
we have all contributed 2% of our annual income. That is
the first step. Then if people feel inspired, they can take
up the challenge of $1,000, either as an individual, or
as a group and try to make it happen. Then, let's see where
we are in four, six or twelve months. I think we could surprise
ourselves.
Q. How does this relate to the wider Auroville
picture?
A. Only in the sense that human unity must in some
way involve working together for common goals. If we can
solve this problem together, we might be able to go on and
tackle other more complex issues that at the moment seem
intractable. We feel that this process needs to be fun,
and enjoyable, and that if we can create this then we will
have achieved something. That’s why a lot of the events
being organized at the moment for the Land Fund in Auroville
are not only for the aim of raising money; they are also
concerned with bringing people together in a nice way, so
that they can feel the harmony and inspiration that arises
from a common material effort that symbolizes spiritual
unity.
Q. Well I suppose the only thing to do is wish
you luck and hope it all goes well.
A. Not exactly, you can join in as well.
<top>
|
