BHAJAN LAL SCHOLARSHIP

One of our core Focus Areas at Bhajan Global Impact Foundation (BGIF) is Environment. We believe that it is each of our responsibility to protect the environment and create a sustainable planet for future generations of all living beings. Our focus on the environment draws inspiration from the Bishnoi community and their philosophy of peaceful coexistence with nature. Considered the first environmentalists of the world, Bishnois have been practising environmental conservation for over 500 years. Long before the terms ‘environmentalism’, ‘global warming’, and ‘climate change’ entered public discourse, a small community in Rajasthan, India, had already begun eulogising our divine connect with nature. Bishnois have a strong sense of kinship with animal and plant life. They protect flora and fauna with fervent zeal, and have often sacrificed their lives for the protection of biodiversity. The ‘Chipko movement’ of September 1730 is known to many, in which 363 women, children, and men – led by Amrita Devi – were hacked to death by the soldiers of Maharaja Abhay Singh of Jodhpur, Rajasthan, who ordered the Khejri trees in the region to be felled to build his new palace. Over the years, many other members of the Bishnoi community have continued to stand up against poaching, deforestation, and other human-induced ecological hazards. Although many of us feel strongly about ideas and initiatives towards protecting and respecting the environment, research on higher studies in environment (and related subjects) have experienced an upward trajectory only recently. Given the pressing challenges that climate change and global warming present to the modern world, BGIF would like to encourage and support young minds to pursue research and higher studies in environment. We believe that research in environment and related disciplines, as well as actions backed by such research, is integral for inclusive and sustainable development in India and the world. We also believe that academic disciplines related to the environment must be promoted at an institutional level as well. Therefore, BGIF would like to encourage students who have chosen this rare academic and professional route, and support them on their journey to find innovative solutions to the daunting challenges that climate change and global warming present to the world today. BGIF has committed to provide full or partial scholarships and support to students pursuing an MSc, MPhil or PhD in disciplines related to the environment in both Indian as well as foreign universities. The scholarship will be offered following an assessment of both the need and the merit of the candidate. Selected students will be called Bhajan Lal Scholars.