Azim Premji University, Bhopal on Friday  unveiled the annual climate festival - Forests of Life - a celebration of forests, brought to life through an ensemble of art installations, photographs from forests captured by young interns, music, movies, artefacts, interactive workshops and more.

The festival, being held at the Azim Premji University's new Bhopal campus, will be open to the public until January 21, and entry will be free. Close to 300 students and members of the public visited the inaugural day of the festival, which began with a tribute to the forests of Satpura in Madhya Pradesh by Shivani Tale, a young environmentalist from Harda district.

She shared how the hills come alive with the cultural expressions of the Gond and Korku tribes, whose festivals, rituals, and traditions contribute to the conservation of nature and forests.

In his address, Sharad Behar, eminent educationist and former Chief Secretary of Madhya Pradesh, spoke on the significance of cultivating a harmonious relationship between communities and the environment, emphasising the importance and management of forests.

As part of the festival, the University selected a large cohort of student interns who travelled through 110 diverse forests across the country. Their narratives have woven together their experiences, challenges of human-animal conflicts and the deep association of indigenous communities with nature. They have also documented successful examples of wildlife relocation and detailed, inspirational conservation stories.

The six-day-long bilingual festival offers an immersive and enriching experience. It will provide diverse perspectives from urban dwellers and indigenous communities and explore the idea of forests with school students from the city."The Forests of Life festival brings to life a tapestry of stories from India's diverse forests. This event underscores our deep relationship with forests and will shine a light on the urgent need to manage our forests better," said Harini Nagendra, Director of the Research Centre and Centre for Climate Change at Azim Premji University.