Terra Viva: My Life in a Biodiversity of Movements

by Vandana Shiva

“All of us who care about the future of Planet Earth must be grateful to Vandana Shiva.”―Jane Goodall, UN Messenger of Peace A powerful new memoir published to coincide with Vandana Shiva’s 70 th birthday. Vandana Shiva has been described in many the “Gandhi of Grain,” “a rock star” in the battle against GMOs, and “the most powerful voice” for people of the developing world. For over four decades she has vociferously advocated for diversity, indigenous knowledge, localization, and real democracy; she has been at the forefront of seed saving, food sovereignty, and connecting the dots between the destruction of nature, the polarization of societies, and indiscriminate corporate greed. In Terra Viva , Dr. Shiva shares her most memorable campaigns, alongside some of the world’s most celebrated activists and environmentalists, all working toward a livable planet and healthier democracies. For the very first time, she also recounts the stories of her childhood in post-partition India―the influence of the Himalayan forests she roamed; her parents, who saw no difference in the education of boys and girls at a time when this was not the norm; and the Chipko movement, whose women were “the real custodians of biodiversity-related knowledge.” Throughout, Shiva’s pursuit of a unique intellectual path marrying quantum physics with science, technology, and environmental policy will captivate the reader. Terra Viva is a celebration of a remarkable life and a clear-eyed assessment of the challenges we face moving forward―including those revealed by the COVID crisis, the privatization of biotechnology, and the commodification of our biological and natural resources. “Vandana Shiva is an expert [on the dangers of globalization] whose analysis has helped us understand this situation much more deeply.”―Russell Brand “One of the world’s most prominent radical scientists.”― The Guardian

Genres: Nonfiction, Environment, Memoir, Nature, Sustainability, Biography, Ecology

Audio CD

First published January 1, 2022

About the author

A major figurehead of the alter-globalization movement as well as a major role player in global Ecofeminism, Dr. Vandana Shiva is recipient to several awards for her services in human rights, ecology and conservation. Receiving her Ph.D in physics at the University of Western Ontario in 1978, Dr. Vandana Shivas attentions were quickly drawn towards ecological concerns.

Reviews

[W. M. Raebeck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vandana Shiva is truly one of the clearest, true-ist forces of good will for humanity on the public scene today. There are few trusted voices in the chaos right now — so much noise and patented (literally) deceit. Shiva shines through again and again, as if she never stops working, researching, and sharing her often disturbing findings with all who will listen.

We are beyond lucky that, approaching age 70, this beautiful soul is strong in the saddle. She's so desperately needed on a world stage of horrendously bad actors. Here is a book to read and widely share, in the hopes of making a difference in these critical hours on Planet Earth.

Thank you for your life and your light, Vandana.

[Vivekan Jeyagaran · Rating 5 out of 5]

5/5 because of the importance of the topic at hand, the magnanimous personality featured, and the inspiring threads Vandana Shiva weaves together through her “memoir” related to indigenous knowledge systems, regenerative agroecology, and a greater respect for the nature we are inextricably a part of. Vandana Shiva’s intelligence, credentials, and successes speak for themselves, but the true value lies in unpacking her upbringing in the forests at the foothills of the Himalayas, and the many movements she has spearheaded and/or supported against capitalist, extractive, and oppressive systems. While her many other books and works dive into the depth of her ideologies and research, this book is the perfect introduction.

[fowziyya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buku ini menimbulkan perasaan yang campur aduk banget dalam proses membacanya. Sering banget merasa alit, tapi di sisi lain juga dibuat merasa kaya dengan fakta-fakta keberagaman yang dihadirkan dalam buku ini. Ada sebuah pengingat yang mengasyikkan apabila sedang merasa sendiri atau kesepian, Vandana Shiva mengatakan ada ribuan bakteri dan virus dalam usus yang bekerja memilah nutrisi untuk tubuh kita, mereka bakal terus menemani. Para bakteri dan virus ini mungkin bisa jadi alternatif teman bicara dan curhat hari-hari hahaha, tidak lagi akan merasa sendiri.

Cerita-cerita dalam buku ini juga sering buat ku membatin kalimat semacam "sialan, gitu amat" saat mengetahui rekam jejak perampasan dan keserakahan manusia yang rajin mengusahakan privatisasi kekayaan alam. Selain, aku juga merasa betapa sejauh ini aku, sebagai manusia hidup menjinjing label "target pasar" itu. Aku tidak sama sekali menanam atau membuat sendiri apa yang aku makan atau konsumsi, semuanya beli, yha racik-racik sedikit. Ini semakin membuatku tertohok dan mempertanyakan kembali posisiku di alam semesta ini hahaha, apakah akan terus menjadi target pasar kapital-kapital kartel racun itu atau mau berupaya lebih lestari?

Dari sini juga aku diajak merenungi pola makan yang selama ini ku jalani, label "sehat" dalam kemasan produk hari ini tidak cukup memastikan bahwa itu betul sehat. Kita perlu lebih jauh mempertanyakan dari mana asal produk itu, bagaimana dia ditanam slash diproduksi, dan kemana keutungan komoditas ini mengalir, wah ga jadi makan sie. Aku juga disadarkan tentang cara pandangku terhadap pengetahuan yang masih sangat bias. Dibuat berpikir tentang betapa aku masih perlu belajar cara melihat keberagaman dan sumber pengetahuan karena pemiskinan pengetahuan itu nyata terjadi dan besar kemungkinan aku adalah entitas pelaku pemiskinan itu hahaha, omygad sad. Buku ini betul-betul membukakan mata dan wawasan tentang bagaimana kita itu satu sebagai warga bumi, artinya harus bahu-membahu saling merawat kehidupan, ketersalingan, keberagaman, serta kebersamaan. wan hadred persen tipikal book that will change your laif :)

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Vandana Shiva has written numerous books about her environmental activism, environmental destruction, GMO’s, corporate greed and government corruption, global elites and their attempts to control the food system and much more. I have read a few and watched her speak and have great admiration and respect for her so, believing this to be an autobiography, was keen to read more about her life. The thing is, as so much of Vandana Shiva’s life has been about her work, this book repeats much of what I had already read or heard her say while not giving as much insight into Shiva as a person as I would have liked. We do get something of her early life and the beginnings of her love and awareness of the environment around her. We learn about her first introductions into environmental protests and how that work developed but after this the book becomes more about the movements themselves than her as a person. Still an important read and a reminder of how important her voice and work are but not quite the book I was expecting.

[Oktaria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Selain pengetahuan dan ketangguhannya untuk mempertahankan keanekaragaman hayati dan kehidupan, hal lain yang kukagumi dari Vandana Shiva adalah ingatannya. Begitu detail bahkan hingga ceruk-ceruk terkecil atau paling mula-mula dalam kehidupannya. Aku senang bagaimana buku ini memperlihatkan bahwa perjuangan Shiva tidaklah ia lakukan dengan seorang diri saja. Ia menyebut, mengutip, bahkan memuji, tiap-tiap mereka yang secara langsung dan tak langsung menemaninya dalam perjalanan panjang pernjangannya. Penghargaan yang luar biasa, terutama untuk para perempuan. Ia juga tak gentar menyebut siapa-siapa yang perlu kita "tandai" sebagai musuh kita untuk mempertahankan alam.

Sayangnya detail-detail itu kerap membuatku jemu, sebab aku ingin menemukan refleksi, alih-alih detail yang terlalu, dari perjalanan sepanjang hidupnya dalam gerakan. Terjemahannya juga kurang luwes, cenderung kaku dan membosankan. Terlepas dari itu, melalui memoar ini aku belajar banyak dan kembali diingatkan bahwa perjalananku beluma ada apa-apanya; jalan ini masih panjang dan begitu jauh. Mari terus berjalan.

[bentala ananta · Rating 1 out of 5]

Satu bintang dulu, karena baru mengomentari judul. Secara longgar, "terra" dan "viva" tampaknya berakar dari bahasa Latin, yang kurang lebih berarti "tanah [untuk] hidup (?)". Jejak "terra" sendiri bisa dilacak hingga kata "earth" dalam bahasa Inggris. Sementara itu, dalam bahasa Arab, "earth" menjadi "ard". Namun, di Indonesia kita menyebutnya sebagai Bumi, berasal dari bahasa Jawa Kuna, yang merujuk pada bahasa Sanskerta, Bhumi. Dan Bhumi, konon, merupakan seorang dewi. Dalam mitologi Yunani, ada juga Gaia, yang juga merupakan dewi Bumi. Saya tidak tahu bagaimana prosesnya Bumi mendapat tempat dalam bahasa Indonesia. Beberapa perisitilahan astronomi dalam bahasa Indonesia berasal dari Jawa Kuna, selain Bumi, ada pula antariksa, surya, candra (bulan), bintang, Bimasakti (milky way). Antariksa, bahkan dipakai sebagai nama lembaga di Indonesia yang bertugas mengurusi segala hal berkait dengan keantariksaan: Lembaga Penerbangan dan Antariksa Nasional (LAPAN).

[Faris Toyyib · Rating 5 out of 5]

saya sungguh kagum dan menaruh hormat setinggi-tingginya pada perjuangan shiva yang tak kenal lelah melawan upaya privatisasi alam dan hayati oleh perusahaan dan negara yang hanya untuk meraup laba tanpa peduli dampak sosial, ekologi, dan ekonomi bagi keberlansungan hidup banyak orang. shiva, setidaknya melalui memoarnya ini, adalah perwujudan apa yang disebut praksis, yaitu pengetahuan bertujuan membebaskan manusia dari pennindasan. panjang umur shiva! panjang umur perlawanan! panjang umur kehidupan!

[Liesl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vandana Shiva is truly a "dangerous woman". I loved this book, she's an absolute inspiration.

[Leigha Eyster · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant

[Babs B · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this, I liked the clarity of the author’s thinking. I have watched some of her speeches and look forward to watching and reading more by her.

[Ida Fitri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lima bintang untuk perjuan Anda, Vandana Shiva.

[Ef · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buku yang sangat reflektif. Keterkaitan manusia dengan alam dan keanekaragama hayati.

[Maria Jose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brillante como todo lo de Vandana.

[Kei Mahendra · Rating 5 out of 5]

#PadiMilikRakyat

[Letecia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am actually listening to the audiobook. Vandana does a wonderful job of providing complex material
that is relatable and scaled to a human level. It is full of references to dig in more deeply.

I highly recommend this book