Annual Climate Festival
Using art, science, and interactive activities to explore India’s rivers, forests, mountains, coasts and oceans, planetary boundaries, and their links with climate change and livelihoods.
Details
Launched in 2022 with Rivers of Life, the annual climate festival initiative has since extended to cover Forests of Life (2023), Mountains of Life (2024), and now Coasts and Oceans of Life in 2025.
Each festival begins with an internship call, inviting passionate individuals to travel across India and curate inspiring stories through photo-essays and public art installations, based on the theme of the year. These stories come to life in an engaging exhibition featuring interactive sessions, cultural performances, movie screenings, and other immersive activities.
The festival kicks off every November at the Azim Premji University’s Bengaluru campus and then travels to different parts of the country. As part of our ongoing Climate Change and Sustainability initiatives, this festival is driven by the youth, for the youth, aiming to inspire and motivate action on pressing climate issues.
Life Series Festival: Where the Rivers, Forests, and Mountains Are!
As part of the evolving Annual Climate Festival, the Life Series Festival introduces a new format that brings together the rich narratives of rivers, forests, and mountains. The inaugural edition, titled Where the Rivers, Forests, and Mountains Are!, was hosted in collaboration with Kuvempu University from March 3 – 7, 2025.
The festival welcomed nearly 5,000 students, from Grade 8 to undergraduate levels, from institutions across Shivamogga and beyond. The festival featured:
- Engaging exhibitions with maps, images, and narratives on biodiversity, communities, and the cultural significance of landscapes.
- Research insights from student interns who explored rivers, forests, and mountain ecosystems.
- Public art installations, cultural performances, and immersive experiences celebrating nature.
- Interactive learning activities, including guided nature walks, hands-on explorations of microbes, flora, and fauna, and curated film screenings facilitated by Kuvempu University students.
The Life Series Festival continues its journey of shared storytelling, blending science, art, and culture to showcase the significance, beauty, and fragility of our natural world.
Stay tuned for future editions!
The Shirui and the Mapithel Mountains of Manipur
Sonim Kasar | 21 Oct 2024
If the Hills Could Talk: A Historical Journey Through the Navadurgas
Richa Sreebalaji | 27 Oct 2024
Roots in Transition: The Nyishi Journey from Mountains to Valleys
Linyam Beyong | 29 Oct 2024
Tales of Coexistence: An account of Savandurga and Chamundi Hill
Sahana Yelkur | 30 Oct 2024
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Climate festival to bring rivers, forests and mountains alive at NEHU
Shillong is set to host Festivals of Life, with a five-day programme at North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU) from 5 – 9 Oct 2026.
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Climate Festivals of Joy
Climate communication needs to be interesting rather than preachy, centred around nature instead of climate disasters, and using approaches of ‘show’ not ‘tell’, writes Harini Nagendra, in Deccan Herald, as we gear up for the Forests of Life festival.
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15-day annual climate festival begins at Bengaluru’s Azim Premji University
Deccan Herald highlights the festival’s third edition, titled Mountains of Life. The festival features a range of art installations, photographs, music, films, artifacts, and interactive workshops.