Shillong: More than 3,000 visitors flooded North-Eastern Hill University in Shillong for a five-day climate festival. Running from October 5 to 9, the event drew students, families, and locals to the campus. It was a massive turnout. Azim Premji University organized the event alongside the NEHU Department of Geography.
The festival, titled Festivals of Life: Where the Rivers, Forests, Mountains, Coasts and Oceans Are!, featured over 300 exhibition panels. Attendees walked through displays detailing stories from previous climate initiatives. Students participated in nature walks, film screenings, and workshops focused on bamboo craft. Experts and interns led discussions on local biodiversity and ecological change.
The event highlighted the deep link between local culture and the environment. Film screenings included A Sacred Place, a 2026 work by Dolly Kikon that explores indigenous knowledge. The film sparked debates on community history and conservation. Other sessions covered waste management and the loss of traditional village life.
Cultural pride took center stage during the final days. Artists Robert Khonglam and December Khongsgam played the traditional Ksing Phong bamboo instrument and sang Phawar. The Shillong band Ka Sur Na Nongkyndong also performed. NEHU geography students wrapped up the festival with the Jaintia spring dance Chadsukra and the Khasi harvest dance Shad Shoh Kba. These performances honored regional agricultural roots.
High-profile guests attended the inauguration. Those present included NEHU Vice-Chancellor Prof S K Barik, Prof D Walia, Prof P K Ryngnga, Prof S K De, and Vidya Ramesh from Azim Premji University. Representatives from the Meghalaya Basin Development Authority and the Meghalaya Climate Change Centre also showed up. This Shillong stop is part of a larger travelling series. Azim Premji University began the project in 2022 with Rivers of Life, followed by annual themes focusing on forests, mountains, and coastal regions.
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