What Are We Doing To The Mountains? Ft. Manshi Asher

Each monsoon, the Himalayas make headlines for floods, landslides, and loss. But what if these aren’t “natural” disasters at all, but the result of choices we keep making? In this episode, Arati and Prem speak with environmental researcher Manshi Asher of Himdhara Collective about disaster justice, flawed development models, and the fight for fair futures in the mountains. Here, a deep dive into how we can — and must — rethink “progress” in fragile landscapes.Show Notes:Himdhara Collective home page: https://www.himdhara.org/An interview on what Himdhara is, and what it does: https://www.himdhara.org/2022/05/30/an-interview-about-himdharas-vision-work/Mansi's writings and podcasts:Audio interview with Manshi Asher on the Himalayan ecology: https://harshaneeyam.captivate.fm/episode/manshiImpacts of Hydropower Development and Compensatory Afforestation on forest ecosystems in the high Himalayas: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0264837719315819Disasters in Himachal and Uttarakhand point to flawed development model: https://frontline.thehindu.com/environment/disasters-in-himachal-pradesh-and-uttarakhand-point-to-flawed-development-model-himalayan-states-indigenous-communities-excluded/article67306462.eceIndia's flawed development model leading to disasters in the Himalayas: https://janataweekly.org/indias-flawed-development-model-leading-to-disasters-in-the-himalayas-3-articles/A mission without a Himalayan vision: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/392964158_A_Mission_Without_a_Himalayan_VisionVideo interview with Manshi on the 2025 disaster in Himachal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbFf5WBmVAYTunnels as "temples" of New India: https://repository.nls.ac.in/nlsj/vol17/iss1/1/Making a molehill out of a mountain (Video interview with Azim Premji University): https://www.youtube.com/live/q5_Zqa4HJmcEroding people power -- a Himalayan village struggles to assert its forest rights: https://caravanmagazine.in/lede/himalayan-villages-struggle-assert-forest-rightsConversations on reimagining Pahari futures: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00856401.2025.2518726Evolution of the Forest Rights Act: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/336898561_Evolution_of_the_Forest_Rights_Act_A_Historcial_PerspectiveA collection of Manshi's writings in the Economic & Political Weekly: https://www.epw.in/author/manshi-asherA collection of Manshi's writings from The Wire: https://science.thewire.in/author/manshi-asher/People in the Himalayas need environmental justice, not sermons: https://thewire.in/environment/people-in-the-mountains-need-disaster-justice-not-sermons-on-environmentalismHimalayan hydropower is not a green alternative: https://dialogue.earth/en/climate/opinion-himalayan-hydropower-is-not-a-green-alternative/Keep environmental justice at the core -- an in-depth interview with Manshi: https://questionofcities.org/keep-environmental-justice-at-the-core-not-mere-environmentalism/Contact us:Email the PodcastArati Kumar-Rao on Instagram Prem Panicker on X (Twitter) Prem on SubstackFrom The Marginlands on Instagram