South Asia’s adivasis (“inhabitants since the beginning” in Hindi) make up one of the largest Indigenous populations in the world. Like their counterparts across the globe, adivasis are on the frontlines of struggles against extractivism, which has accelerated significantly since the liberalization of the Indian economy in the 1990s. This is particularly the case in the mineral-rich eastern Indian state of Jharkhand, which has been a hub of Indigenous rebellion since before the colonial era. Join us for a vital conversation with photojournalist and activist Ashish Birulee about the adivasi-led struggle against uranium mining and its consequences in the community of Jadugoda in eastern Jharkhand.

Ashish Birulee is an adivasi environmentalist, photojournalist, and writer from the community of Jadugoda in the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand. Ashish was inspired to become an activist from an early age by his father Ghanshyam, who was a leader in the All Jharkhand Student Union that fought for an independent Jharkhandi state in the 1990s. Jadugoda is home to India’s first uranium mine, and Ashish and his family have been heavily involved in highlighting and protesting the ecological, social, and medical impacts of uranium mining on their community and many others like it. Ashish is a core member of the Jharkhandi Organization Against Radiation, which won the Nuclear Free Future Award in 2004. Ashish has spoken at the International Uranium Film Festival and TEDxRavenshawUniversity in Cuttack, Odisha (India).