On the essence of philanthropy “Philanthropy is about belonging. We are born with a responsibility to one another and to the Earth itself, and true giving begins when we move from charity to inclusion, to participating in the entire value chain of change.”
On the purpose of giving “Philanthropy should not be reduced to writing cheques. The purpose of life and business itself is social giving.”
On nature and development “We must stop treating nature as an obstacle to development. It is, in fact, the powerhouse that sustains it.”
On business and social profit “The real question is not whether a business can make profit, but whether it is designed to create economic as well as social profit.”
On his personal motivation “It’s selfish, I just love the green.”
On building circular systems for communities “We must build on our natural-assets or forest-assets so as to provide a stable source of income and basic amenities for the fringe communities. The circulation of our resources from the environment has to be circular in nature and the economy must adhere to this concept.”
On evolving from targeted aid to systemic healing “We started by fixing clefts, but ended up realizing we needed to heal entire systems.”
On supporting conservation guardians “Those who guard our natural assets are rarely looked after. That must change.”
On flawed measurement systems “Our financial systems value what we can count, not what truly counts.”
On reimagining accounting “What if every balance sheet included trees saved or ecosystems restored? What if every rupee earned was assessed for its ecological footprint?”
On the limits of metrics in regeneration “Regeneration doesn’t follow linear metrics. You can’t quantify a forest’s soul.”
On holistic restoration “You can replant a forest, but you also have to rebuild people’s relationship with nature and with hope.”
On creating change “You cannot prescribe change. You can only co-create it.”
On meaningful giving “If your giving feels easy, you’re not changing the system.”
On what constitutes a good life “A good life is one where people have dignity, connection, and purpose.”
Closing reflection on interconnected well-being “The world needs more givers who understand that their own well-being depends on the well-being of everything around them.”
Ref Link- https://thephilanthropist.org/article/listening-to-the-land-ranjit-barthakurs-vision-for-community-led-conservation-in-the-northeast