Yogi dubbed the mystic on a motorbike has a mission to avert famine
An Indian yogi on a motorbike rode into the UAE this week with a powerful message to ask people to join him in protecting the planet’s soil for future generations.
Jaggi Vasudev, or Sadhguru as he popularly known, is on a 100-day journey from Britain to India.
He spoke at the Indian Consulate in Dubai on Thursday evening, and will visit 27 countries meeting world leaders and the public with the aim of persuading governments to include soil regeneration in their national policies.
The 65-year-old reached the UAE a few days ago and has planted mangroves with Mariam Al Mheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, in Abu Dhabi.
An agreement was signed between the UAE’s International Centre for Biosaline Agriculture and Sadhguru’s Conscious Planet to exchange knowledge to safeguard agricultural soil in the country and raise awareness about conservation.
“The desert accounts for more than 80 percent of our country’s territory, which makes us all the more cautious to preserve our soil and the vital ecosystem services it provides,” Ms Al Mheiri told Wam news agency.
“The collaboration with Conscious Planet is a new step in our ongoing efforts to safeguard our precious soil for the next generations.”
Sadhguru said the Emirates, which will host the Cop28 climate summit next year, could occupy a leadership position by demonstrating how to fertilise deserts.
“The UAE government has been most progressive. While the rest of the world is busy turning fertile land to desert, it’s wonderful to see here how deserts are being converted to fertile land,” he said at the Indian consulate in the first of two public meetings in the city.
“In many ways, the UAE can take the leadership. It’s a hub of business, airlines. It can be an ecological hub also.”
