May-June 2026: Data Sprints, Workshops and Storytelling!
Despite the heat soaring across the country, we were joined by enthusiastic river paglus in our activities! Here is a glimpse of how we spent the months of April and May!
Introduction
UPCOMING EVENTS / OPPORTUNITIES
Sediment Stories with Suraj Nair
🌊 We’re talking to Suraj R Nair (Postdoctoral Scholar at Stanford University) for the 11th conversation of ‘Sediment Stories’. He will be speaking on the topic “Measuring and Managing the Environmental Consequences of Economic Development”.
In our conversation with him, we will discuss how the combination of advanced machine learning methods and social sciences can help understand serious environmental issues like river sand mining.
📖 ‘Sediment Stories’ is a series of conversation on sediments - from creation to extraction, hosted by India Sand Watch at Veditum.
📅 Join us on Saturday, 13th June at 11 am, IST
🔗 Register on this link - https://veditum.org/sedimentstories/
Founders Circle 2.0
As part of our initiative Kolkata Change Makers, we are hosting our second monthly meeting of the Founders Circle on Saturday, 13th June at Veditum’s space near Deshapriya Park in Kolkata.
Founders Circle is a peer space for social sector founders, aspiring founders, and changemakers building in and around Kolkata.
🔗 Learn more and RSVP at this link: Founders Circle 2.0
Veditum x TheRedBari x ALT EFF Film Club Kolkata - 19th June
Join us in Kolkata for the screening of ‘Miles Away’ - ‘'मीलों दूर’. The film follows the everyday-lives of three women from Bundelkhand, who migrate to work in a brick kiln, which takes an upsetting turn after an unexpected rainfall halts their work.
The screening will be followed by a discussion led by Siddharth from Veditum. Get your tickets at this link: Film Club Kolkata - June 2026
Sand, Data, and Wicked Problems - VizChitra 2026
⏳ How do you act on a problem that refuses to fit inside data? Sand mining in rivers is not a problem data alone can solve. It runs up against missing information, broken systems, and uneven capacity to act.
Siddharth, Founder of Veditum, will share at VizChitra 2026 how India Sand Watch evolved from early machine learning attempts into a large open-data effort built through volunteering networks, data sprints, and cross-sector collaboration in response to this challenge.
More about the talk: Sand, Data, and Wicked Problems
Support Veditum’s environmental work with a donation
Please note that Veditum can accept donations only from Indian citizens and through domestic payment methods only. International cards will not work.
PROJECT UPDATES
India Sand Watch (ISW)
Madhya Pradesh Data Sprint 5
We hosted our 5th Madhya Pradesh Data Sprint on 25th April 2026. Enthusiastic participants uploaded news reports covering issues of sand mining focused on the state of Madhya Pradesh!
We discussed the impact of sand mining, the need for better accountability and the role of open data for evidence - while showcasing some of the work and frameworks for collective action we have been preparing as part of our MP focused work.
This time, we hosted a storytelling session facilitated by our team member Madappa PS, where participants put together their thoughts and reflections from uploading news reports on the platform. It was lovely to see the participants having engaged so deeply and passionately with the issue of sand mining!
Read what our participants had to say about the Sprint and the stories from them on our Report card
See all the sprint report cards here : Data Sprints - India Sand Watch
Moving Upstream
Music Video - Luni Yatra
🌿 We finally released a very special creation from the Moving Upstream: Luni Fellowship. With support from Veditum, our fellow Vandita Sariya created an original song, and then a music video to go with it. Experience the story of the Desert River Luni through this song.
Read more about the making of the song at this link: The making of a song from a Desert River
Stories From a Desert River
Madhuri & Saurav , fellows from the Moving Upstream Luni fellowship shared stories from their walk at BLR Design Centre, Bengaluru on 5th June 2025 - World Environment Day.
Read more stories from the Moving Upstream Luni Fellowship at this link.
Kolkata Change Makers
The month of May saw a flurry of events as usual. We are excited to keep the momentum going as our circle of Change Makers continue to grow.
KCM May Circle
For the May KCM circle, we invited participants to share an artefact they have created, that may inspire others down the line. The intention was for the community to add to our existing Change Makers Corner: a museum of inspiration!
You can see some change making artefacts previously shared by the community here.
Founders Circle 1.0
We hosted our first Founders Circle on Saturday, 16th May. We will continue to host this peer space monthly, for social sector founders, aspiring founders, and changemakers building in and around Kolkata.
Veditum x The Red Bari - ALT EFF Film Club Kolkata - May 2026
The second screening of the ALT EFF Film Club, hosted by Veditum (and led by team mate Shamika) at The Red Bari, showcased 4 short films. Following the screening, the audience shared their voices through personal stories, with environmental prompts to guide them.
Support Veditum’s work with communities through a donation
Please note that Veditum can accept donations only from Indian citizens and through domestic payment methods only. International cards will not work.
OTHER UPDATES
Events / Conferences etc.
Water Realities Workshop, Himachal Pradesh
Rhea Lopez from the India Sand Watch team attended the Water Realities conference at the Sambhaavana Institute in Kandbari, Himachal Pradesh. It was organised collectively by the Sambhaavnaa Institute for Public Policy, the Forum for Policy Dialogue on Water Conflicts in India (Water Conflicts Forum), Manthan Adhyayan Kendra, and Himdhara Collective.
The workshop brought together scholars, community practitioners, journalists, and activists to critically engage with water, not as a scarce resource, but as a living entity, and questions of governance, environmental justice, grassroots experience, and community-centered knowledge. Through group discussions on local and national water conflicts, hydropower and groundwater, and community resistance, representation and empowerment, the workshop examined how present-day policies, institutions, and governance around water are contested and could be reimagined.
Public Speaking
Sand mining in India - with Anthropocene Sediment Network
Siddharth from Veditum was part of a conversation hosted by Anthropocene Sediment Network, on 22nd April where he shared about India Sand Watch’s journey and how building an evidence based repository can help protect rivers and improve sediment governance. He was joined by Dr. Priyank Patel and Suraj Gupta from Presidency University Kolkata.
Siddharth in conversation with Carolyn Beeler, The World
Siddharth spoke to Carolyn Beeler host of The World, public radio’s longest-running global news program in the United States. In the conversation, Siddharth spoke about the causes of rampant illegal sand mining in the Chambal Sanctuary and what the new Supreme Court directive to the three states would mean for conservation of the sanctuary.
Listen to the full conversation here : India cracks down on illegal sand mining
Reading Recommendations
A Citizen-Led Initiative to Track Sand Mining in India - Nidhi Jamwal
Senior Journalist Nidhi Jamwal joined us at our Madhya Pradesh Data Sprint V for a day-long effort of uploading news reports about sand mining in Madhya Pradesh, and spent time with us learning more about the issue.
She reflects on being part of the Data Sprint, the need for open access data platforms like India Sand Watch, and how citizens can come together to create strong evidence to protect our rivers!
Read the article here: A Citizen-Led Initiative to Track Sand Mining in India
Support Veditum’s work with a donation or by volunteering
Please note that Veditum can accept donations only from Indian citizens and through domestic payment methods only. International cards will not work.
You can also volunteer with Veditum, read more at this link.Thank you for reading through!
We’ll be back next month with updates from our events, more invitations, and opportunities. Until then, take care and follow us on social media if you’re active on these platforms:
Veditum: Instagram | Linkedin | YouTube | Twitter | Facebook
Moving Upstream: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook
India Sand Watch: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook
Kolkata Change Makers: Instagram | LinkedIn
Warmly,
Team Veditum