Author: Diya Sharma

By Diya Sharma In Ecosystemic's interview with Kristy Drutman, Kristy mentioned the role that colonization that has played in creating the current ecological crisis we are facing. The cultivation of indigo during 18th and 19th century in India is a textbook example of how imperialism leads to the destruction of the environment and people's lives. The system of indigo cultivation was inherently exploitative. Greed led to the colonization of India, the death of farmers, and the destruction of the environment on an unprecedented scale.  Indigo was the only natural dye that could stain clothes blue before the Industrial revolution.  The plant was native to India and had been used for extracting color for centuries. There is evidence of its trade as far back as the  Egyp...