Nature is healing. This is probably the only good news that we have read in the past few months since a worldwide lockdown was imposed and people were home quarantined because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Tough a lot of countries have now reopened, most of the people are still confined to their homes, and those stepping out have to follow certain norms and restrictions, 'the new normal' as they say.
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While we have started to observe many positive changes in the environment because of human inactivity during these times I thought of writing this blog post to make you aware of some of the 'Green Warriors' from India who have been contributing to a better and greener future for the human civilization.
1. Malhar Kalambe
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| Malhar Kalambe |
Malhar Kalambe started 'Beach Please' an initiative to clean the Dadar beach and Mithi River every weekend. He started Beach Please on September 10, 2017, when he was 19 years old. Malhar didn’t approach anyone formally or went to any organization asking for help to support his cause. He started the campaign simply by circulating the messages on WhatsApp. “I started sending texts to my friends urging them to come forward and help me clean up Dadar beach and now we have about 100-120 people who join us every Sunday,” he says.
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| One of the Clean Ups at the Dadar Beach |
As of Jan 2020, "Beach Please" has cleaned 3,800 tons of garbage from the coastlines of the beaches and banks of the Mithi river. This initiative has engaged around 40,000 citizens till the date. The cleanup drives are free of cost. The cost of equipment and other requirements for the cleanups are funded by Malhar and his team. The major focus of this campaign is on sensitizing the communities so they don't pollute the river and we don't have to collect this waste.
Malhar's mission is to restore natural beauty as much as he can and he is doing it through "Beach Please". He received the V-Award, an initiative by the United Nations Volunteers India. The award, supported by UNICEF, aims to celebrate young people, who are making the world a better place for all through their acts of volunteerism every day and everywhere.
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| Malhar receiving the V-Award. |
2. Ridhima Pandey
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| Ridhima Pandey |
Ridhima Pandey started her activism back in 2013 after she saw the devastating effects of climate change in the form of Kedarnath floods. Ridhima was among the 16 child petitioners including Greta Thunberg, who filed a complaint with the United Nations to protect lack of government action on the climate change crisis at the UN Climate Action Summit 2019 held in New York.
In 2017 March Ridhima, at the age of 9, filed a 52-page petition in the “National Green Tribunal” to take necessary action on climate change. She wakens up the government, highlighting the growing concern of overpopulation and environmental degradation in the count.
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| Ridhima Pandey at UN Climate Action Summit 2019, New York. |
In 2019, Ridhima Pandey with Great Thunberg and 14 other child petitioners raised her voice against the climate change petition to the "United Nations Child Rights Committee" was, "I am here because I want all the global leaders to do something to stop climate change. If it's not going to be stopped, it is going to harm our futures."
“I want a better future.
I want to save my future.
I want to save our future.
I want to save the future of all the children and all people of future generations.”
3. Vandana Shiva
Vandana Shiva is a 67-year-old environmental activist, scholar, food sovereignty advocate, and anti-globalization author. She is currently based in Delhi. Author of more than twenty books she has written and spoken extensively about advances in the fields of agriculture and food.
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| Vandana Shiva |
Her activism includes opposing Golden Rice and soaring seed prices of the GMO corporations.
She strongly opposes golden rice. Golden rice is a breed of rice that is genetically engineered to biosynthesize beta-carotene, a precursor of Vitamin A.
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| Golden Rice |
Shiva supports the idea of od seed freedom or rejection of corporate patents on seeds. Shiva calls the patenting os life 'biopiracy', and has fought against attempted patents of several indigenous plants, such as basmati.
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| Vandana Shiva receiving the Sydney Peace Prize, 2010. |
Vandana Shiva has been awarded Right Livelihood Award (1993), Sydney Peace Prize (2010), Thomas Merton Award (2011) to name a few.
There are many other such Green Warriors in India and across the globe, Do you know any? Mention them in the comments below.
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