When climate action starts with children Premium

Rakshitha T. talks about how she started managing her waste effectively around six years ago, going on to share a practical suggestion. “When you buy chips or any other (packaged) foods, make sure that when you tear it, the tip of it gets attached to the package itself,” she says, pointing out that failure to do so may see that bit of plastic going into the compost bin, finally ending up in the ocean, and then, our food. “It not only affects us, but it also affects the animals, birds and the environment, “says Rakshitha, who believes that taking these small steps can help mitigate climate change. 

Rakshitha T. talks about how she started managing her waste effectively around six years ago, going on to share a practical suggestion. “When you buy chips or any other (packaged) foods, make sure that when you tear it, the tip of it gets attached to the package itself,” she says, pointing out that failure to do so may see that bit of plastic going into the compost bin, finally ending up in the ocean, and then, our food. “It not only affects us, but it also affects the animals, birds and the environment, “says Rakshitha, who believes that taking these small steps can help mitigate climate change. 

Rakshitha, a student representing Parikrma Centre for Learning and a conservative enthusiast, was part of a panel titled How can India prioritise climate change and what can children do to help? at the Parikrma Innovations conclave. The event, a collaboration between Parikrma Humanity Foundation and NetApp, was held recently.

Talking about the innovation program, which is now in its third year, Shukla Bose, the founder and CEO of the Parikrma Humanity Foundation, says climate change was chosen as this year’s theme because it is so crucial. “Children are very interested in it. But if you were to look at the curriculum, there is very little constructive application of climate change in it,” she says, adding he hoped that the programme would give them that exposure. “Our political leaders are going all over the world talking about how we are going to be zero emission and all that. But it needs to begin from the level of the young.” 

Also present at the event was Dr. Nishant Srinivasaiah, a wildlife biologist specialising in elephant conservation who expressed concern that elephants have lost nearly half their homes due to deforestation and are struggling against the effects of various anthropomorphic activities. In a similar vein, Dr. Jeannet Kessels, the co-founder of Vets for Climate Action and a climate change advocate, talks about the animals massacred by the floods and fires that have engulfed Australia in recent years, courtesy of climate change. 

The program also ended up bringing up many innovative ideas from the students from different schools. Inventure Academy’s ‘We the Local’ app ended up bagging the first prize at a contest aimed at rewarding those bringing in an innovative approach to climate change. “We believe that such events play a pivotal role in the holistic development of our youth and provide them with the tools and inspiration needed to envision a brighter, more sustainable future,” says Ravi Chhabria, the managing director of NetApp.