Little drops of water make a mighty ocean and Sangli-based Riya Kulkarni, who is studying at Podar International School, Sangli, is taking small steps towards the greater good of humankind and planet Earth. She has started an impactful project to reduce the use of single use polythene bags by shopkeepers and hawkers.
Kulkarni, who participated in the Harvard Model United Nations India, spoke about how we can minimise plastic pollution. The MUN was co-hosted by the Harvard International Relations Council and Worldview Education, wherein the theme was ‘Act to Impact’, a theme that pushed delegates to convert what they learn in their respective committees into real-world initiatives in their communities.
Talking to the eighth standard girl, we find out more about her project, and her dream of helping and empowering women to achieve a plastic-free environment.
Kulkarni says that she has been learning about the harmful effects of plastic from a very long time. “But it was not until I experienced how plastic was more like the plague in society — clogging water bodies, disrupting the beauty of nature and, more importantly, causing harm to life — that I decided this had to be addressed immediately,” says she.
“Recently, single use plastic was banned in our state of Maharashtra, which of course was a great step towards a greener future, but when this ban was implemented many people were not prepared for it, let alone being aware of the substitute that could be used, which left them hassled,” says Kulkarni, adding that after a week of imposing the ban, with fewer options in hand, the shopkeepers again started using the banned plastic bags, which was a trigger point for her to educate the people.
“I began stitching cloth bags from old sarees and started distributing them personally amongst the shopkeepers and hawkers in my local community free of cost because I believed if I was able to convince people around me it would build up my confidence of convincing others as well,” shares Kulkarni, explaining that this constituted level one of her project.
WOMEN ARE THE TRUE CHANGE MAKERS
To create greater awareness, Kulkarni launched level two of her project, which was to bring women on board because she believes that women are the true change makers in society. To empower the women in the surrounding areas, she approached the women of Bhagini Nivedita, an NGO that helps women affected by HIV/ AIDS. “I have always believed in gender equality because of which I wanted to create opportunities for the women so that they too could contribute towards a good cause and that’s when I started holding workshops for these women at the NGO and training them how to stitch cloth bags,” says the teenager.
These women not only learnt how to save the environment but also started earning a living so it was a win-win situation. She also believes that women are more aware of the problems and challenges facing society. “So if you want to curb something, you need to educate the women first so that they can imbibe and inculcate the learnings leading to a bigger change in society,” says Kulkarni pointing out that she is also working with the tribal women of Gadchiroli to spread awareness of the harmful effects of single use plastic.
“All this may sound easy, but in reality it is challenging,” says the youngster explaining that people are not so receptive about change. “People won’t listen to you in the first go, especially when you tell them about plastic and its harmful effects because they believe that plastic is a helpful item which they have been using for several years now, so why is the change needed now all of a sudden,” she says.
But with a little bit of patience you can make people understand and make yourself heard.
