What’s your carbon footprint?
Leela Raina, policy director, IYCN.
Leela Raina is a final-year Economics (Hons.) student at Sri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi. Inspired by the likes of Dr. Rajendra K. Pachauri, Mr. Nandan Nilekani and UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) head Yvo De Boerg whom she met at DSDS 2008- Delhi Sustainable Development Summit by TERI (The Energy and Research Institue), Leela decided to do her bit towards changing climate change. In her own words, “I realised that since the costs of inaction are too high, I tried to work in the area (of sustainable development and climate change).”
But the journey wasn’t so easy. Firstly it was hard to convince her peers to work for the issue of climate change, some of whom refused to even acknowledge that climate change is happening at all. She had to lobby and pressurise her college to allow her to form a society: PRAGATI that would work for the cause of environment.
The scope of work of the society ranges from daily activities to research papers, case studies, field work and newsletters. The society has got solar heaters installed on the campus.
Leela’s endeavour to combine her concern for climate change with her academics inspired her to do carbon footprinting of SRCC students. The data will act as a powerful statistical tool in lobbying for more sustainable projects in the campus.
Leela is the lead negotiator tracker under the ‘adopt a negotiator’ project ( www.adoptanegotiator.org) for India. Her work involves tracking India’s negotiators, meeting with NGOs, IGOs, media and trying to pressurise the government on points of disagreement. As the Policy Director of IYCN, her policy paper was read out in parliament by the Minister of State for the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Jai Ram Mahesh, on July 22,2009 (http://pib.nic.in/release/
release.asp?relid=50811).
Leela wishes to carve a career for herself in the field of environment and climate change. Her advice to the youth who find working for climate change futile is, “We don’t have time and everyone needs to do there own bit.”
SAKSHI KUNDRA
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