Meet the Indian women at the forefront of the country’s environmental movement
Activists like teenager Ridhima Pandey regularly find themselves at odds with the government as well as powerful corporate lobbies Indian women often manage natural resources at the family and community levels, underlining their role in environmental protection Ridhima Pandey was just nine years old when she filed a petition against the Indian government over its lack of action to mitigate climate change . She recalls her horror in 2013 when her home state of Uttaranchal was devastated by floods. “Watching people’s homes being swept away and thousands of people and animals dying was scary, and a wake-up call for everyone to do something about it,” she said. “Global warming is a real threat, so we need to pay close attention to it.” Now a veteran activist at 13, Pandey has also lobbied India’s National Green Tribunal to address climate change. When her petition was dismissed, she took her cause to the Supreme Court. She also joined a group of other young activists from around the world to file a complaint with the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child against Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany and Turkey over their failure to manage the climate crisis. As the world marks Environment Day on June 5, Pandey has emerged as one of several Indian women at the forefront of her country’s conservation movement , regularly taking on the government as well as powerful corporate lobbies. Sunita Narain, 60, leads the Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment, which monitors air pollution levels around the country and studies the effects of climate change. Listed in 2016 by Time magazine as one of the world’s “100 most influential people”, Narain first rose to prominence by criticising soft drink giants Coca-Cola and Pepsi for the toxic levels of pesticides in their products. The use of local seeds and the promotion of biodiversity are among the most pressing issues for Indian environmentalists. “Local seeds are of more value to farmers because they are better adapted to local conditions and are more pest-resistant,” said Dr Shreeram Khanvilkar, a former professor at the Delhi-based Indian Institute of Ecology and Environment. “They grow organically with just air and water and don’t need chemicals and fertilisers making them healthier for the environment and human consumption.”