From sterilised medical tools to microwave meals and affordable toys, the invention of plastic has changed our lives in ways both big and small. But the rate at which we’re consuming and discarding plastic – especially single-use products – is getting out of control and creating real problems for our oceans. Every year the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) , a globally coordinated clean up of beaches and waterways, by Ocean Conservancy, is held on the …[Read more]
We are using more plastic than ever before. I vividly remember as a child we used to carry bags for our weekly vegetable and fruit shopping from the market. Most often these bags were worn out bed sheets that Amma (my mother) would stitch up as bags, some were handmade with a kind of wire. We never left the house without these. Shopkeepers packed what we bought in newspapers or brown paper covers. Oil was …[Read more]
When I was in school, summer breaks were the best time of all – that was when we travelled to meet family. It was an annual affair and a privilege to be able to travel. The other term breaks were meant for mastering board games, learning (and improving) sports, exploring the outdoors and ahem, ahem, doing homework! Over the years as connectivity and options improved, travelling became affordable and common. Annual holidays were swapped for …[Read more]
Picture this: you are in a car on a road trip, at a distance you see birds flocking around a tall mound. You keep wondering what that place could be and then, as you drive up close to the mound you realise that… it is a heap of rubbish that has grown to the size of a hillock! This is a true story from my travels in Ahmedabad in Gujarat, India. Waste management is the …[Read more]
