With the average demographic index below 30 years of age, the strength of India lies in its youth power. On the occasion of World Environment Day today, City Express spoke to a few college students to find out what they think make up the best measures to ensure ‘Think. Eat. Share’ becomes a part of our lifestyle through intelligent consumption and reducing wastage.
The focus of this year’s celebrations by United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) looks at sustainable consumption and reducing our ‘foodprint’ through localized consumption. “Homemade food is the best food and helps us stay fit. Colleges should encourage the trend of ‘bring your own food’ and provide minimum refreshments like tea, coffee and sandwiches instead of heavy lunch and greasy snacks in the canteen which is unhealthy. This cuts down the problem of wastage of leftovers from the canteen,” says Ankita Rajurkar, a student of third-year Mass Communication at St. Francis College for Women at Begumpet.
Though many students carry their lunches with them, eating out is always preferred in groups which invariably leads to wastage of food. An ideal alternative could be a college-based food distribution system wherein the institution can step in as a benefactor and distribute the food to the needy. Tharunya Reddy, a student of B.E third year at Keshav Memorial Institute of Technology says, “Food wastage is a serious problem and needs to be cut down at the individual level. Even colleges can provide food-banks where students can deposit food they do not intend to eat.” The power of composting cannot be overlooked, especially when there are leftovers that cannot be passed on. “Even waste can be used as garden food. Schools and colleges may also provide lunch and ensure that the students eat it and not purchase processed food,” observes Alice Rosario, a second-year student of B.Com.