Bust out the new clothes and sweets; our favourite festival is here! It is time to get set for the week of fun and frolic. But remember that the choices we make at this time of the year can particularly impact the environment.
The obvious ones are of course the crackers and the pollution. To be fair, there is a lot more sensitivity towards these causes in recent years. We hear of more and more people supporting a noise free Diwali because they care about not disrupting natural habitats and about not wrecking the air quality during the festival. Every such individual’s decision nudges public opinion and social attitudes towards the cracker industry, child labour, and notorious working conditions. Now, the Supreme Court has taken notice too. Icons and public figures appeal to children about the fight against crackers; but this affects jobs, especially around Sivakasi.
When it comes to shopping, what can you watch out for to make your shopping choices more sustainable this year?
Earlier this year, Reciprocity Foundation, an NGO that promotes economic, social and environmental sustainability or reciprocity, had a plastic bag exchange programme at a sustainability fest in the city. The promise was that for every five plastic bags brought in, a canvas bag will be given in exchange to promote an eco-friendly choice. The idea was to rid plastic and dispose plastic waste from homes through approved recycling channels, and also to make people learn not to sully roadsides, choke drains and streams.
Instead, they were shocked to find people queuing with suitcases of plastic bags for exchange, some brand new and unused! They later found that on hearing about the exchange scheme, some folks had gone into stores, and asked for extra plastic shopping bags just to exchange. Surely, the plastic bag is the first thing to eliminate.
Raise the bar — enjoying Diwali in a holistically sustainable way is not about firecrackers alone. There’s more to it. Be aware!
Pavitra Sriprakash
Twitter@pavisriprakash
The writer is an architect, urban designer, dancer and chief designer at Shilpa Architects