The Plastic Takeback Program (#fantasticwithoutplastic) has successfully started at Azam Campus in Pune. Azam Campus is a beautiful green campus spread out over 26 acres and it houses 4 schools and 30 educational institutions!
With the vision of achieving a Net Zero Campus they have effectively carried out water conservation, rainwater harvesting, vermi-composting land repurposing and regeneration. To them the natural next step to becoming a truly green and sustainable campus is becoming a plastic neutral campus.
The Plastic Takeback Program, introduced by The Giving For Good Foundation in collaboration with SustainPlus will benefit over 1.5 Lakh citizens of Pune directly. More importantly this intervention has the capability of diverting 2650 tons of plastic from landfills and our oceans.
The program is pretty straightforward and simple to adhere to: As part of the 1st Phase of the program at Azam Campus the following steps were covered
Need Assessment & Site Survey: Accompanied by the head of the Environmental Science Department, we surveyed the campus to identify vulnerable points, garbage collections points, type of garbage being generated, explored the waste pickup schedule and whether the waste collectors had the required personal protective equipment etc. It was very heartening to see that the groundwork for a successful project (of this scale!), was already in place. With a bit of course streamlining we are confident this intervention is going to be a complete success.
Stakeholder Engagement: Since it is a multi- stakeholder program, it was critical to identify and engage in dialogue with all the stakeholders involved. We were received well by everyone and the enthusiasm was very encouraging. The dialogue exchange with the concerned stakeholders proved to be constructive and helpful in planning the next steps of the implementation process.
The idea is now to impart a holistic program that targets system management and behavioral change. With frightening predictions like
“By 2050, the amount of plastic in seas and oceans across the world will weigh more than the fishes” - An estimate by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.
It is absolutely essential that all of us come together and do our little bit for Our Environment, Our Health and Our Planet. We look forward to the interactive awareness sessions that are going to be held with the students of Azam Campus in November.