Climate strike and clean-up day in Auroville

On Saturday 21st September, as part of the Global Climate Strikes and World Clean Up day, Auroville youth organized events to address challenges related to plastic consumption and the consequences of climate change, such as rising sea levels. Over 300 volunteers participated in events such as a litter clean up, plastic waste brand audit, art installations and a climate strike solidarity photo.

The threat of climate change and its consequences are no longer debatable, the “science has been crystal clear for the last 30 years” as Greta Thunberg put it in her UN speech.  Carbon dioxide is at an “unprecedented” level, the highest observed in the past 800,000 years. The impacts will be devastating and are already visible. 

Our planet is facing its 6th mass extinction with species disappearing at a rate 1,000 to 10,000 times faster than the natural rate of extinction according to the World Wildlife Fund. By 2050, 30-50% of the species on this planet could be gone forever. Apart from this, we will all face rising sea levels, more frequent and powerful cyclones, water shortages and severe food insecurity.

Tara (19), a dynamic young Aurovilian who inspired these events says, “Thinking of the future scares and saddens me, and I want to make sure that I do everything in my power to make it better. There is so much beauty in this world but time is running out. Deep down in my heart, I know we still have the choice to make a difference – but we need to work together”. 

4 million concerned citizens in 163 countries were part of these protests and in Auroville, Tara wanted to inspire events with a difference. The morning consisted of a city wide clean up with over 300 volunteers, while the afternoon was spent diligently sorting and weighting the collected plastic waste, completing a brand audit and setting up art installations in public places. 

The global climate strikes coincided with World Clean Up day and intersecting these two movements is the massive issue of plastics. Globally we produce over 300 million tons of plastic each year according to World Watch, and we are only recycling an average of 9% of this waste. According to the Centre for Science and Environment in Delhi, India’s plastic production is growing at 2.5 times the rate of GDP growth in India. “We’re seeing more and more plastic in our waste stream and littered across our landscapes” says Ribhu, Auroville resident and co-founder of WasteLess. “Many brands have switched to plastics and place the responsibility and burden of waste management solely on consumers and the government”, he goes on to say. This was a driving force for WasteLess to register for a ‘global brand audit’ organized by Break Free From Plastic. 

The main clean up event was organized by nine groups including Auroville Clean Up group, Eco Service, Let’s Talk Trash, Mohanam Youth Space, Upcycling Studio, Upasana, WasteLess, Waste Without Borders and Zero Waste Auroville. 

A total of 1,126 kilos of waste was collected but the largest volume was certainly plastics. The brand audit team of 35 volunteers, led by Vivek from WasteLess, carefully studied each piece of plastic and noted the brand, parent company, material and local recyclability. A totally of 1,753 plastic items were studied and a whopping 79% are non-recyclable plastics, often comprised of multiple layers (like chip or biscuit packets). This audit showed that 10 brands are responsible for 40% of plastic litter collected. Pepsi was leading the way in plastic pollution followed closely by Britannia, Perfetti, Mondelez, ITC, Coca Cola, Parle, Nestle and, in last place, two local brands Rusi (milk packets) and Aachi (spice and pickle sachets).

“Brand audits are our way of gathering evidence to hold corporations accountable for plastic that is not manageable or that may be recyclable but is ending up where it shouldn’t be. If we only clean plastic up, it will keep coming back,” says Sybil Bullock from the Break Free From Plastic Brand Audit Coordination team who has been very impressed with citizen science participation from organizations and communities around the world.

Global problems like climate change and plastic pollution are massive and to “diffuse the doomsday prognosis with playfulness and humour” Johnny, an inspiring long-time resident of Auroville, wanted to create a powerful photoshopped image. “We are not only drowning in rising sea levels but also in our own consumer extravagance. There are many small gestures and incremental adjustments that we can make to begin to feel less helpless and more a part of the solution.”  Acting alone doesn’t make any sense – we need to be together and in solidarity rise up to solve the greatest challenges that have ever faced humanity!