Green Yatra is a leading environmental NGO and a dedicated green journey towards protection, conservation and betterment of Mother Nature and humanity. A devout student of Mother Nature, Pradeep Tripathi, founder of Green Yatra, celebrates life in practising innovative methods in the field of chemical free plantation, agriculture and nature farming. From all season fruits forest, cluster and trench plantation, to multinational and crash crops farming and so on, Tripathi explores different aspects of not only nature and biodiversity, but also art, culture, music and exotic but lesser-known places blessed with nature’s bounty. As an environment, natural farming and sustainability consultant, his endeavours have Mother Nature as the sine qua non.
Let’s hear a fascinating story of sustainability and green movement from the man himself –
The inception
Pradeep Tripathi started his organisation with Durgesh (co-founder of Green Yatra) in 2008 by launching the Go Green Ganesha campaign. Ganesha statues were made out of pop plastics, which is harmful for the environment and health. To stop this practice, Tripathi initiated his project in the locality, targeting schools, colleges and housing communities. After getting enthusiastic response, he and his team started the ‘Go Green Kids’ project, which aimed at educating children about environmental protection. The goal was to inspire kids to teach their parents about the environmental cause. Pradeep’s love for nature is inherent, as he was born in a village, nestled in the lap of nature. Tripathi’s mission is to change human behaviour in order to save the environment by taking baby steps.
“Green Yatra works for sustainable earth for all. The mission is to spread awareness in the household communities that even a simple act of kindness towards the environment can change the face of future generations,” shares Trpathi who believes in result oriented actions.
Roadblocks
“The biggest threat is ignorance in people,” says Pradeep. Society is reluctant to take responsibility for its action; which snowballs into the global crisis of environmental pollution. Citing the lack of responsible behaviour among citizens who are indisposed to wear masks and maintain social distance, amidst the raging second wave of COVID19, Praddep says, “Even after the deadly onslaught of the virus this year, people are just not accepting the reality of the menacing scenario. One must take responsibility for individual actions instead of blaming others for a fault. Thinking of the earth as their home and understanding the need to protect it from everything can only change the perspective.”
Citizen responsibilities
As earthlings we all have our responsibilities to save and protect the land we inhabit. Small steps like saving electricity, closing the water tap when not needed, planting trees whenever and whenever possible can create tangible impact in the larger global goals. Time has come for all of us to spare thoughts to conceive innovative ways of making the earth a better place and taking responsible actions towards it,” advocates Pradeep.
Role of government
“Efforts are being taken at the government and administrative levels towards sustainability and promoting environmental issues. We hear about hundreds and thousands of trees being planted by government agencies. However, the point is not how many trees are being planted; the point is how many survive. For this there is a crying need for government-community partnership” emphasizes Tripathi.
Students in environmental sector
As India keeps featuring as a highly polluted country (3rd in 2020 according to IQAir) in the global index, Green Yatra is taking constant and concerted efforts in making the difference. Tripathi has involved students in his Green Yatra initiative to simply enlighten the future generations about the current condition of Nature and to educate them as much as possible about preservation of natural resources. “Not only are the children taught to look after nature but share the knowledge with their parents. If we can’t give the future generation fresh air to breathe, we will be failing them totally as guardians and adults,” laments the green crusader.
