Road tour to combat climate change

Times of India , Friday, January 02, 2009
Correspondent : TNN
CHENNAI: A white Reva comes to a halt on the Madras University campus. Plastered with signs showing the positive effects of reforestation,passers-by quickly gather to stare at the tiny car.

"People are always curious about the car. It's great as it doesn't pollute like other vehicles. Besides, it's so tiny that we are able to get through the traffic in no time," says Kartikeya Singh, co-founder of Indian Youth Climate Network. It's in this car, along with two other vehicles that run on jatropha oil and waste vegetable oil fitted with solar panels, that 20 people will make a 4,000-km journey across the country, advocating exactly what the stickers on their cars say: save the environment and combat climate change.

The cars will start from Chennai on Saturday and make pit stops at Bangalore, Nagpur, Mumbai and Jaipur among other places. Caroline Howe and Alexis Ringwald planned the Climate Solutions Road Tour' after living in India for one and a half years, studying the solutions people had to make India environmentally friendly. "We saw several people with innovative methods of generating clean technology and designing green buildings. However, these solutions weren't getting the right exposure," says Caroline.

The group plans to take these issues to universities across the country, where students will be encouraged to go for green jobs'. They are also going to look at various climate change policies and the economic factors involved. "People say going green is an expensive affair, but not everyone knows of the long-term savings. For example, solar water heaters can save a lot of money as they don't take up too much power," says Anna da Costa, who is also part of the caravan.

It's not going to be all work for the Climate Solutions Caravan,' which is the longest electric car caravan in the world. The gang plans on having fun, courtesy Solar Punch, a band that generates its music through solar panels and a group of dancers.

"If there's one thing I've learnt in India, it's that music and dance brings people together. We'll try to make climate change fun and exciting," says Caroline. They think the music will attract people in rural areas, who, according to them, live enviro-conscious lives and need to be credited. The group will wind up their tour five weeks later at New Delhi, where they will meet with officials at the new and renewable energy ministry.

So what can Chennaiites do to live a clean, green life? "Little things matter, like switching off lights and having a bucket bath. You can't change your lifestyle entirely, but people should take small steps to conserving resources," says Caroline. Anna adds that responding to climate change doesn't necessarily mean a life of "suffering and sacrifice". "It's having economic growth and supporting sustainable development but also providing environmental security," she says. As Kartikeya puts it, "It's time we create and maintain a life that does not depend on fossil fuels."

lakshmi.kumaraswami@timesgroup.com

 
SOURCE : Friday, January 02, 2009
 


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