NGO 'Small Wish International' launches nature lover's movement in Assam. Here are the details

Guwahati: During the ongoing pandemic, Small Wish International, a non-profit organization, has set in motion a nature lover's movement under its CCEP initiative (Consumer's Commitment for Environmental Protection). The initiative debuted with pledges from artists, students, and environmentalists from across Assam.

The motive of this initiative is to usher in behavior and lifestyle change amongst the Indian people during towards making them eco-friendly consumers. Under the CCEP Inititiative, Small Wish international has laid down a Minimum Carbon Footprint Lifestyle Model and a three-step behavioral change strategy with a vision to make the 1 billion Indian consumers environmentally sensitized and eco-friendly consumers and make way for the India population to play an important role in the global fight for climate change.

However, to become an eco-friendly consumer is no easy task.

Consumers have been urged to pledge to the one/one or more/all the commitments or challenges listed under the Minimum Carbon Footprint Lifestyle Model to turn themselves into an eco-friendly consumer. The challenges will be as follows:

Recycle, reuse, and make conscious decisions about daily lifestyle choices to reduce carbon footprint.

Conserve water, not waste food and generate less household waste.

Limit excess shopping of clothes and give preference to the sustainable clothing lines.

Practice proper garbage disposal methods for the hygiene and well being of my locality.

Avoid goods that are the products of animal cruelty and trafficking.

Prefer eco-friendly products and avoid products that contain chemicals harmful to marine life.

Avoid supporting the businesses that degrade the environment for profits.

Carry handbags to shop groceries and beat single-use plastic pollution.

Practice power saving, use energy-efficient appliances and wherever possible reduce fossil fuel usages and draw energy from renewable sources.

To be attentive towards sanitation issues and discourage spitting, defecating and littering in public spaces and tourist places.

Increase green spaces in my home and inspire my community people to increase the green cover of the locality.

Gift trees to friends on their birthdays.

Consumers after making a pledge and successfully integrating the conservation effort for a period of a minimum of 7-10 days will declare as an eco-friendly consumer as per their pledge. 

Right after its debut, the initiative gained momentum and received pledges from Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Sikkim, Kerala, Karnataka Haryana, Delhi, Jharkhand and continues to impel the citizens of the country to harness themselves for a global cause. Forest Man of India, Padma Shri Jadav Payeng pledged to become an eco-friendly consumer under CCEP initiative.

The movement has been adopted by students from many universities across Assam. The students of Cotton University, Gauhati University, Tezpur University and Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) took their pledges and their presidents officially gave their official statement stating their support to the nature lover's campaign. More prominent figures like Elvis Ali Hazarika (Renowned Swimmer), and Jatin Bora (Actor, Public Figure) also made their pledges and joined the nature lover's movement. The initiative reached more than 15 thousand people in two days, and pledges also started coming internationally from Sri Lanka, United States, Finland, and Turkey.

"India faces huge environmental conservation challenges and poverty, unemployment, rising demand for the growing population is placing severe pressures on natural resources. People and the government are distracted from the essential task of conserving nature. This pledge is the first step to bring behavioral and lifestyle changes among the Indian consumers at the grassroots level to turn them into eco-friendly consumers. I'm glad people are recognizing the indispensable role of nature in supporting our health and well being and are talking about conservation issues and thinking about their consumption impact on the environment." Sheikh Arif Ahmed, CEO of Small Wish International said.

Meanwhile, this initiative has found widespread acceptance among the students' fraternity of Assam. "I appreciate the initiative of Small Wish International. And we the students of Cotton University appreciate this initiative", Hirak Jyoti Patowary the President of Cotton University Student Union said. "We the students of TISS Guwahati will surely be pro-actively part of the larger community and follow your lead in this campaign", said Kabithui Rongmei, the President of TISS, Guwahati.

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