Er. Prabhat Kishore
“Mission LiFE” (Lifestyle For Environment) is an India-led global mass movement, which has been launched by the Prime Minister at 26th session of the Conference of the Parties- COP26 (2021) and formally on October 2022 to save the planet from the disastrous consequences of climate change. It aimed to become “Pro-Planet People” and to encouraging them towards sustainable living.
Mission LiFE aims to adopt a three-pronged strategy “Demand-Supply-Policy (DSP)” for changing people’s collection approach towards sustainability. This includes nudging individuals to practice simple yet effective environment-friendly actions in their daily lives (Demand), enabling industries and markets to respond swiftly to the changing demand (Supply), and to influence government and industrial policy to support both sustainable consumption and production (Policy).
The LiFE themes are- (1) Reduce Waste, (2) Reduce e-Waste, (3) Adopt Healthy Lifestyles, (4) Adopt Sustainable Food Systems, (5) Say “No” to Single-use Plastic, (6) Save Water, (7) Save Energy.
The key aspects of Mission LiFE is (1) Core Philosophy:- Shifting from a “Use & Dispose” economy to a Circular economy focused on “3 Rs, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle”, (2) Objectives:- To nudge individual behaviours towards 75 specific, actionable and sustainable practices across seven categories, including energy, water, single-use plastic, and food systems. (3) Targets:- The Mission aims to mobilise 100 Crore Indians and global citizens between 2022 and 2028 to take action for environmental protection, (4) Impact :-Individual and household actions can reduce global emissions upto 20% by 2050, ailing with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, such as Responsible Consumption & Production (SDG 12), Climate Action (SDG 13), and Life Below Water (SDG 14). It serves as a bottom-up approach to climate action, encouraging daily, simple and non-disruptive changes to reduce carbon footprints.
People are experiencing the effects of climate change in their surroundings and unexpected calamities have also been observed in the last few decades. This makes it abundantly clear that climate change about more than just policy-making. The mission encourages citizens to adopt environmentally responsible habits in their daily life, emphasizing mindful and deliberate utilization of resources rather than mindless and wasteful consumption.
The mission will connect the people’s power for the protection of the earth, and teach them to utilize its resources in a better way. It encourages individuals to adopt eco-friendly daily actions such as conserving water, saving energy, and reducing waste. It makes the fight against climate change democratic, in which everyone can contribute within their capacity. It inspires us to do whatever we can in our daily lives to protect the environment. It believes that the environment can be protected by making changes in our lifestyle.
Society has an important role to play in spreading awareness on this issue. Discussions, debates, poster-making competitions, community outreach programmes, hands-on-workshops, encouraging people to create and adopt bio-degradable idols and artifacts should be organized. Such activities will not only promote creativity, but will also increase environmental awareness and provide an opportunity to highlight the benefits of an eco-friendly atmosphere.
Schools, through their eco-clubs for “Mission LiFE”, will provide opportunity to develop key competencies as enshrined in the “National Curriculum Framework (NCF) 2023” across all stages of school education.
(i) Foundational Stage (Pre-Primary to Class 2)– Activities such as crafting simple clay models foster a positive attitudes towards the natural environment (CG-6), building empathy and care for nature from a young age.
(ii) Preparatory Stage (Class 3 to 5)- Discussions and awareness campaigns help students develop sensitivity towards their social and natural environment (CG-4 – The World Around Us), making them conscious of their impact on the world.
(iii) Middle Stage (Class 6 to 8)- Investigating the life cycle of idols from resource extraction to disposal – allows students to understand the spatial distribution of resources, their conservation, and the interdependence between human activities and natural phenomena (CG-5 – Social Science). Furthermore, the hands-on-creation of idols directly addresses competencies in Art Education (aesthetic and creative expression), Work Education (learning through practical, productive hand-on-work), and fosters vital critical thinking skills.
In recent times, Plaster of Paris (POP) artifacts are being used during various events. POP idols are non-biodegradable and insoluble in water. When immersed in water, they release harmful substances such as gypsum and toxic heavy metals from chemical paints into the water bodies. This reduces oxygen levels in the water, endangers aquatic life, contaminates drinking water sources, and often causes skin and respiratory health problems in people living nearby. To address these issues, artifacts made from natural, bio-degradable materials that dissolve easily in water and do not cause pollution may be used.
(The author is an engineer and educationist. He can be reached at [email protected])
