Do you remember studying EVS aka Environmental Studies in school? But how much of what you studied can you actually recall? Ravi Kanth Reddy Sathi, through his organisation Mother Earth Environmental Consciousness Society (MEECONS) conducts several workshops for children to make them environmentally aware. Started in 2011, through MEECONS and as a National Trainer for JCI India, an NGO, Ravi Kanth has taken about 50 workshops at schools, parks and even for the Indian Navy. Putting his research skills to good use, this 34-year-old developed curricula for the workshops on 14 different topics including plastic, rainwater harvesting, wildlife conservation and more. "My whole point was to spread more awareness about the environment," says Ravi Kanth, who is also a Senior Manager CSR at Fluentgrid. The content is presented in a way that is easy to understand and it is delivered by Ravi Kanth himself in most cases. He says, "There is so much out there that people are not aware of. Through our short and simple workshops, we are attempting to make people conscious."
Having known the impact of movies and documentaries, as Ravi Kanth himself was influenced by the Oscar-winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth, he also works on adding subtitles to important documentaries and in some cases, dubs them in Telugu too. "Visual mediums are very powerful and can leave a lasting impact on the viewer's mind," he points out. When he came across Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth, he became curious about climate change and understood the seriousness of the issue. Hence, he believes in the medium and hopes that such a transformation occurs in the hearts of others as well. But this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the vast work they do.
Recently, MEECONS conducted a Bird Feeder and Nest Box-Making workshop too. "Every balcony should have one, especially in this heat," says Ravi Kanth, who was born in Brahmana Cheruvu, a village in West Godavari district. They have also held Wetland Awareness sessions and trekking in Kambalakonda wildlife sanctuary and other places. One concern that Ravi Kanth points out is of waste segregation. "We have conducted workshops on waste segregation and composting, but the question is the municipality collecting it in the right way?," he asks. They have proposed a plan to A Hemanth, Chief Medical Officer of Health, Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation, offering to train the waste collection executives if given a chance and are waiting to hear from them. Through such initiatives, they hope that Visakhapatnam will be a greener city to live in.
Two documentaries about the environment you must watch:
Before The Flood
Starring Oscar-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio, this National Geographic feature-length film talks about how climate change has impacted every corner of the world
The 11th hour
In this one hour, 35 minutes-long documentary, leaders like Physicist Stephen Hawking and several others discuss issues that the world is facing today
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