25th January 2011 ‘This is my plant!’ piped a tiny student of Sacred Heart High School, proudly showing off her sapling. We were impressed—these students, and their eco-club in particular, have taken decisive steps to make their school a greener and healthier place. Our visit began with the eco-club, led by their teacher Mrs. Nirmala, showing us their garbage management system, where wet waste is composted and used as fertilizer for plants. This led us to their next initiative, a small garden of medicinal plants. They then explained how they’ve succeeded in combining environmental consciousness with utility by setting up an organic garden where they grow vegetables with the manure generated from the school’s wet waste. They also went on to show us how they are trying to involve other students in their greening activities by getting them to bring their own plants to the nursery.
“He who plants a tree, plants a hope.” - Lucy Larcom Students from six schools, renowned tree experts, data sheets, flooded lanes and counting/describing tree species is what summed up the pilot of ‘Tree Revival Campaign’ that we jointly organized with Ekonnect Knowledge Foundation at the Stanislaus premises, Bandra on the 12th of July, 2013 from 9.30 to 11.30 am. The tree experts, who included the likes of Dr.Latoo, Rishi Agarwal, Katie Bagli, Renee Vyas and Hemanth Tripathi gave us an insight into the trees of our city and about how the students held the key to creating a greener future for the city. The overall aim of the campaign was to make the students and ALMs aware of the trees in their locality and to identify the potential tree plantation sites within city limits for the future. As Dr. Latoo justifiably said, “We wouldn't care or protect something that we don’t know about”. The programme began with Sonal Alvares from Ekonnect introd...
Did you know that Mumbai has its own dedicated ‘city bird’? You might think that this title has been given to the common crow or the blue rock pigeon or maybe even to the house sparrow; because these are birds that Mumbaikars come across all the time. But what if I tell you that none of the above hold the coveted title of being our 'city bird'? The city bird of Mumbai is the Coppersmith Barbet and it is also known as the Crimson-breasted Barbet (Megalaima haemacephala). This bird is more often heard than seen and it is known to make a monotonous call that goes like, tuk-tuk-tuk. The call resembles a coppersmith repeatedly hitting a copper sheet and this is how it gets its name. The Coppersmith Barbet is also known to make an early morning call to welcome the sunrise. Haven't you heard this call in your locality? Coppersmith Barbets can be found near wooded areas, gardens and possibly even in the greener patches around your residence. They often inhabit...
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