A young voice for our planet | Licypriya Kangujam | TEDxMirandaHouse

Key Concepts:

• Climate activism
• Climate change impacts (cyclones, heat waves, air pollution)
• Climate education
• Reforestation (tree planting)
• Fossil fuels and renewable energy transition
• Climate finance (loss and damage fund)
• Plastic pollution
• Single-use plastics
• Recycling/Upcycling
• Behavioral change
• Empowerment
• Freedom

1. Introduction and Personal Journey:

• The speaker discusses her 8-year journey as a climate activist, highlighting both positive and negative experiences.
• She was born in Manipur, India, and grew up in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
• Cyclones Titli (2018) and Fani (2019) had a profound impact on her, witnessing loss of life and homes firsthand. This trauma motivated her activism.
• She moved to Delhi in 2019 and experienced intense heat waves and high air pollution.

2. Inspiration and Role Model:

• Kani Sikaka from Odisha, who fought against mining companies to protect her forest, village, and mountains, inspired her.
• Kani Sikaka's story motivated her to raise her voice against environmental issues.

3. Transition to Climate Activism:

• Experiencing climate disasters and environmental issues at a young age led her to become a child climate activist.
• She attended the United Nations disaster conference in Mongolia in July 2018 at the age of six.
• Meeting world leaders, scientists, experts, policymakers, and other climate activists at the conference was a life-changing event.

4. Child Movement (Bachpan Andolan):

• After returning from Mongolia, she started her own organization called the Child Movement (Bachpan Andolan).
• It is described as a children's movement or a people's movement for climate justice.

5. Five Main Demands to the Government:

• Pass a Climate Change Law: To control carbon emissions and greenhouse gases.
• Include Climate Education: As a mandatory subject in school curriculums to fight climate change from a young age. "There will be no climate solution without the climate education."
• Plant 10 Trees per Student: With 350 million students in India, this would result in 3.5 billion trees planted annually.
• Just Transition from Fossil Fuels: Governments should work together to transition away from coal, oil, and gas to clean, renewable energy sources.
• Rich Nations Pay Loss and Damage Fund: Rich nations should provide climate finance to the global south.

6. Vision for the Future:

• A future with no coal power plants, replaced by clean renewable energies.
• More bicycles on roads instead of fossil fuel vehicles.
• Every child having access to clean air, clean water, and a clean planet.
• She emphasizes that access to these resources are basic human rights.

7. The Urgency of Climate Action:

• Climate change affects every single person in the world.
• Children are already victims of the climate crisis.
• "If there is no nature then there will be no food. If there is no nature then there will be no growth. If there's no nature then there will be no security. And if there's no nature then there will be no future for us."
• She stresses that material possessions are worthless on a dead planet.
• She doesn't want future generations to face the same consequences due to inaction.

8. Monday for Mother Nature:

• An initiative where school children, activists, and students plant trees every Monday.
• The goal is to plant 1 million trees every year.
• She has planted over 350,000 trees (3.5 lakh) across India through this initiative.

9. Climate Education Initiatives:

• Delhi University made it compulsory for every student to plant minimum one tree to pass their final examinations.
• Over 150,000 schools in India are now teaching climate education as a mandatory subject.
• Her story is included as a chapter in the English textbooks of CBSE for classes 3 and 7.

10. Taj Mahal Example:

• She visited the Taj Mahal in June 2022 and was shocked by the plastic pollution.
• She took a poster stating "behind the beauty of Taj Mahel is plastic pollution" and the picture went viral.
• Within 24 hours, the plastic pollution was cleaned, the authority was fined ₹1 lakh, and single-use plastic was banned at the Taj Mahal.

11. Plastic Money Shop:

• A project where people bring single-use plastic waste and receive free rice, stationary items, or plant saplings in exchange.
• The collected plastic is recycled/upcycled into road tiles, house roof sheets, cool benches, desks, etc.
• The mission is to eliminate single-use plastic and prevent it from reaching oceans, rivers, and landfills.
• The project has won awards, including the International Eco Hero Award and the USA Anthem Award.
• The initiative has been implemented in various parts of India and the world.

12. Guinness World Record:

• She and her sister won a Guinness World Record for making the largest plastic bottle sentence: "Save our planet and our future" on 1st March 2023.

13. Global Outreach:

• She has spoken in over 400 institutions in over 40 countries.
• She emphasizes the importance of love and support from people.

14. Call to Action and Freedom:

• "The first step to saving our planet is to change our behavior."
• Change starts with the individual and can spread to family, neighborhood, community, state, country, and the world.
• Change leads to empowerment, empowerment leads to independence, and independence leads to freedom.
• Freedom is defined as protecting the land and environment, children's future, culture, and health, and being free from discrimination and hunger.

15. Conclusion:

• The speaker emphasizes the importance of collective action and fighting for freedom.
• She expresses gratitude for the support she has received and reiterates her commitment to achieving her goals.