Extreme weather conditions like floods, droughts and heatwaves have become annual events and have led to the deaths of thousands ofpeople. We all complain about it, make impassioned claims about how it¡¯s all becauseof ¡®climate change¡¯. ?But, how many of ushave taken a conscious effort to bring a change or tried to mitigate thesituation? Even as adults, much of what we do is restricted to big talk and noaction.
Among the few who have taken that step to bring in apositive change is the precocious 11-year-old, Ridhima Pandey hailing from the cityof Haridwar in Uttarakhand.
¡®I am in this fight because the leaders are toying with ourfuture and not taking concrete steps,¡¯ says Ridhima, brimming with anger overthe sad state of affairs across the world.
The flash flood disaster of June 16 and 17, 2013 inUttrakhand surpassed past ones in its ferocity and destruction. More than 5,000people died, many were injured and many went missing during the flood. At the time, Riddhima was justfive-years-old, but the floods moved her to the core and piqued her curiosity aboutthe causes.
Her father Dinesh Pandey, a conservationist with WildlifeTrust of India, went on explain the reasons behind the floods and one of thethings that stoked Ridhima¡¯s activism was the consequences s of global warming,?¡°I felt so bad for the people who lost everything and it made me angry that it was solely because of climate change," she told IndiaTimes in an Interview.
¡°That¡¯s when I knew that something had to be done about itand my father helped me through it. I read up as much as possible on climatechange and went on file a petition with the National GreenTribunal in 2017,¡± said? Ridhima.
In the petition, she asked the court to order the Governmentto prepare a carbon budget and a national climate recovery plan to ensure thatIndia does its share to reduce atmospheric CO2 below 350 parts per million by2100, according to scientific recommendations.
She also laid emphasis on the need to move away from fossilfuels, protect forests, grasslands, soil, mangroves, engage in massivereforestation and improve agricultural and forestry practices.
¡°It took a year and a half to get a response from them. Theyended up dismissing my request but none of that deterred her passion to fightagainst the government¡¯s inaction.¡±
One of the biggest focuses in the fight against climatechange for people like Ridhima is to be part of the decision-making process, ¡°Weare the ones who are directly affected by climate change and it¡¯s important tosecure our futures by taking the necessary steps. That¡¯s why I sued thegovernment and filed the petition.¡±
¡°Sometimes there are people around me who make fun of me bysaying that I am doing this for fun or to miss classes, but I turn a deaf ear tosuch mockery.¡±
Riddhima¡¯s efforts haven¡¯t gone complete unnoticed though,her activism has helped inspire kids in her class to follow the samesteps to take care of the environment. But there are a few who don¡¯t care and thathasn¡¯t dampened her spirit.
¡°Just like some world leaders who don¡¯t take climate changeseriously and pose obstacles to their protests, there are people in the societywho will refuse to be part of the fight,¡± says Ridhima who has learnt how to deal with criticism.
In 2019, she and 14 other young activists filed a complaintwith the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child against fiverespondent countries, Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, and Turkey.
After making hitting headlines with the 2017 petition she wasshortlisted from India by a law firm to represent India in New York. It¡¯s only after she attended this convention, that she was exposed to the brutalworld of online trolls.
¡°People say all kinds of ridiculous things online, but I don¡¯t letanything affect me and I pay more attention to my activism,¡± says a determined11-year-old.
Expressing her anger towardsthe government, Ridhima said, ¡°All I see in the news is CAA protest andviolence against students, but according to me this all a ploy to distractpeople from important issues like Climate Change.¡±
Ridhima has no qualms giving straightforward opinions aboutthe government¡¯s lack in taking a constructive steptowards environmental conservation. She has written multiple letters to theleaders in hopes to get a positive response but in vain.
¡°My nightmare is that thefuture generations will end up seeing a tree in a museum, given the rate atwhich the environment is being razed for our resources. ?With trees being cut relentlessly, the futurelooks bleak and there¡¯s no hope if we don¡¯t act on it now,"
Ever since her activism started gaining traction, Ridhimahas been flooded with invites to attend various climate change seminars andmeetings across the country. One of the biggest challenges for the class 8 student from DAV Haridwar, is to keep up with her homework and exams.
¡°My school is pretty strict with attendance, it¡¯s very difficultto keep up. My school Principal is very supportive and takes care of my attendance.Apart from that, I make sure that I keep up with my studies,"?adding that her parents have been equally supportive and have encouraged her tenacity towards climate change activism every step of the way.?
?Ridhima plans to launch her NGO to mobilise action on climate change and awareness and is determined to continue her higher studies on the same subject.?
'My NGO is already registered, and I hope to mobilise a team of young activists fighting for the same cause." said Ridhima with a steely determination to bring a change.?
At an individual level to Ridhima is very conscious about the way she consumes electricity, makes sure to avoid plastic bags at all costs and spreads awareness about the same with all her friends and family.?