Catching 'em young for a greener future

VADODARA: If environment concerns have till now been "all talk and no show", this eco club in the MS University campus stands apart for inspiring many others through its activities to take up issues like greenery promotion and solid waste management seriously.
This newly-formed ''Varangi Eco Club'' of the Experimental School, was developed as part of the action project of a final year MSc (home science extension and communication) student Divya Seth, under the guidance of her lecturer Avani Maniar.
"I felt academic knowledge must be applied to reallife situations and for that purpose I took up this actionbased programme, which involves students of classes 6 to 9. Through cleanliness drive, quiz, poster-making, vermicomposting and tree-plantation programmes, I was able to develop awareness among the students," says Seth.
"Through the project, we brought out a book titled ''Guidelines for Eco Club''. provides information on reference books and journals, audio-visual aids on environment, NGOs and corporates involved in similar activities, webliography, recent issues on the topic and wildlife," says Maniar, adding that Varangi eco-club has now been listed under the National Green Corps list of best eco-clubs.
Highlighting the need for interaction of eco clubs with the common man, Seth says, "We conducted lectures with the help of NGOs involved in environment activities, and we taught the children how conduct rallies and campaigns. Our future plans include training teachers to consciously impart environment education in every class."
"Varangi, could be a model eco club for even cashstrapped schools. Team work, networking abilities to generate resources and commitment to the cause has finally paid off," says Maniar.