My City My Responsibility: Think it through

Dear All, 

Hope you all find it exciting to do our bit to make our city livable or say Sustainable. It excites me because it gives me a sense of ownership of my city along with citizenship. And I believe that when you own it only then you care about it. We own this Earth and so we should take care of it.  

Regarding the solid waste problem that we are currently facing in our city, I am sure we as individuals are definitely doing our bit by segregating the wastes into wet waste and dry waste. As per revised city development plan our city generates around 1300 MT of solid wastes daily. Considering the current population, per person we are generating around 400 g of solid waste. Out of the 1300 MT, the household waste or domestic waste constitutes around 69%, i.e around 966 MT. While the remaining 31% is generated through street cleaning, hotels, markets, hospitals etc. Thus, in a way, 69% of the problem of solid waste is in our hands as citizens of Pune. 

This led me to think that by segregating the waste I am helping in better management of the solid waste which is a great thing. But if I can help in minimizing the waste will it be even better? What do I mean by minimizing the wastes? Here's an interesting image posted below, which I came across on social media and felt like sharing. I am not sure who is the creator though. 

Source: www.pinterest.nz

Its a simple flow diagram that directs you to think before buying is it really needed ? I know its easier said than done. But can we start thinking on these lines. It is about being concerned and thinking consciously about our actions which will lead us to Sustainability. We will discuss more about responsible consumption that can lead to responsible production in our next blog. 

Pournima Agarkar.