Ipsita Gupta

Ipsita Gupta - Indian, Asia and the Pacific

2018 Winner | | Indian

India is a country of 1.2 billion people where over 15,000 tons of plastic waste is generated everyday. Daily users of plastic are increasing exponentially and hence, the consumption. Over 40 billion plastic utensils are produced each year, only to end up in landfills and oceans. The hundreds of years that plastic takes to decompose, further aggravates the toxic impact it has on the environment and its carcinogenic and non-biodegradable nature, makes it one of the most dangerous threats to all life on earth. Plastic takes more than four hundred years to decompose. We saw this as an opportunity to create a larger impact in society by targeting the untouched issue of disposable utensils and came up with "bio-edible" bowls. In order to add on the beneficiaries, we chose a community of Afghan refugee women to manufacture these bowls and hence provide them with a sustainable and dignified livelihood.

I am Ipsita Gupta, an undergraduate student pursuing geography honrs from Delhi University. With keen interest in traveling, researching, reading, studying the environment and climate change patterns across the globe and working for human rights, I took up the subject and the project. I am currently heading this project with a team of 30 students from my college which has given us exposure to the world of possibilities for creating a better world. We are constantly engaged in research and networking to take this project to bigger heights. We believe in "be the change you want to see".

Disclaimer: NOTE: This content was shared online for the 2019 cycle of the Young Champions of the Earth programme and has not been updated. This listing does not constitute any endorsement by nor status with the UN Environment Programme.

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