By Binita Barman Dutta, New Guwahati Adarsha High School, Guwahati, Assam.
My name is Binita Barman Dutta. I teach science in New Guwahati Adarsha High School, in Guwahati, Assam. Ours is a school of 480 students from classes 6 to 10. Although there are resource constraints, our students make it up by their hard work and enthusiasm. I came to know of the Wipro earthian program in 2022 through Aaranyak, the nodal agency which is coordinating the competition in Assam.
Last year, we took part in two projects. One was on water management and the other on biodiversity. I feel very proud that in the very first year itself, our school team got the national prize in the water category. It was an amazing experience for me and the students to travel to Bengaluru. The exposure and learning that the Wipro team facilitated for all of us were memorable and priceless.
We have a very environment friendly culture in our school. We have nurtured a nice garden. There are many old trees in the backyard. As a teacher, I find it rewarding to take my students out to nature and get them to spend time with flowers, birds, insects and leaves.
Their understanding gets deep, and the learning is long-lasting. Sustainability is an important value that we try to inculcate in our students. In the morning assembly, our students take a pledge reaffirming their commitment to this cause. We conduct regular events like quizzes, debates, and waste to wealth competitions.
This year, we have chosen to work on the Wipro earthian waste management project. We want to use the project to make real changes in the way we operate. Our students have conducted a series of awareness programs in the school and the colony.
Right after the student interaction, all our teachers decided not to use paper and plastic in the staffroom. They now bring their own washable ceramic cups, glasses, and steel plates. Such visible changes have inspired all our students. We compost our kitchen waste. We have created a detailed framework to maintain ours as a zero-waste school.
These projects have taken our belief and engagement on sustainability to the next level. Like the structure of the project, we now do our activities in a systematic, step-by-step and result-oriented manner. We plan things like water audits, rainwater harvesting and waste composting in a scientific way.
We now understand the role of community engagement, and how we can play our part in the larger issues that affect our city. What I like the most is that, now whenever my students have to pick up projects for competitions in or outside school, they all pick them in the area of sustainability.
Through these projects, my students have learnt to manage their time well, and to work as a team. They have also become much more confident in expressing their ideas in writing and presenting them to others. I am very grateful to Wipro earthian for the opportunities given to my students and I, to participate actively in making our world a wonderful place.
