As the Country Representative and Project Facilitator, Mrs. Annapurna led an international collaboration project on Climate Change that aimed to empower students in India to initiate awareness and action on the topic. In partnership with Ocean Wise and under the moral patronage of UNESCO, the Centre for Global Education involved almost 30 countries across the globe, with input from various UNESCO branches. The project targeted students under 18 years old, including almost 25000 students from various schools across the country with lead schools such as The Hyderabad Public School, Begumpet, Hyderabad and The Shri Rak School, Moulsari, Gurgoan, NCR, New Delhi, who participated in international events such as
During the project, the students shared their thoughts on various aspects of climate change, including its impact on their locality, colonization’s effect on indigenous activities, and case studies on resource extraction that contribute to climate change. The team chose to study the extraction of oil by ONGC in India and its connection to colonization. Mrs. Annapurna brought together students from 12 schools in India to participate in the “Youth Art for Climate Change” section of the project, where they used indigenous art forms like Warli Art to express their views on climate change through various mediums. Six out of the eight artworks selected by the UN jury were by Indian students, and a Maharashtra student designed a device to translocate trees, earning accolades.
Through this project, students gained life-changing experiences and skills such as logical and analytical reasoning, problem-solving, and leadership abilities, enabling them to initiate actionable projects and activities. They examined and worked on case studies on various topics, including pollution, floods, and colonization, becoming critical thinkers and acquiring a perspective on environmental degradation’s impact.
Empowering youth to participate in conversations on Climate Change Education, Impact, and Vulnerabilities is crucial. Projects like “Climate Change” allow students to connect with real-life experiences, develop soft skills, and take responsibility for their learning and actions. Through participation, students gain awareness, develop skills like logical and critical thinking, and acquire leadership skills. It prepares them to initiate action projects, improve their lives, and create a white paper to present their ideas to world leaders.
As a K-12 educator, Mrs. Annapurna’s goal is to empower students by involving them in conversations about vulnerabilities and global issues, exposing them to real-world problems, and inspiring innovative solutions for behavioral change in communities to save the planet. Students participate in climate change projects and interact virtually with students from 70 countries, researching and presenting their work as a white paper to the UNFCCC at COP each year. The impact has been life-changing, with students creating innovative solutions and introducing behavioral changes in their communities. For example, students have developed devices to translocate trees, counseled families against buying crackers, and educated government school children about waste management. Another student identified 40 temples where materials used for pujas were being dumped in rivers and successfully implemented compost pits, inspiring behavioral changes in the community. A group of students also designed an eco-friendly device to clean water bodies, reducing existing landfills. Students of a century-old school set up rainwater harvesting pits and compost pits, increasing green cover to receive a platinum rating from the local government and win the UN Green Analytics award. Mrs Annapurna’s vision is to involve 100,000 students in the future.
Mrs. Annapurna was invited by the UN ESCAP (Economic & Social Commission for Asia Pacific), an arm of UN for its Inter Ministerial Committee on Environment and Development as a speaker for the Asia Pacific Finance Roundtable for Climate Change held at the UNESCAP Headquarters in Bangkok from November 29th to December 1st 2022,, where she has interacted with the environment ministers of various countries along with the UN Under-secretary (who is the No.2 in UN) Ms. Armida Salsiah Alishahbana.
Mrs. Annapurna was also invited to the UN Water Conference held at the UN Headquarters, New York from March 22nd to 24th as a speaker for a side event “Innovative Solutions for a Sustainable Blue Economy through Water Action, Cooperation and Youth Engagement” where she interacted with the ministers of various countries, heads of state, officials from UNESCO, World Bank, WHO and ambassadors of various countries as a special invitee to their consulates.
