What are eco-enthusiasts at WCC up to?

“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.”

George Bernard Shaw

Biodiversity watching and growing microgreens by members of Eco-club

With the arrival of the Northeast monsoon, the spacious campus of Women's Christian College in Chennai is both lush and tranquil; with only one difference, namely, the absence of students to enjoy it.

The fertile grounds of the campus have always been an inspiration for students to learn to conserve the environment. Members of the Eco-club at WCC have become connected to nature now more than ever, thanks to the lockdown. The club still buzzes with life online concerning ways to conserve the environment from the comfort of their homes.

August 12, 2020 was celebrated as World Elephants Day to raise awareness about the various threats elephants face which eventually leads to their extinction. Members of the club had to formulate different solutions for application questions put forth by the office bearers in relation to various endangered animals like tigers, pangolins, deer, rhinoceros and many other animals.

On September 19, 2020, World Orangutan Day, the Eco-club conducted an online session with its members about the impact of palm oil extraction, its effects on the environment and on orangutans. Plenty of edible and cosmetic products in the market containing palm oil were identified and various alternatives for the products were also discussed. For the benefit of all students, a newsletter addressing this issue and a list of alternative products of palm oil will be circulated soon.

“I feel that this meeting held for World Orangutan Day was a necessity to remind us of the fact that we are not the only living creatures on this planet, and behaving recklessly can lead to consequences we might not be smiling upon”, says one of the members of the club.

Various other activities like biodiversity watching, growing microgreens, environmental quizzes and debates that take place in the club, are helping the members keep in touch with nature as they would have on campus.

The Eco-club pushes ahead with an undeterred motive towards attaining sustainability in their every day activities by setting environmental goals that they aim to achieve by the end of this academic year.

Updates of the flora of our campus

Pic courtesy: Dr Lilian I Jasper

Editors: Padmashree, Dainty W