The first time I heard about Green Pistachio’s Sorting Out Mumbai 1.0 in Juhu, I couldn’t quite visualise it. I thought it was another waste sorting and recycling event — though the GP team had me convinced it was much more than that.

Which is why I knew I wanted to, and needed to be part of Sorting Out Mumbai 2.0, where the GP team was scheduled to discuss best and innovative practices on waste segregation with a 500-flat RWA in Ghatkopar, Mumbai.

I had expectations. And usually my expectations are not met; but this time, they were exceeded.

The Different Kind of Sunday Morning Energy

When I entered the room 10 minutes before the scheduled time, there were just 4 RWA committee members and perhaps 1-2 residents. I thought, “well, just what I expected, hardly any interest.”

But slowly the room started filling up, and within 15 minutes we had 20 members and residents along with 8 housekeeping staff sitting in the room, waiting for the session to begin.

On a Sunday morning,

The GP team had also thought of a fun activity for the children — a poster drawing event happening in the adjacent room.

The Selection of Expert Speakers

What was truly remarkable was the selection of speakers.

This is where a team and organisation like GP comes into the picture — because otherwise, one cannot possibly have access to such a group of experts, together, in one room, at one designated time.

Dr. Smita Birkar Chaturvedi (5RCYCLE) broke down the full waste cycle, from your Swiggy box to your old phone, and answered every single question residents had.

Siddesh Pawar (Threco) spoke on e-waste, including the 7,000 tonnes India generates daily, and what actually happens to the data on your discarded devices.

Rachna Kulkarni and Pradnya Karulkar (Prakriti Sanrachna) brought policy and on-ground process together in a genuinely practical manner; it wasn’t preachy nor theoretical.

But the best part? The housekeeping staff was not just being spoken to, but included in every part of the conversation.

The Resident Participation

To add to this mix, one of the residents demonstrated, at the end of the sessions, how exactly he manages his wet waste at home.

He had brought everything with him: wet waste in whey protein boxes,organic liquid fertiliser he drains off after 24 hours, and the remaining compost that goes straight into his plants at home.

The room spent the last 20 minutes crowding around this man’s wet waste, in amazement and curiosity.

A fantastic initiative by Green Pistachio, which I was proud and fortunate to witness in person.

Here’s hoping for more such in-person events where people are truly immersed in how to protect our beautiful planet. 

Thank you.

Avnee Kokatay and the entire Green Pistachio team, for having me and for building exactly these kinds of rooms.

Author


Harshvardhan Sharma is the founder of Social Footprint and co-founder of Planet Pact, working at the intersection of sustainability and social impact. He enables collaborations between corporates and grassroots initiatives, driving scalable solutions in climate action, education, and community development across India.

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