Environmental issues simplified...by  Navraj Singh Gill

Chandigarh: Seeing a bundle of paper bags folded in some corner of a house could easily be construed as a typical middle-class mentality. Ranging from storing kitchen groceries in the empty jars of jams, saving all the gunny bags for use as carry bags to mandi (vegetable market), packing shoes in a reusable bag while packing up to travel, and keeping dirty laundry in.

A well-preserved stack of paper bags and even polyethylene bags served as a reservoir for numerous daily needs for storage. Newspapers were used to make a book cover and to wrap fragile items.

A small cotton cloth pouch to keep stationery, a nice sunglass holder in cloth with Kashmiri embroidery, and a crocheted coin bag, all these souvenirs signify prudent choice and precious possessions to be flaunted in years to come as they will sustain their existence, utility, and reusability.This simple outlook reflects the use of sustainable products is what we have inherited through generations from our culture, and something silently absorbed and not taught by some hi-tech PowerPoint presentation to demonstrate the use of sustainable products to protect our planet.

The legacy of owning the Maratabans, kept like a sacred pot in the kitchen perched at the top of the shelf not to be touched by anyone lest it spoils the content stored in it.

The very basic stoneware or in some periods mentioned in history as ceramic ware was a complete necessity for storage and was kept carefully protecting it from chipping and breakage.

Nowadays, it has found a place as a collectible rather than a household item. Was it not our conventional system or could we say that civilizations always developed things that were reusable and biodegradable?

Ecofriendly pattals, made of Sal leaves or banyan leaves, have been mentioned in many historical records and holy books, and are considered sacred to serve prasad and food.

As a tradition, Indians still are continuing and the world is occupied declaring it as their innovation to aptly replace plastic tableware.No workshop on alternatives to plastic educated us so, it has simply been adopted by our previous generations for years.

Every time one pays obeisance at a Gurudwara Sahib or other religious places, the pattals made of dried leaves sewn up by dried twigs together form the most pious utility.

The Pattals known by different names across India are not the only sustainable product, in many states’ food is still offered on banana leaves. Ultimately, the question arises whether the R and D of previous eras were far better or whether simple living never led to the development of complex polymers.The clothing that one outgrew was folded and kept in a separate bag sorted age appropriately to be handed over to the cousins.

The clothing was worn till it was worn out or one has outgrown. And the utility of those clothes would not meet the end of their lifecycle and were passed on to younger ones in the family.

No outfit-repetition faux pas earned recognition in the families. Most of us learned reusability way before we even learned the meaning of the word ‘reuse’ in the context of saving the environment. Clothing production has doubled in past decade and we wear it only half as long.

Consumer behaviour is greatly affected by psychological factors, financial factors, social factors, etc. And the role of the family is one of them. When did the families accept outfit repetition as a faux pas? Who introduced this to us? Now we are talking about reducing the consumption in garment industry by reusing and upcycling. 

The hype about the durability of plastic, thermocol, polyethylene, etc non-biodegradable products, as a consequence, caused the environmental disaster we are facing today. Undoubtedly, it was adopted after thorough research.

Another form of hype in the media introduced the jute bag back to society and found its place back in the market in the more sophisticated uplifted makeover. Were we not aware that a jute bag is a better option than a polyethylene carry bag? Just promoting consumerism is the only focus marketing has. Where are we heading, or are we allowing ourselves to be led by whatever we are exposed to? Has our digital literacy let our guard down and hypnotized us? Are we even applying our minds?

India with a population of 1.44 billion and more than 52% of the population with internet usage cannot pretend to be ignorant concerning environmental issues either. Whether it is e-waste, garbage dumps, biodiversity loss, and many more.

If the market offers consumers myriads of new products for usage, we as responsible citizens cannot play as uninformed users or consumers when internet connectivity brings to us readily available information, almost omnipresent.

The pros and cons, both are available on the same platform, The Internet. Of all the Rs’, Resuse, Recycle, Renew,Reduce,the right to Refuse too can be exercised. Refuse to use cheap non-biodegradable products. 

The issue of the environment needs to be handled at the grassroots level in microform, essentially starting with small, easily graspable, and relatable activities rather than making it sound like a jargon difficult to understand or a cumbersome task to take up. Just a reminder is needed. This culture of ours took years to condition us “To be in harmony with nature”.

Only we need to recognize the value and importance of continuing the conventional small practices. Keep it simple and put it simply for more effective implementation of sustainable practices that can be adopted in day-to-day life by an individual. Easily understandable and relatable.

The age-old conventions, cultures, inventions, and innovations passed on by the millennials and while passing the baton on to alphas pay heed to what led us to lessen the importance of valuable practices innate to our culture used for basic survival, the practices of reusing jars and sharing clothes may sound ancient but ancient not always mean obsolete.

Ironically, the age-old traditions like the use of pattals for tableware are still in practice whereas new ones are on the brink of abandonment.

August 9, 2024