A base line study was conducted in the 2 identified villages of Haryana on 4 parameters viz water, waste, energy and sanitation at both the community and school level. As per the results, TERI proposed “Green Centres – Hamari Pathshala”- a TERI – LBCT initiative. This project aims to inculcate awareness and a sense of responsibility among the student and Self Help Group (SHG) members about waste management, water conservation issues and build capacity on use of renewable energy sources like solar energy and importance of health, hygiene and sanitation.

The project aspires to help students look towards making the school premises green and sustainable. This was made through workshops, interactive sessions, field visits, hands-on-activities, competitions and setting up of infrastructure. students of the school were trained on the four core issues and provided with hands on and vocational training. The project believes in the theory of behavioral learning i.e learning by doing. Although training sessions were conducted, they were always backed by hands- on activities, games and documentaries. Students were exposed to various professional set ups such as JCB factory so that they can opt for further studies in case they develop interest in the particular area. The project was designed in a way that it provides exposure to students on environmental issues. They were taken to Yamuna Biodiversity Park, Sulabh International Centre and TERI Gram which in turn strengthens their capacity towards the issue of Solid Waste Management, Energy and other environmental concerns.

Similarly, Self Help Group (SHG) members were trained to acquire skills to deal with dry waste such as paper mache training, training in art and craft using waste material, plastic and tin painting and training on Madhubani art. They were also trained to manage wet waste with the help of composting. Energy conservation and emphasis on renewable sources of energy was another focal issue of the project. The members were made aware about solar technology and were taken to National Institute of Solar Energy for better understanding of the concept. They received training on making solar cookers which are sustainable for their day-to-day activities. In order to promote healthy eating habits among the community the project focuses on giving tips about healthy food in its training sessions. In the run up for one of the events, a healthy food cooking competition was held. The winner got the opportunity to provide catering service in the particular event. The project inculcates the habit of washing hands before eating and cooking food, and after using toilet. This being constantly reminded to the members and then, communicated by them to their family members and friends make a ripple effect. This in turn helped in enhancing the health standards of the entire community. In order to present case studies of successful initiatives of other SHGs and to motivate them to start their own initiatives as a group, visits to small scale units and handicraft exhibitions were conducted. These visits help them to observe other such spaces and reflect on their own. While some activities, such as Baithak, wall painting, etc. were organized in order to reach out to the entire community. As a result, local residents directly or indirectly benefit from the project.

The project had two components- SHG and school, which means a wide range between the ages of beneficiaries. Students of age ranging from 3- 9 years become a challenge since they are too small to understand the complexities of environmental concerns. In order to overcome this problem, the team has devised modules, games such as jigsaw, ludo, snake and ladder, Chinese checkers, team building games, and interactive sessions for students. (A copy of Ludo game, hand book for students and monitoring diary for SHG members on four issues are attached)

Another major challenge is the stereotypes and myths prevalent in the community. One such example is the stigma attached to regular bathing. It is belief by the community that that a woman bathe regularly only when she has had sexual intercourse. Myths like these act as barriers in maintaining bodily hygiene. The team worked to break this stigma in order to imbibe habits of cleanliness and sanitation.

Scarcity of water as well as availability of poor quality water also proves to be a major barrier. Water is the basic necessity of every human being and scarcity of the same raises the problem of personal sanitation, cleanliness of the surrounding, food, etc. which ultimately lead to poor health. Community members lack a zest to take initiative and keep blaming the authorities for the same. The project through various activities builds the capacity of the people to take initiatives on their own. It also encourages students to take initiative in order to change/ better their environment through programmes like dream project where students have to dream of a healthy and sustainable environment and put the idea into implementation.

The villages selected for the project have different socio- cultural backgrounds. One is a Hindu dominated region while other is Muslim dominated. It becomes difficult to get them together. However, in some of the programmes like teachers’ training, sanitary staff training, and exposure visits of the SHG members, emphasis is given to group them together. Also the community members were invited together on various platforms organized by TERI as part of the project.