Introduction

The cultural values of Indians have always promoted thrift and savings. This mindset was a result of scarcity of resources vis-à-vis the demand. With such efficiency focus, our country became known for its jugaad (frugal innovation). The underlying dominant principles were – Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.

But as technology improved and resource availability increased, our attitude shifted towards consumerism. This promoted the linear economy model – Take, Use and Dispose. Consequently, it also resulted into high waste generation. The speed with which fashion and tastes are changing is contributing to pre-mature obsolescence of materials. Things are being disposed away even before they complete their life-cycle. On one hand, it is creating waste of out product, and on other hand, it is leading to wastages along the supply chain (from manufacturing to retailer level).

In the 21st century, the major crisis is the waste crisis.

Consequences of waste

Waste is not bad but its improper disposal is bad.

For instance, e-waste is the waste of electronic equipment, mobile, laptop, computer, washing machines etc. Although it is a sign of technology advancement, it causes soil and water pollution because of carcinogenic elements. That’s why proper handling is highly essential.

Similarly, solid waste, plastic waste, biodegradable waste, hazardous waste and construction-destruction waste are having both positive and negative connotations. In order to reap the positive and reduce the negative, waste management is highly important

Dhara’s Vision and Mission

We aim to promote sustainable lifestyle where conscious efforts are made to reduce the waste footprint of humans. We also aim to establish a self-sustaining mechanism of waste collection, segregation, recycle, reuse and treatment and safe disposal.

Dhara’s Activities

• Surveying on sample basis the entire waste supply chain in a particular area to understand nature of waste generated, biggest waste generators, stakeholders responsible for segregation, collection, treatment and disposal and whether the model is sustainable or not
• Collaborating with stakeholders who have the highest potential of changing attitude at household level, incentivizing them to generate less waste or segregate the waste as per the norms
• Partnering with the local bodies to augment their capacity regarding outreach to households
• Analyse the local regulations and laws to find gaps in design and implementation and suggest improvements therein
• Collecting back reusable waste and converting them into commercially saleable commodities through the women and youth self-help groups
• Provide a platform for charity and donation in kind

How you can help

• Donate to our projects related to Waste Management. You can follow the ongoing and upcoming projects here
• Volunteer with us to help execute the ongoing projects and to help kickstart the upcoming ones
• Share your idea about how we can benefit the people more or how we can reach out to more people
• Partner with us and we can jointly work to create more impact

Contact

Drop us an e-mail at dharaforsustaininglife@gmail.com or call us at +91-9999-801-394 or drop by at our office in 10/70 Basement, Old Rajender Nagar, New Delhi-60.