Resilience in the Face of Change: Adapting Green Initiatives in Educational Institutions

Introduction

Alan Weisman says “Without us, earth will abide and endure; Without her, however we could not even be.” Billions of individuals and millions of kinds of plants and animals dazzling in the variety and richness; leading lives that interlock in such a way that they sustain each other, but we as a species, human beings have struggled through the oblivion of this cruel cycle and so we are on the path of destruction.

The colour GREEN symbolizes love towards the environment, but has it been prominent in our advancements? GREEN the colour of nature, a colour that brings verdure to mind and evokes plethora of feelings for peace and refreshment, should we not give a piece of our mind to it? And thus, for such an ailment an ointment has been thought of, which is, green initiative, an approach which is seen as a management modal based on environmental sustainability and the protection of natural resources. Green initiative can benefit organizations by lowering costs, improving efficiency and promoting a positive public image. It helps to address urgent environmental challenges, mitigate climate change and conserve resources. They’re essential for building a more sustainable, resilient and healthier future for individuals, green initiatives promote planet-friendly habits and reduce environmental impacts.

“Sustainability is not just about adopting the latest energy-efficient technologies or turning to renewable sources of power. Sustainability is the responsibility of every individual every day. It is about changing our behaviour and mindset to reduce power and water consumption, thereby helping to control emissions and pollution levels.”- Joe Kaeser

Elements of Green Initiatives

Green initiatives encompass various aspects ‘resource conservation’ efficiently using resources such as energy, water and raw materials to reduce waste and minimize environmental impact. Some of the major elements of green initiatives has been presented figuratively below:

Figure 1. Elements of Green Initiatives

1. Waste Management

Waste management refers to the various schemes to manage and dispose of waste. It can be by discarding, destroying, processing, recycling, using or controlling waste. The prime objective of waste management is to reduce the number of unusable materials and to avert potential health and environmental hazards.

2. Water Management

Water management is an activity of planning, developing, distributing and optimum use of water resources. It includes management of water treatment of drinking water, industrial water, sewage or waste water, management of water resources, and management of irrigation.

3. Energy Conservation

Energy conservation is the effort to reduce wasteful energy consumption by using fewer energy services. It can be achieved through efficient energy use, including a reduction in greenhouse gases and smaller carbon footprint as well as cost, water and energy savings.

4. Reduce, Reuse and Recycle (3R’s)

The terms "3Rs" typically denote the concepts of Reduce, Reuse, and Recycling. These standards, which are mostly focused on waste management, are meant to encourage ecologically responsible and sustainable activities. The "Reduce" principle places emphasis on the significance of reducing waste output from the outset. "Reuse" promotes finding new uses for products, whether they be inventive or returned to their original use. "Recycle" refers to the process of preparing materials for use in the production of new goods.

5. E-Governance

The use of digital technologies and electronic systems to improve administrative procedures, communication, and decision-making in educational settings is known as "e-governance." Promoting sustainable practices that benefit the institution, its stakeholders, and the environment over the long run is the goal.

6. CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility)

An organization's commitment to social and environmental responsibility is demonstrated by including green projects within its larger CSR strategy. This could be lending a hand with conservation initiatives, taking part in neighbourhood clean-up events, and supporting environmental causes.

Benefits

1. Environmental Impacts: The idea of green initiative is directly associated with the reduction of environmental pollution and encourages sustainability.
2. Cost efficient: Implementing energy efficient technologies and waste reduction measures leads to cost savings for organizations.
3. Sustainable Supply Chain: A sustainable supply chain is directly involved in environmentally responsible practices.
4. Energy Conservation: Green initiatives have a direct relationship with energy restoration as it focuses on use of less energy and more production.
5. Creation of Green Spaces: Green initiatives will prompt the population to drive their attention towards green spaces, which in term will lead to development in recreational and economical aspects, thus offering a cleaner and greener environment.
6. Reduce Paper Waste: The application of green initiatives is also an initiation to reduce the paper waste and encourage for its minimum use.
7. Increase in the Investment in Green Technologies: Business firms and investors are more encouraged to invest in green technologies and appliances when green initiative is given more priority.

 

Challenges

1. It is a challenging job to completely eradicate or stop the use of non-renewable energy sources and change the current trend or situation.
2. The principles of green initiatives can only be applied or used in long term rather than being managed to be applied in a short period of time. 
3. Application of Green initiative includes to consume a plant-based diet or a vegan diet which, cannot be achieved or maintained by every single individual.
4. People disregard transportation that emit less pollution for transportation that does for their own comfort, and this selfish behaviour has a huge negative impact to our surroundings.
5. Initial establishment of green management or green initiative takes a huge amount of capital investment.
6. Since the use of papers are mandatory on a daily basis, complete paperless activities are not possible.

“We don’t have to engage in grand, heroic actions to participate in change. Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world.” - Howard Zinn

Current Trends and Practices

As the world is advancing into newer heights, us as a species in every step we take forward are leaving the nature behind. We are furthering away from our way of living as a species here on earth. Technological advancement as given us dreams of stars and to reach them we have ravaged our home here on earth. This issue is a very prominent topic for every person, organisation and country and thus, we as a species have been making efforts to reconnect with our world, and making efforts to make our future a clean and everlasting, right here on earth, as we can see in the few examples given here;

Cambridge Initiation

“We no longer have a choice. We have a moral obligation to future generations to make the changes now that will help to preserve their future.” – Ian Leslie, Special Advisor to the Vice-Chancellor on Environmental Sustainability

“Engage for change”, a campaign currently in practise, in Cambridge; is a free training programme that supports students in how to make environmental changes in their departments, colleges and personal lives.

Apple Initiation

"As our first carbon neutral product, Apple Watch marks a milestone in our plan to make all our products carbon neutral by 2030. We’re cutting the majority of emissions through innovations in materials, clean electricity, and low-carbon shipping. And we’re investing in nature-based projects to offset the small amount that remains. Because the earth won’t wait. Neither will we.” – APPLE

Green Initiative at KIST

KIST as an educational institution has been fulfilling all of its social as well as environmental responsibilities with an initiation of promoting sustainability and eco-friendly environment. KIST is the first educational institution in Nepal, which has instigated the concept of digitized prospectus. All the Information regarding the programmes offered in KIST are completely provided in a single slip with separate QR codes rather than wasting a bulk of papers. In addition to this, all the registration forms and applications are also digitized with less or no use of papers. With the vision of enlarging the concept of environmental sustainability, various clubs have been established in KIST. The college often organizes several guest lectures from experts and professionals concerning the environment. KIST has also encouraged the creation of green spaces in educational institutions. KIST is a CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) based educational institution.

Suggestions

1. Sustainable Transportation:  The use of means of E-Transportation should be given more priority and less use of private vehicles for the reduction in use of non-renewable energy sources
2. Curriculum Contextualization: There has been seen a more need of awareness in educational sectors and include the knowledge about the environmental preservation and sustainability. 
3. Green Purchasing and Procurement: Every institution should focus more on green purchasing and procurement which encourages purchase and supply from the vendors and buyers that are more environment focused and support sustainability.
4. Use of Sustainable Infrastructures and Technologies:  There should be more awareness about sustainable infrastructures and technologies which would encourage in development and creation of more environment friendly buildings and technologies.
5. Creation of Green Spaces: Everybody should get encouraged and also encourage others to create green spaces such as gardens and planting tress inside an organization or institution.

Conclusion

This green endeavour is more than simply a project; it's a legacy- a legacy of ethical behaviour, beneficial environmental effects, and a community coming together to protect the environment for coming generations. Let us proudly carry on this tradition as we go forward, understanding that the sustainable world of tomorrow is shaped by our actions now. Together, we have demonstrated that even little efforts can have a big impact, and we are eager to keep paving the way for a more sustainable and environmentally friendly future for everybody ensuring that we move towards a greener and more sustainable future with even greater competence and efficiency.

References

1. Abhishek, T, Namedo, A, Fuentes, J, Dore, A, Hu, X-M, & Bell, M (2013). Systems scale assessment of the sustainability implications of emerging green initiatives. 183, 213–223. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2013.03.049.
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3. Kaeser, J (2014). Sustainability is everyone’s responsibility. Retrieved from https://gulfnews.com/: https://gulfnews.com/opinion/op-eds/sustainability-is-everyones-responsibility-1.1280327#
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The Authors: Gayatri Chaudhary, Pratigya Neupane, Remon Maharjan and Sambriddha Sundas are grade XII Management students at KIST College & SS.