Courtesy : yourstory.com

Eco-friendly products entrepreneur

Even before 17-year-old Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg initiated the global ‘Fridays for Future’ strikes, climate activists and scientists had been warning against the dangers of climate change. Sustainable solutions and eco-friendly alternatives for products ranging from polluting gases and fuel emissions, to everyday items like toothbrushes have gained momentum as people have become more environmentally conscious and are striving to find solutions to mitigate the effects of climate breakdown. Entrepreneurs with eco-conscious mindsets and a desire to promote eco-friendly solutions play a big role in helping everyday consumers make mindful choices and switch to sustainable solutions. Here are four women entrepreneurs who are providing eco-friendly and sustainable solutions for everyday items and are promoting environment-friendly alternatives. Get connected to BEEJ Kopraan, Simran Khara Simran Kharra, Founder of Kopraan. Most cleaning products found in every household are filled with chemicals and toxins which promise to eradicate the germs from surfaces. However, such cleaning agents comprise dangerous toxins like Paraben and Triclosan which have shown to have effects on the human body. This prevalence of toxic chemicals in cleaning products led Simran Khara to start Kopraan, a toxin-free, eco-friendly and plant-based hygiene products startup in November 2019. The products use surfactants naturally derived from plant-based sources like sugarcane and coconut. It avoids using seven harmful chemicals – Paraben, Triclosan, Ammonia, Phosphate, EDTA, Phthalates, and Chlorine — and also refrains from the use of synthetic dye in their products. Get connected to BEEJ ALSO READ The irony of toxic cleaning products led this woman entrepreneur to start a plant-based, eco-friendly alternative Beej, Arundhati Kumar Arundhati Kumar, Founder of Beej. Founded by Arundhati Kumar, BEEJ is a vegan accessories startup with sustainability at its core. The Mumbai-based startup offers bags, wallets, and clutches made with sustainable materials sourced from pineapple leaves, cactus leaves, cork, and other materials. The founder told HerStory in an earlier interview that the startup connects creativity, ethical practices, and mindful designs to make sustainable fashion mainstream. After being caught in a torrid heat wave while vacationing in Europe, Arundhati realised that climate change was a very real threat and decided to establish a startup in the sustainability space. The startup uses all plant-based, recyclable, and partially or completely biodegradable materials. It also uses post-consumer recycled yarn and zippers made out of recycled PET bottles. It embroiders/embosses logos to reduce the use of hardware. All products are made so as to reduce waste. ALSO READ This woman entrepreneur’s startup offers sustainable fashion accessories made from pineapple leaves and cactus Naturecraft Fashions, Sandhya Purani Sandhya Purani, Founder of Naturecraft Fashions. For over a decade, Sandhya Purani had worked as an engineer in the electrical machines industry. However, the useability and versatility of the coconut tree led her to found Naturecraft Fashions to launch CocoMoco, an eco-jewellery brand that offers accessories made out of coconut shells for modern, contemporary women. “Naturecraft is not just an ecommerce startup; it is committed to nature and culture. It presents carefully designed and curated coconut fashion with designs that have universal, contemporary appeal, but made by working closely with artisans using traditional, ethnic craft. It aims to connect local artisans and craftspeople to global fashionistas,” Sandhya said in an earlier interview with HerStory. The startup is also incubated at Kerala Startup Mission. ALSO READ This Kozhikode-based woman entrepreneur is taking coconut shell jewellery to the world Upcycler’s Labs, Amishi Parasrampuria Amishi Parasrampuria, Founder of Upcycler’s Lab. Amishi Parasrampuria has two social enterprises that aim to create eco-friendly mindsets and not just indulges the consumers in thinking that buying sustainable products means the end of doing their bit for the environment. In 2014, she initiated The Upcycle Project that upcycles waste into utility products, which are then sold on online stores. Real ising that these initiatives alone could not bring about a change in the mindset, she started the Upcycler’s Lab to make children aware of the detrimental impacts of unsustainable products on the environments, and enable them to become powerful agents of change. Catering to children aged between two and nine, Upcycler’s Lab has designed collaborative board games, puzzles, storybooks, and eco alphabet flash cards based on environment-related topics including waste segregation, forest and wildlife conservation, among others. Get connected to BEEJ Edited by Kanishk Singh SUSTAINABLE ECO FRIENDLY CLIMATE CHANGE ENVIRONMENT STARTUP 21+ SHARES +0 Trending Now Trending Stories [100 Emerging Women Leaders] Meet The Women Entrepreneurs Championing Financial Inclusion With Fintech Startup Jify [100 Emerging Women Leaders] Meet Sonal Biyani—Investment Banker By Day, Stand-Up Comic By Night [100 Emerging Women Leaders] Meet Surabhi Washishth, The Youngest Woman General Partner In India [100 Emerging Women Leaders] Neha Suyal Is Turning Lifestyle Of Millennials In India’s Hinterlands Into Reality Daily Capsule Offbeat new year resolutions Read the full story Latest Updates from around the world How NITI Aayog’s WEP Is Enabling Women Entrepreneurs To Scale With Right Content, Information How To Support Women Business Leaders In Their Ambitions Moving In With Malaika: A Series Of Product Placements And Drama Do Not Make For A Reality Show Flawed, Human, Courageous: Independence By Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni Is A Story Of Three Sisters 10 Heart-Warming Stories Our Readers Loved In 2022 Spotlight: Schwarzkopf Launches First Anti-Breakage Hair Colour With OmegaPlex Technology In India ENVIRONMENT Freshwater is the next oil By Sundar Mahalingam December 04, 2022, Updated on : Sun Dec 04 2022 08:06:32 GMT+0530 Indian startups are innovating to develop solutions that can put fresh water into efficient use or conserve it as far as possible. 1.1K CLAPS +0 In 2019, Chennai, one of the world’s wettest major cities, ran out of water. The human-made catastrophe has gone down in the history of Chennai as ‘Day Zero’ as the government trucked in 10 million liters to help 11 million inhabitants survive a day without water. While the people of Chennai struggled for water in 2019, they regularly dread the northeast monsoons that flood the city.  ‘Day Zero’ merely scratches the surface of what lies ahead for humanity should climate change and fast-depleting freshwater is not addressed on priority. Chennai stands as a stark example of the fact that ‘while some parts of the world have scarcity of water, others have over-abundance. The issue lies with the distribution of water across the world. Therefore, it has become imperative to address this imbalance, or else it may lead to taking a heavy toll on survival, productivi Two-thirds of the earth is water, but less than three percent of this is freshwater, of which less than 1% is available for use. Freshwater is used not only for drinking but is also a crucial resource for the industry. Air pollution, the earth and its surface, the oceans and rivers, all play a major role in the quality and quantity of fresh water. Today’s expanding population and urbanisation have fast-tracked climate change leading to the drying up of rivers and lakes around the globe as well as the shrinking of some of the largest groundwater reservoirs. According to United Nations World Water Development Report 2018, close to six billion people are likely to suffer from clean water scarcity by 2050. If freshwater resources are continued to be depleted faster than they can be replenished, the world will run out of safe drinking water. Experts suggest these statistics rather may be an underestimation and freshwater scarcity may be worse. Till recent years, India has depended upon traditional and rudimentary techniques to manage water stress. However, with India being the world’s third-largest startup ecosystem across multiple sectors, it is high time to turn to them to bring in innovation and technical competence and develop solutions that are scalable and sustainable and can help contain the growing strain on freshwater resources. From electric vehicles to harnessing solar and wind energy, young entrepreneurs don’t stop at pushing boundaries to develop solutions for tackling water issues and saving lives.  The influence of younger generations who are proving to be more environmentally conscious consumers and Indian startups are thinking about water. Indian startups are turning water risk and conservation into an upside by recognising these issues and are innovating to develop solutions that can put fresh water into efficient use or conserve it as far as possible.  Further, the tightening scrutiny on ESG performance metrics on companies in India, irrespective of size, has opened a new avenue for startups to explore as investors are eying to invest in water solution providers. India has witnessed the emergence of several successful startups working in freshwater conservation across multiple functions, be it water measurement, safe drinking water, and more. Investors too are showing greater willingness to back Indian climate startups. One such success is Cranberry Analytics, a Pune-based startup that has been working with local authorities of Pimpri Chinchwad and Goa as well as other water utility companies to develop both on-ground and online tech solutions to map water use and water efficiency across its distribution and consumption cycle. Focused on getting water utilities (most of which are state-run and use tax-payer money), reducing cash burn, and eventually turning cash-positive. The organisation is among the very few in India providing end-to-end services in this area. Their solutions enabled revenue growth for the PCMC water department, 100% water bill distribution, boosted consumer onboarding, and reduced non-metered connections, thereby improving the overall quality of water services to consumers in the area. In the PCMC region itself, Cranberry Analytics is helping save approx. 10,000 million liters of water every year and effectively measuring approx. 95,000 million liters of water every year. Besides Cranberry, the number of innovators coming up with technological solutions for tackling water issues and saving lives in India is growing. WEGoT provides integrated water management solutions in real-time to prevent and address the water crisis; Uravu Labs, a Bengaluru-based watertech startup, uses environmental moisture and renewable energy to create drinking water; Swajal  is a Kanpur-based startup that serves mineralised water, and cleansed with ultra-filtration and reverse osmosis (RO) technology. These startups using innovation to conserve freshwater are an example of the fact that despite naysayers, the growth trajectory for water startups is climbing up and there is high demand for innovation in this area and potential for ingenious entrepreneurs to succeed. Afterall, as famously quoted by Jacques-Yves Cousteau, French marine explorer, passionate filmmaker, and pioneer of underwater documentaries, as well as an underwater conservationist–“We forget that the water cycle and the life cycle are one.”  Edited by Megha Reddy (Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of YourStory.) WATER CONSERVATION INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS 0 SHARES +0 Trending Now Trending Stories 5 NGOs That Are Trying To Transform Government Schools This NRI Couple Is Enabling Underprivileged Students To Study Abroad Meet 21-Year-Old Mayank Pratap Singh, Who Is All Set To Become India’s Youngest Judge A Dowry Demand Caused This Bride From Kota To Call Off Her Wedding Daily Capsule Offbeat new year resolutions Read the full story Latest Updates from around the world How India’s G20 Presidency Can Help Fight Climate Change Consciousness: The Need Of The Hour In Agriculture How 400 Women From Rural Jharkhand Graduated Out Of Ultra-Poverty Spotlight:The/Nudge Incubator: Solving India’s Livelihood Challenges By Acting As A Catalyst For The Non-Profit Sector Spotlight: How The/Nudge Prize | Ashirvad Water Challenge Is Tackling Clean Drinking Water Challenges Head-On Here’s How Asthmatics Can Manage Smog And Pollution Triggers ENVIRONMENT How can India grow its biofuel usage as an alternative fuel? By Kishan Karunakaran October 26, 2022, Updated on : Wed Oct 26 2022 11:02:35 GMT+0530 Earlier this year, the Government of India released a policy mandating the use of biomass pellets for around 7% of the requirement in thermal power plants. 385 CLAPS +0 Being one of the fastest-growing economies, India is also the third-largest consumer of primary energy in the world, behind the US and China. India’s fuel energy security is at risk until the nation makes use of biofuel as an alternative fuel. The government of India is targeting to reduce the country’s carbon footprint by 30-35%, by the year 2030. In order to achieve this herculean target, it is important to implement a strategy that includes adopting biofuels and renewables and increasing domestic production. The government policy seems to be in the right direction and is set to improve the usage of biofuel from the existing levels. Earlier this year, the Government of India released a policy mandating the use of biomass pellets for around 7% of the requirement in thermal power plants. 1294 people loved this story Cash For Trash: Why India Should Swap Out Crude Imports With Biofuels And Waste-To-Energy Explore Now In addition to helping avoid stubble burning, this will also provide additional income to farmers and provide job opportunities to the locals. Further, in an amendment to the National Policy on Biofuels 2018 released in May this year, the government has made a provision to allow more feedstock for the production of biofuels and advance the ethanol blending target of 20% blending of ethanol in petrol to ESY 2025-26 from 2030. The amendment also reflects the government’s will to promote the production of biofuels in the country, under the Make in India program, by units located in Special Economic Zones (SEZ)/ Export Oriented Units (EoUs). Additionally, India’s carbon exchange and NDC goals will encourage the switching of fuels. As per the updated NDC, India now stands committed to reducing the Emissions Intensity of its GDP by 45% by 2030, from the 2005 level, and achieving about 50% cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030. It also reaffirms the nation’s commitment to work towards a low carbon emission pathway, while simultaneously endeavouring to achieve sustainable development goals, and representing the framework for India’s transition to cleaner energy till 2030. Also, organic waste diversion from agri and agro-processing industries into the biofuel value chain through better incentivisation will only improve this case. For instance, the new policy on biofuels released by the Uttar Pradesh state cabinet aims to increase the production of biofuel while ensuring the safe disposal of agricultural and municipal waste. It also aims to increase farmers’ incomes and bring investments into rural areas. Digitisation of the biofuel supply chain will ensure improvement in the production and consumption of biofuels and help keep up with the demand. Integrating digital technology into production will ensure a raise in productivity while maximising efficiency. Digitisation of the supply chain will also result in improvement in communication with suppliers, innovation, storage facilities and prediction maintenance. Another important aspect is the capital subsidies for waste-to-fuel technologies that are critical to ensuring higher production and higher consumption. The Centre provides financial assistance in the form of a back-ended subsidy for the installation of Waste to Energy projects, such as: – Biogas generation: Rs 1.0 crore per 12000cum/day – BioCNG generation (including the setting of Biogas plant): Rs 4.0 Crore per 4800Kg/day – Power generation based on Biogas (including setting of Biogas plant): Rs 3.0 Crore per MW. – Power generation-based MSW: Rs 5.0 Crore per MW (Source Govt. Website) Any discussion on biofuels is incomplete without the mention of electric mobility. Equivalent policies and market linkages will help in the growth of sustainable Electric Vehicles (EVs). According to statistics provided by the Government of India’s Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), the transport sector accounts for 18% of total energy consumption in India. Thus, electric mobility presents a viable alternative to addressing climate change challenges, while contributing to balancing energy demand, energy storage and environmental sustainability. If accompanied by the decarbonisation of the power sector, EVs would also significantly contribute to keeping the world on track in meeting its shared climate goals. With millionaires assuming the responsibility of being major decision-makers, it is important that they become self-aware of the environmental consequences of pollution and take action regarding their operations. The current times have placed sustainability at the front and centre for companies. Global leaders should look at sustainability as a key aspect of their mission and weave it into their corporate strategy to ensure business resilience. According to a report by Accenture, when global markets have faced tremendous pressures and volatility, companies with high ESG scores have continued to outperform, experiencing a cumulative relative return of 6.3% higher than bottom performers and facing lower volatility. Lastly, to ensure decentralised production and distribution of biofuels, the opening up of trading and retailing within proper territorial coverage of all types of biofuels is key. Biodiesel must be procured and sold by the oil manufacturing companies only, pure or blended. Industry stakeholders believe the sale of spurious biodiesel (made of byproducts of petroleum refineries such as cheap furnaces or fuel oils) should be kept in check. This parallel business is hampering the very trust in biodiesel. Widespread awareness campaigns should be undertaken to make consumers aware of the ill effects of fake oils. Secondly, if the direct sale of biofuel is permitted in the future, it should be done with strict quality control in place. Finally, biodiesel imports should happen under strict vigil to ensure the route is not being misused to import cheap oil in the name of biodiesel. Considering that organic waste is generated everywhere and is considered zero-cost material, developing cost-effective commercial means of biofuel production is key. The creation of proper strong regional markets will help in the sourcing, production and distribution of biofuels. This is beneficial considering the cost economics and environmental perspective (localised transition-less emission), and will pave the way for biofuel to be widely accepted as a viable fuel. Edited by Affirunisa Kankudti (Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of YourStory.) BIOFUEL ALTERNATIVE FUEL SUSTAINABILITY 0 SHARES +0 Trending Now Trending Stories A Dowry Demand Caused This Bride From Kota To Call Off Her Wedding  Here’s A Closer Look At The 10 Civil Servants Who Make India Proud These Social Workers Are The Recipients Of Padma Awards In 2021 In Internal Email, Byju Raveendran Says 2022 Was A Defining Year For BYJU’S Daily Capsule Offbeat new year resolutions Read the full story Latest Updates from around the world How India’s G20 Presidency Can Help Fight Climate Change Consciousness: The Need Of The Hour In Agriculture How 400 Women From Rural Jharkhand Graduated Out Of Ultra-Poverty Spotlight:The/Nudge Incubator: Solving India’s Livelihood Challenges By Acting As A Catalyst For The Non-Profit Sector Spotlight: How The/Nudge Prize | Ashirvad Water Challenge Is Tackling Clean Drinking Water Challenges Head-On Here’s How Asthmatics Can Manage Smog And Pollution Triggers TRANSFORM View Brand Publisher ENVIRONMENT Startups, corporates, and governments can together TRANSFORM India’s approach to plastic circularity By Team YS September 27, 2022, Updated on : Tue Sep 27 2022 13:07:41 GMT+0530 TRANSFORM Plastics Challenge by Unilever, FCDO, EY, and Social Alpha is the latest example of a public-private partnership working towards this goal. 1 CLAP +0 +0 Over the past decade, an increasing number of nations around the world have been focused on curbing plastic pollution and encouraging plastic circularity. The United Nations announced 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015 to address many of the world’s most important socio-economic and developmental challenges and work towards a sustainable future. As many as 12 of these SDGs are concerned directly or indirectly with plastic pollution. In 2018, India first committed to mitigating plastic pollution by announcing the phasing-out of single-use plastic by 2022. Efforts are underway at all levels – government, corporate, enterprise, and civil society – to address the issue through the three Rs – reduction, reuse, and recycling. While Indian enterprises are working to find alternatives at each level of the value chain, they need strategic and technical guidance along with funding to make their solutions scalable. The TRANSFORM Plastics Challenge, a joint initiative between Unilever, the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), and EY, in collaboration with Social Alpha is a step towards providing this much-needed support. The challenge aims to accelerate technology-led Indian startups that are working on plastic waste management and circularity. It invites their participation to develop solutions for plastic waste processing; economically viable reuse of plastic; refill models; as well as material- or substrate-level innovations that make plastic packaging recyclable or compostable. Five startups, shortlisted from among the applications received for the challenge, will receive up to Rs 1.6 crore each through grant funding and equity investments, along with mentorship and scale-up support. The last date to apply is September 30, 2022.