Say No to Plastic - Theme of Child Help Foundation on the Occasion of World Humanitarian Day

Mumbai: Child Help Foundation (CHF), a Pan India non-profit organization, organized a unique Collection Drive or Say No to Plastic program to celebrate the occasion of World Humanitarian Day. On this day people collected plastic waste that could then be recycled and converted into materials and products for sustainable use. This drive was organized in the third week of August 2022 in Mumbai by Child Help Foundation(CHF). World Humanitarian Day (WHD) takes place every year on a specific theme.

According to the United Nations, the theme for this year is to show the importance, effectiveness, and positive impact of humanitarian work. The concept of WHD is based on a famous saying, “It takes a village to raise a child,” It aims at bringing together partners across the humanitarian system to advocate for the survival, well-being, dignity, and safety of people affected by any crises.

Child Help Foundation works for many social causes and takes the proactive initiative to save the environment and provide healthy living by organizing a Collection Drive. Child Help Foundation project team member Mrs. Shilpa Lokhande visited Dhyas Foundation, an NGO, and a partner in ‘Say No to Plastic’ initiative. Dhyas Foundation works towards reducing waste in Vasai. During this campaign, the volunteers of Child Help Foundation collected a lot of plastic waste from in and around their office space situated in Thane district, Maharashtra, and donated it to Dhyas Foundation for reusing the waste plastic.

Dhyas foundation will reuse the waste plastic, convert it into chairs, tables, and other school stationery, and return the finished recycled products to Child Help Foundation to be used in educational institutions such as Ashram Shalas. The members of Dhyas Foundation team, Ms. Kiran Potdar, Founder and President, and Ms. Manisha Gharat and staff, were also present to motivate the team.

Talking about Child Help Foundation’s initiative of ‘Say No to Plastic’, the CEO and Spokesperson Mr. Shaji Varghese said’ “Climate Change is something that has always affected the people. On this humanitarian day, we wanted to encourage people to completely go plastic free and adopt more sustainable methods of living. This collection drive was an initiative to encourage people to be aware and more giving to the community. We hope we as a community can help conserve the environment and be more grateful for nature's bounty. Child Help Foundation has and will always work towards the conservation of the environment and also making people aware.”

Appreciating the contribution of Child Help Foundation towards the protection of the environment and their zeal towards World Humanitarian Day, the Founder of Dhyas Foundation, Ms. Kiran Potdar, said, “Dhyas Foundation appreciated the significant contribution of Child Help Foundation (CHF) and presented a token of appreciation to the organization for its consistent and honest efforts”.

World Humanitarian Day is also celebrated to commemorate the spirit of service and giving, and to carry forward the theme of this year's humanitarian day, Child Help Foundation (CHF) volunteers conducted a ‘Paper Bag Making Activity’ in Murbad Ashram School in Thane District, Mumbai. Teaching children about the importance of the environment and sustainability is essential and the same thing was communicated to them through this activity. A total of 257 students from classes 8th,9th, and 10th enthusiastically participated in the activity. The students made different bags ranging from multipurpose bags to sanitary napkins disposal and more.

The activity was conducted to spread awareness about sustainable and recyclable goods and their suitability for the environment. Teachers, Principals, and Motilal Oswal Foundation’s Project Staff, enthusiastically participated in the event.

The paper bags were a medium of making the children understand that there are many sustainable ways of living without plastic.

To contribute their part in keeping the environment clean, Child Help Foundation conducts a beach clean-up activity every week in collaboration with its crowdfunding partner Filaantro. The objective is to get rid of all the plastic waste from the beaches to create a cleaner environment and safe habitat for the marine species. Child Help Foundation also encourages people to see the environment as a priority by planting trees. The activity also encourages people to take part in more community service and volunteerism.

These activities are a way for us to enhance the belief that it's about time we get rid of single-use plastic as our first medium of consumption. We must work together to save the world and lead it into a greener and cleaner future.