Climate Solutions Project

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Road Tour Solutions

Despite the urgency of climate change, many people are not taking enough action on the issue, partly because people are too busy talking about and waiting for tomorrow's solutions! However, across India, we found many people are already implementing climate solutions, not only to prevent global warming but because it makes financial and ecological sense. Here are a few of our favorite solutions from throughout the tour in brief descriptions that link to longer stories. You can also see more information about these solutions in our videos. Please contact us to share your ideas or for more information on these and other solutions of India.

On the Road

Solar-integrated Reva Electric Car - This new model, with a lithium ion battery, which we have driven 3500km across India, gains 10% of its charge from solar panels on its roof and travels over 150km on a 6hr charge using 12kWh of energy. The cars themselves are also made from recycled ABS plastic, and can be recycled, along with their batteries. Reva estimates that not only are their cars 20% more carbon efficient than petrol or diesel powered cars when powered off India’s largely fossil-fuel powered grid, but they hold the potential to become increasingly carbon neutral as the grid power becomes based on wind, solar and other clean energy sources. These cars, along with other electric vehicles developed around the world, can transform the auto industry to provide sustainable mobility. We were driving a revolution.

CleanStar Truck – showcasing a groundbreaking technology developed by RegenaStar that allows diesel engines (both stationary and mobile) to run off pure plant oil through a simple retrofit. This truck traveled more that 4000km on sustainable produced Indian biofuels, with thanks to RegenaStar and the CleanStar Truck

Car topped with Kotak Urja Solar Panels – Kotak Urja installed two 260 Wp multicrystalline solar modules onto our Solar Punch Buggy. The power they created was stored in batteries underneath our backseat, allowing us to charge mobile phones, camera batteries, and even the occasional Shiamak Davar Victory Arts Foundation dance performance.

Eco Auto– this Fiat Ducato van is not only an ecological solution but an educational hub. Powered by used vegetable oil collected from restaurants and driven to India all the way from the Czech Republic as part of a seven month journey to showcase this, and other climate change solutions

Solar Punch, Solar Powered Rock Band – Music is the spice of life, and celebration is the soul. This was illustrated across the sub-continent with concerts in every city and town powered by the energy from the sun. Solar Punch is the world’s first solar powered band, trend-setters that are blazing the way for change in the entertainment industry around the world.

Drip Irrigation Kit – provided by IDEI, this simple drip irrigation kit, which costs only Rs200, is a low cost, low energy, water saving solution for farmers to irrigate their crops effectively. It is one of many water conserving agricultural solutions developed by IDEI, which we showcased at many of our stops along the road.

Freeplay Hand Crank Lantern – A freeplay hand crank lantern and torch can be cranked for one minute for one hour of LED light. The Freeplay self-charge system converts 74 percent of your kinetic energy of cranking into stored electricity for charging. The LED light is rated up to 100,000 hours or 11 years of continuous use, while the batteries are rated for 500,000 input cycles.

Freeplay wind-up radio – making music with no plug, and just a crank lever has kept us amused across India, dancing to Bollywood songs along the way. Each minute of regular winding produces one hour of music, up to charging for 25 hours! We never put this to the test, but we did have happy hours in our jatropha truck with these radios. In direct sunlight, the EyeMax can charge for 8 hours to reach full charging room.

Navdanya Seed Kit – this beautifully crafted educational kit contains non-GM seeds from some of India’s most climate resilient and native food crop species. It aims to encourage children to understand more about their food, where it comes from and how to care for India’s native species.

Chennai

· City-wide policy that mandates rainwater harvesting for all buildings, commercial and residential.

· India’s oldest Banyan tree is protected at the Chennai Theosophical Society. Symbolising the value of our ancient natural heritage, its protection and valuation was a climate solution.

· Bhumi is an incredible NGO operating in Chennai that runs campaigns to protect trees from road-widening and sent many youth to our climate leadership training program in Chennai. Their partnership was incredible for our road tour launch.

Vellore

· Peace Garden (Buddha Smiles) – this is a school devoted to environment and alternative education for rural children. Each child plants and cares for their own trees, all buildings are sustainably built, and there is a growing permaculture project on site.

Vellore Institute of Technology – A progressive academic institution that is incorporating environmental sustainability into its research, campus sustainability, and also prioritising climate change as a theme in its official activities. We were incredibly impressed with the renewable energy solutions implemented by students and professors at VIT, ranging from slar thermal systems to biogas in villages. The students are also environmentally minded with impressive activities within the ecoclub.

Bangalore

· Cisco – Cisco’s campus is home to a vast array of ICT based solutions that can help us displace travel, including teleconferencing and videoconferencing facilities.

· Hewlett Packard– Hewlett Packard's data center in Bangalore saves the company 2 million annually. To save on data canter cooling costs, 14 separate data centers were consolidated into one 70,000 square foot facility. Traditionally, data centers are pumped with cool air, causing energy waste . HP's data center has 7,500 temperature sensors that are part of a centralized system which allow for spot cooling, which saves approximately 40% of the cooling energy.

· MNRE Bangalore – The Ministry of New and Renewable Resources is working hard to promote alternative energy in Karnataka. Their dedication was apparent when we visited their building; they have 70 solar panels providing 60-70% of the building's needs. This 10.5 KW installation cost them about 30 lacs. MNRE Karnataka plans to double the amount of renewable energy generated in the state (currently about 2000 MW to 4000 MW in the next five years).

· T-ZED (Zero Emission Development) by EcoBcil, Whitefield, Bangalore – This 95 home community is built on the principles of sustainable development. The homes are built out of local, eco materials and are designed to minimize energy consumption. The homes have electric-watt meters and water meters to allow the individual homeowner to manage his/her own consumption. The community aims to be water neutral with no water connection to the outside as well with all greywater treated on site naturally and put into the gardens. All kitchen waste is separated into organic (goes into the vermicomposting area) and non-organic. According to the developer, Krish Murali, TZED consumes only 60% of the energy demand compared to other houses and residents pay about 30% less in power bills. This is a real solution for the climate and for your wallet!

· Infosys campus – The Infosys Bangalore campus is practicing a number of innovative corporate practices, including the eco-clubs, which helped us immensely all across India.

Anantapur

· Chinna Jalalapuram, a village near Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh which, under the guidance of RIDS, is practicing sustainable, organic agriculture, with techniques including drip irrigation and seed saving and crop rotation. Productivity, water table, soil quality and profits have all increased as a result.

Hyderabad

· Valence Energy Smart Solar Micro-Grid – A residential development project that is linking decentralized solar energy with a smart microgrid, showcasing the potential for ICT and renewable energy as a climate solution.

· M.C. Pally, a village on the outskirts of Hyderabad that is working in partnership with the MV Foundation to implement a series of clean energy, low cost solutions for more sustainable farming. These include decentralised biogas production, drip irrigation, mixed crop planting, seed saving in seed banks, natural fertilisation and vermicomposting, biofuels harvesting and use, water harvesting via check dams, ponds and minimal pesticide use with the incorporation of natural pesticides. The community has seen an rise in income, an improvement in soil quality, water table and crop resilience.

· Clay Cups - Kulhads and Banana Leaf Plates – One of India’s oldest climate solutions, which remind us to rethink our use of materials, are clay cups, used for chai in place of plastic. We also used stitched banana leaves instead of plates during the tour. Clay cups were used at our Hussain Sagar climate run, and we took them with us on the road, provided by Shiv Gupta, Director of Dochaneeaa Aluminium.

· CII-Godrej Centre of Excellence, green building - One of the first Platinum rated buildings in India, it has plants that process waste, an air cooling chimney, grass roof, natural lighting, low energy recycled building materials, architecture that supports natural cooling and ventilation, and is an educational hub for green architecture.

Zahirabad

· Tree Oils Ltd – This NGO is working to test and understand the productivity, impacts and different growing options of some of India’s key biofuels crops for decentralized energy generation.

Pune

· Carbon Neutral Salsa Party – this was held by Regenatec in demonstration and celebration of their work to support decentralised clean energy solutions to climate change. A biofuel tree was planted for each attendee of the party to offset their emissions.

Near Ahmednagar

· 50.4 MW Tata Wind Farm in Maharashtra by Enercon in the Indian state of Maharashtra to provide reliable, renewable power to the Western regional electricity grid. The Project involves 63 wind energy converters (WECs) of Enercon make (800 kW E-48) with internal electrical lines connecting the Project with local evacuation facility.

Shirdi

Spirituality and Climate Change - A gathering organised by Gayatri Parivar, where approximately 10,000 people attended every day for 8 days. There was a big tent with people meditating for the peace of the planet, a tent for yagna's (an air purifying spiritual practice involving fire), tents for sleeping, eating, blood donation, and a book tent and lecture tent where people learnt about ways of life and attitudes that will allow us to empower ourselves and come out of the climate crisis.

Mumbai

· Reforestation of Dharavi Slum Wastelands - the transformation of a waste dumping ground near Dharaavi, the largest slum in Asia, into a national park, supporting local biodiversity, resource replenishment and local recreation.

· Kids for Tigers event - this educational event and costume competition organized by Kids for Tigers with Sanctuary magazine was aimed to raise awareness about the plight of India’s species in the face of climate change and the many other human activities that are reducing their numbers.

· Mumbai Marathon –Whilst NGOs, corporates, individuals and a multitude of other groups and alliances ran for their cause, Solar Punch rocked out along the route, inspiring runners to keep going, and spreading the message of the road tour. As they played, we handed out our solutions bookmarks, presenting to the crowd on the tour and the multitude of solutions India has to offer. Marathons and moreso, running not using vehicles, are a climate solution in themselves, and a wonderful way of making your message heard whilst staying fit.

· Mumbai Climate Concert – Organised by 21Tigers, our partnering green event managers, this ecological concert was decked with CFLs, a cotton-painted backdrop, and was held out in the open close to Mumbai’s seafront. With bands including Solar Punch, Black LIps, Noosh like Sploosh, Swarathma and Parikrama, the concert was a sustainable and incredible fest.

Goa

· Decentralized, low-cost waste recycling programme in Goa has reduced dry waste in Panjim, Goa’s capital, by 85%. Eighty-five composting units have been constructed in Goa’s capital, Panjim, and courts have started to ask other cities in Goa to follow the Capital’s example.

· Turtle nesting sites – Agonda beach is one of the last turtle nesting beaches in Goa, where nest sites are protected 24 hours of the day, to try to ensure turtles can still come to nest on India’s western coast. This is a crucial effort towards biodiversity conservation in the face of climate change disruption. This year saw only four nest sites. Being three months late, it is uncertain whether any will survive.

· Eco-Tourism is a vital climate solution for Goa, whose economy is based so much on tourism. The hotel at which we stayed, Sharanam Green, is a hotel making steps towards ecotourism. With natural lighting, natural and reduced air conditioning

· Green Architecture – Mosaic Design is a green architectural firm whose office was designed on the very principles that run through its work in Goa, and across India.

· Musical Collaboration – Solar Punch performed in Goa in collaboration with Remo Fernandes, an incredible climate solution himself, using flutes and other low-energy instruments. He's exploring the future of a solar powered musical future.

Valsad

· Parabolic Solar Solutions – Gadhia Solar manufacture parabolic dishes for solar cooking, water heating, industrial steam and power generation and they innovate around numerous other solutions including solar crematoriums. http://www.gadhia-solar.com/

Dharampur

· Environmental Education at Eco Learning Centre - set up by Ms. Arpita and Shirin Ghadia, this school for the education of tribal girls has environmental education at its core. The operations are sustainable too with a solar paneled roof and a solar powered kitchen.

Rajpipla

· The Prince of Rajpipla was a wonderful and unexpected climate solution whom we met along the way, charging our cars at his palace. The Prince is a vermiculturalist, who has an organic farm, has a wond turbine installed on his property, and is building a solar hospital.

Goraj

· Muni Seva School – this school symbilised a systemic climate solution, having implemented a great array of different low carbon solutions on the property. These included solar PV, solar cookers, biomas gasifiers, biogas plants, rainwater harvesting systems, and an organic farm to produce their food sustainably and locally. Through doing all of these things, it is also educating each of its students in sustainable living practices and their importance.

Ahmedabad

· Green urban design of Old Ahmedabad – the ancient architecture of Ahmedabad’s old city was designed in eco friendly ways 600 years ago. The streets are narrow and dark to keep the air cool such that in the Havelli courtyards, when the doors are open, the cool air circulates through. They once also had, and are reviving, underground water storage systems to store rainwater. The city was also designed on a slope towards the river so that rainwater would run off rather than flood the city.

· Anumukti Ashram – Here the concept of Sustainable Living is practiced under the vision of M.K. Gandhi. After learning about the ashram, the team had a discussion on the role of nuclear fuel a solution to climate change. The conclusion of this was that before presenting nuclear reactors as a solution, we should calculate the environmental cost and health cost from mining to disposal, which is very high as compare to renewable sources of energy.

· CEPT and CEE: The Center for Environmental Education: CEE is running environmental education campaigns across the country, implementing eco-clubs at schools on behalf of the Ministry of Environment and Forests. Their campus in Ahmedabad was designed to avoid cutting trees, practices rainwater harvesting, and used sustainable building practices. Their campus is the site of many environmental education programs.

Udaipur:

· Solar Water Heaters: While solar water heaters make sense all around the world, they are critical in India where water heating can be one of the biggest energy consumption items in a household. Many states have made solar water heating mandatory, and Rajasthan offers favorable incentives for their installation. Perhaps this is why we saw so many in Udaipur!

Beawar

· Solar dryer agro-based industry – This organization is using solar-polytunnels to dry tobacco, taking only two hours to dry large amount leaves, rather than one whole day to dry them in the sun alone. The company was using electric dryers previously, which consume Rs. 2 lac of electricity every month. With this new system, the installation charge is just Rs. 1 Lac. with no monthly burden. The technology is applicable to drying a great range of organic matter, edible and non-edible.

· PG Handmade Paper from Cloth: PG Handmade Paper buys the scraps of material remaining from the manufacture of clothing, shreds this cloth, uses organic dyes, and creates recycled paper that is used for bags, notebooks, and all kinds of paper products. Natural petals or flowers are added for decoration.

Ajmer

Barefoot College – This is one of eighteen such colleges across India, which aims to better the lives of the poorest of the rural poor around the world through practical education and skill transfer. This includes skills such as solar power generation, water harvesting, health and sanitation, housing, income generation and ecological conservation.

TIME FOR A TIME CHANGE

Submitted by Capt. Mohan Kuruvilla (not verified) on Sun, 12/20/2009 - 04:17.

TIME FOR A TIME CHANGE All of us across the world realise that global warming is a serious threat to planet earth. The international community is now united in its efforts to save the world from the effects of global warming. To achieve this, countries of the developed and developing world need to do everything possible including using New and Renewable Energy and reducing carbon intensity without compromising on growth. Coal is the most important fuel for India’s power sector as it is the source of more than 50 per cent of generating capacity. Conserving energy includes reduction in transmission losses and reducing power consumption by judicious use of electricity both for industrial and domestic use. As India’s population is over a billion, even a small reduction in the use of power for domestic use by every citizen would result in a very large saving of energy. Thus we will also reduce our emission levels, as we would be burning less coal. Daylight Saving Time (DST); also called summer time is practiced in some countries by advancing clocks so that afternoons have more daylight and mornings have less. In these countries clocks are adjusted forward by one hour near the start of spring and are adjusted backward in autumn. However, Indian Standard Time does not use Daylight Saving Time. One of the goals of DST was to reduce evening usage of incandescent lighting, primarily the use of electricity. Based on the principle of DST, it is proposed to reduce energy consumption by changing the Indian Standard Time (IST). Presently IST is 5.5 hours (5 hours 30 minutes) ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT+5.5) and is based on the local time at longitude 72.5 degrees East which passes through Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh. We can achieve this by advancing IST by half an hour to 6 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT+6). For a vast country like India with its land mostly located in the tropics, we could use the time zone of GMT+6 continuously throughout the year, instead of the yearly change during summer. By implementing this ‘time change’ every house would save on energy as the lights would be kept on after sunset for less time. This could be explained by the following example. Let us take the case of a young executive, Mr. Bharat Nagarkar living in Nagpur, where the sun rises say, at 0600 hrs IST (GMT+5.5) on 31st March 2010. He, like the majority of others across the world likes waking up at sunrise time, i.e. at 0600 hrs (GMT+5.5). Presuming that we have changed IST to GMT+6 on 1st April 2010, the sunrise would now be at 0630 hrs GMT+6. Bharat and most others like him who like to wake up at sunrise, will now be waking up at 0630 hrs GMT+6. Since most households sparingly use electricity for lighting during morning hours, there would be no appreciable change in consumption during the morning hours. Now let us see what happens in the evening. On 31st March 2010, say in Nagpur, the sunset time is at 1830 hrs. Bharat, like most others has a habit of going to bed ‘well before midnight’. So on a normal working day, after a busy and productive day at the office, he spends quality time at home with his wife and child, watches TV, reads for about an hour and goes to sleep at 2330 hrs IST (GMT+5.5). He and his family therefore use their home lighting from 1830 to 2330 hrs, for 5 hrs. As we change over to the new IST, sunset time on 1st April 2010 would be at 1900 hrs GMT+6. Bharat and his family would be continuing their daily routine and would go to bed as usual, ‘well before midnight’. They would now be using electricity for their home lighting from 1900 to 2330 hrs, i.e. for 4 hrs 30 minutes. Thus they would be saving about 10% on lighting every day, year after year. To keep the above example simple, I have not accounted for the complexities of sidereal time or the small time difference in sunrise/sunset each day. Like most middle class families in India, Bharat as well as those in other professions including agriculture make use of home appliances like televisions, refrigerators, washing machines and microwaves. Therefore the power saved on lighting in households as well as in public places (for street lighting etc.) across India would translate to about 5% of the total energy consumed. When we take into account the power used by industrial, commercial and other sectors, the overall savings may work out to only about 2 percent of India’s total power consumption. But for a country with a population of more than a billion consuming over 500 billion kWh of electricity each year, it would translate to 10 billion kWh saving every year. Statisticians would be able to give the exact figures. In turn, we will save on the expenditure on coal, conserve our natural resources and make an enormous contribution to our war against global warming. For a smooth and efficient change over to +6GMT, it will require meticulous planning by all agencies including the central and state governments, railways, airlines, shipping and the private sector. I am of the view that too much time should not be spent on discussing this proposal by large committees or groups. Instead, a small team of experts appointed by the Govt. of India should analyse the pros and cons of this proposal. If found suitable, the proposed ‘time change’ be implemented as early as possible. It requires no expenditure and it is not an impossible task. You may recollect that our late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had the courage to implement the five day (working) week quickly without wasting time on discussion. Let us try this out for a year, and review it thereafter to see its benefits to the nation. While sailing through many countries and oceans of the world, we mariners are required to reset our ship’s master clock to different time zones almost every day. Let us reset India’s master clock (IST) just once, and reap rich benefits by conserving energy as well as reducing emission levels. For Mother India and Planet Earth, it would make a world of difference. Capt. Mohan Kuruvilla Mumbai

Goa is paradise

Submitted by Reema (not verified) on Fri, 11/06/2009 - 08:08.

Goa is heaven on earth..i thank everyone who has contributed to this cause...i hope all your efforts get true rewards and by turtle nesting and eco-tourism in goa...great article..truly inspiring...

I am currently in New Zealand

Submitted by Priya (not verified) on Thu, 11/19/2009 - 00:47.

I am currently in New Zealand and I am planning to goto Goa soon. Your comment makes me wanna come sooner.

climate India

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 10/02/2009 - 23:48.

An appreciable effort by your organisation.

Biogas Plants

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 09/06/2009 - 02:40.

Excellent articles and you can also add TATA's in the list. Mumbai - Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Tata Power Ltd, Tata Institute of fundamental research (TIFR), Tata institute of social science (TISS), these are the places where one can find Nisargruna Biogas plants, Invented by Dr Kale from BARC and installed, designed, commissioned and being operated by Ecosolutions and SMS in a joint association.

Building Integrated PV (Transparent Solar Panels for Buildings)

Submitted by Pavan Joshi (not verified) on Thu, 08/06/2009 - 04:40.

We are working in the field of Renewable enery like Solarand Wind. With recent development there are Transparent Solar Panels which can replace conventional building material or normal facade glass (which normally these days used for building frontal) and can generate power in day time. This power can be stored in batteries and can be used as and when required. For more information, please contact me on 9049068082. Best regards Pavan Joshi Nutshell engineers Pune

Agreement

Submitted by Alexis66 (not verified) on Sun, 06/28/2009 - 06:58.

Such articles do help to liberalize and I want to thank you for that! But to understand the details, one should read a lot of literature, which is not enough in the internet. To make the search easier, you may use pdf ebooks search engine

Congratulations

Submitted by Vivek (not verified) on Sun, 06/14/2009 - 01:52.

Congratulations, very inspiring, path breaking. You guys are the future

Decentralised Organic Waste Management Solution

Submitted by HARSHAD GANDHI (not verified) on Sat, 05/02/2009 - 03:14.

As per IPCC guideline, it is estimated that 1 ton Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) has 1.16 ton Co2e Green House Gas (GHG) emission potentional in India. There are 5161 cities & towns in India generating about 42 million ton of MSW per annum. About 50% of total MSW is organic in nature. If Organic waste is not treated using approriate technology then it causes health hazards, unhygenic conditions & environmental deterioration. Organic Waste Converter (OWC)bio-mechinically treat organic waste & convert it into foul odour free, soil structure raw-compost in 10-15 minutes. The raw compost can be converted into matured compost in 10-15days using OWC multi-rack Curing System. The compost can be utilised for green cover, back-yard kitchen garden, landscaping, city farming etc. City of Delhi generates about 6000 ton of MSW per day. Seting up of Decentralised Organic Waste Management facility using OWC System not only solve long haulage & mounting piles of garbage at landfill sites but also offer livelyhood for urban poor through decentralised waste solution services. OWC broucher: http://www.excelind.co.in/cat.htm

climate solutions

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 02/17/2009 - 20:04.

This site is really an inspiring one and a relief that at least something is being done in India. Could you please post if any one is making solar lamps for households as these can provide light to homes without electiricity and provide education to children.

Plastic to Petrol

Submitted by Dharmendar Kumar (not verified) on Tue, 02/17/2009 - 03:25.

Another Indian invention to add - Alka Zadgaonkar's Plastic to Petrol technology using a unique catalyst. Check out http://www.plastic2petrol.com/index.html