Green is my colour

Dr Rajendra K Pachauri - head of TERI, is the first non-white to have been elected as the Chairman of IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) established by the United Nations Environment Programme. He has been awarded the Padma Bhushan. It has taken 20 years to raise TERI to the level it is today. What difficulties did you face? It was very tough to generate all our resources. There was no regular income and energy conservation was a new concept. What did you seek to achieve? To create an institution with a difference - something that is one of a kind in our society. I always wanted to expand it internationally and nationally. Sadly, we have a huge vacuum in terms of intellectual endeavour. TERI was the best option to tackle problems at the grassroot level. Still certain areas are being neglected. Problems are varied and intensified. For instance, most villages are not going to get electricity for the next 30 years, no matter how much we talk about urbanisation or globalisation. What needs to be done? It is important to work with local societies and create an institutional structure. By making optimum utilisation of resources, roping in oil companies plus government subsidies, we need to improve upon local capacity. What has TERI done to achieve these targets? We have worked in a number of villages, mainly in the Himalayas. Earlier, the locals would cut wood to heat water. We introduced a new heating system - storing water in a large canister with a permanent water heater. We would give villagers a large bucket of water in return for a certain sum. From an economist to an environmentalist - that sure seems a huge leap? Why the change? I have always been an environment lover considering I was born and brought up in Nainital. Unless we care for the environment, how can we live in it. There is a link between our economy and the environment. Global warming is one problem that has been aggravated by the way we live. It is the result of a totally distorted economic system. Our first culprit is the traffic regulation system. We need to reverse what we have done. We have taken our environment too much for granted. Chopping trees, excessive pollution, a drop in the atmospheric levels - are all responsible for the change in the ozone layer. What should be done to change this scenario? The first important step being done successfully by many schools is to make children aware of environmental issues. It is amazing to see the shift in priorities. As chairman (IPCC), what are your goals? The aim is to have location specific assessment, mobility in action, instant services (planting trees, clearing litter), to bring these reports before the public (mass scale circulation of decided guidelines). Do you see small as well as long term targets being met? The main purpose is to involve people in initiating action. If nothing else, I can promise to create awareness through technological advancement. With that, everything will fall in place.