Mumbai: Sony BBC Earth has announced Rishit Mathur as a winner for its show Young Earth Champions. Young Earth Champions, which was announced in May this year, was created to engage with young minds and encourage them to work towards a better future. It received several creative submissions on how to preserve the planet's resources, including water, land, wildlife, forests, and energy. Mathur of Delhi is the proud winner among hundreds of competitors.
Students in grades six and nine competed in this nationwide competition, displaying their spirit and determination through thought-provoking submissions. To ensure that each submission is given due consideration, an expert team from IIT Bombay's Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, led by professor Amritanshu Shriwastav, and actor and environmentalist Jim Sarbh carefully evaluated the ideas.
The top ten shortlisted entries were given the opportunity to engage in an engaging conversation with Sarbh and the professor about sustainability. Mathur, the contest's winner, received the grand prize of an iPad, as well as the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be featured on the Sony BBC Earth channel. Mathur began his path to becoming an environmental activist at a young age, in response to major issues affecting the planet. His desire to change the world inspired him to enter the competition.
Mathur's concept revolved around effectively managing crop residue rather than burning it and creating an environmental hazard. He proposed that crop residues be used to make eco-friendly furniture. Farmers can use this furniture for personal use or sell it in open markets to supplement their income. He also proposed that crop residue be converted into organic manure via a chemical reaction and used to grow new crops.
There were ten finalists, and their ideas ranged from resource repurposing to using technology to track poaching, reusing glass to make bricks to ensuring germ-free water, and so on.
Sony BBC Earth's Young Earth Champions contest, in collaboration with its knowledge partner Nehru Science Centre, received over 1000 registrations from across the country, with 2, 08, 387 visits to the contest page.
Sony Pictures Networks Sony AATH business operations head and marketing & insights, English cluster head Rohan Jain said, “At Sony BBC Earth we have always aimed at creating meaningful engagements through all our initiatives. As we conclude the second edition of ‘Young Earth Champions’ we are pleased to share that the spirit and determination of the younger generation have been quite commendable. We are extremely thankful to Sarbh, professor Shriwastav, and the IIT Bombay team for joining us in the cause and sharing their expertise. We further aim to introduce more such properties in the future and encourage green practices across the nation.”
Shriwastav said, “The younger generation is more conscious and aware of the current environment scenario, and it was very well reflected through their thought-through submissions. Choosing the winning entries from amongst the talent lot was not an easy task and our team got to learn so much from these young kids. It was quite an enriching experience even for us as professionals.”
