The purpose of the campaign is to mobilise children and youth to take steps to adapt to the changing climate through sustainable lifestyles and bio-mimicry (Learning from nature).

What is Bio-mimicry?

Bio-mimicry (from bios, meaning life, and mimesis, meaning to imitate) means learning from nature and encourages people to design and implement sustainable solutions by emulating nature’s time-tested patterns. A classic example is learning about the principles of natural air cooling from termite mounds and zebra stripes!

The objectives of this campaign are:

iADAPT- for a Carbon CLEAN-India

Climate Change is happening. A recent report on vulnerability to climate change states that Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai are among the 10 cities that are rated as ‘high risk’ (Source: The Guardian, UK). This means that the effects of past activities in the last few decades have led to and are continuing to lead to a changing climate such as increasing temperatures, unpredictable rainfalls, flooding / droughts and other calamities. The result is unavailability of safe drinking water, increasing waste disposal problems (increased rotting of wastes with increasing temperatures), increased health problems and other such climate risks in both urban and semi urban areas.

Urban Adaptation

Urban adaptation is rapidly growing as a need in many metropolitan cities due to pressures and vulnerability from disasters, both natural as well as man-made. The change in climate has caused thousands to be relocated from their native areas to look for alternate living spaces. The uncontrolled but much desired developments and lifestyles have put a burden on the already dwindling resources and infrastructure which feed the population base. Hence, it is imperative that adequate preparedness and sensitisation of persons be undertaken for urban adaptation.

Urban Adaptation Measures

Some examples of urban adaptation measures include creative use of innovative as well as traditional adaptation measures such as green roofs (roofs with grass growing on them) to bring down the temperature of buildings instead of using energy guzzling air conditioners; bio-mimicry concepts such as cooling mechanisms of termite mounds; or use of zebra stripes for cooling of buildings, etc. Other measures include vermi-composting for addressing rotting waste problems, cultivating dry gardens to save water (eco-lawns) that resist high temperature conditions and less rainfall (impacts of climate change), rainwater harvesting, storm water capture, addressing issues in urban slums and at the policy level for increasing disaster preparedness among communities for erratic rainfall leading to water shortages or flooding.

There is much to be done regarding adaptation to climate change, particularly in the urban and semi urban context. What is required is a programme that is community based, youth led and which can help the community understand the issues posed by climate change and take necessary initiatives to adapt to the changing climate. Since mitigation and adaptation go hand in hand, there is a need for communities to adapt to climate change through sustainable lifestyles.

Realising the importance of adapting to these changing environmental conditions and the role that youth can play, Development Alternatives and Indian Youth Climate Network (IYCN) launched the campaign, ‘iADAPT- for a carbon CLEAN-India’ on Earth Day 2012.

The role of the youth is crucial. Youth today play a key role in influencing policies and making decisions and act as change agents. The urban youth definitely need to be brought on board to achieve the desired results for climate change adaptation through sustainable lifestyles. q