NOBEL Prize winner and famous American writer Ernest Hemingway had said: “The Earth is a fine place and worth fighting for.” But, to keep it a fine place in the future, we all need to take many urgent steps in our personal capacity and as a society.
Around the world, for long, environmental issues were not given their importance and left to a few activists and annual conferences. During recent times, people have woken up to the need to preserve our environment and the dangers posed by pollutions – be it air, water or land.
Every small action against wastage and pollution is one step closer to a cleaner planet. Hence, it was heartening to see a bunch of kids, from one of the local schools, kicking off a campaign against plastic bags.
The effort by the students from Qatar Academy Doha’s Primary School is praiseworthy as this initiative by the young environmentalists will raise awareness about the scourge of single-use plastic on our environment.
The group, Activists in Action, covered their school walls with plastic bags and bottles to illustrate the amount of plastic waste society creates and aim to get single-use plastic bag banned in Qatar. The future stakeholders of the planet getting concerned and taking affirmative action is great news.
Artisan seasonal market, Torba Farmers Market, at the Qatar Foundation has also introduced measures, which promotes zero wastage and helps avoid plastic or disposables. They have started a new initiative this season where you can borrow reusable plate, cup or glass for a refundable deposit. They also have a Mug Library run by American School of Doha students.
Many people and organisations are doing their bit to bring in a positive change.
Today, Doha Metro announced steps towards discouraging people from opting for single use paper tickets. This is a welcome step as using a travel card, which can be topped up as when required, not only reduces paper wastage but also makes the journey more seamless.
It is also worth noting that some of the biggest supermarkets in Qatar have taken environmental issues seriously and have introduced biodegradable bags for shoppers. They are also promoting cloth or reusable bags at a small price. This is one small step everyone can implement, next time you go shopping remember to carry a reusable bag.
Small changes make huge differences. Let us start doing our bit.
