Varun Hiremath Launches ‘Green Change’ Program to Rural Kids to Tackle Village Waste – Launched on World Environment Day
Alibag, Maharashtra – June 5, 2025 | World Environment Day
On World Environment Day, Varun Hiremath and the Hiremath Family Foundation unveiled its latest rural eco-initiative, called Green Change in Alibag, Maharashtra. The goal of this movement is to make kids in school participate in waste management and guarding their environment at the village level.
The theme of the World Land Day this year is “Our Land, Our Future”, and the program will guide youth and give them the confidence to make communities more sustainable.
Local government schools were invited to the launch with about 150 children participating in activities regarding the separation of waste, simple composting, and why plastic reduction is necessary. Children were enthusiastic when they created compost heaps, created educative posters, and organized clean-up activities in their locality.
“Young people are the best soil to real environmental change. Due to Green Change, children are not only learning how to manage waste but also becoming leaders in their communities,” said Varun Hiremath, Co-Founder of the Hiremath Family Foundation.
The project is being carried out in three targeted stages:
- Eco-Literacy Workshops – This is the training of workers on how to manage the home and school waste.
- School-Led Action – The students conduct mini campaigns to audit wastes, select the position of best bins, and clean-up events.
- Village Integration – Children, their families, and panchayats collectively devise means of sustaining waste management.
The pilot is already underway in three villages near Alibag and it is hoped that at least six more villages will be covered by December 2025. The teachers and other people of the immediate area have been very supportive because they can see how much fun the children are having and the impact it is already having on the home.
To conclude the event, a symbolic green march was held in the village and students carried banners with the message “Bhoomi Meri Jimmedari” (My Earth, My Responsibility) and distributed seed balls to make people remember that they cared about nature.
“Seedlings should be sown. Leadership planted in the hearts of the youth, that is the only way to put down the true roots,” Varun Hiremath said. “Green Change is not a campaign. It needs a shift in the way that you think.”
About Hiremath Family Foundation
The Hiremath Family Foundation is a not-for-profit trust dedicated to the rural India transformation by means of education, health, digital inclusion, and sustainability. The Foundation hopes to empower and nurture the future-ready youth through efforts such as Green Change to enable them to make a significant impact in their communities.
