‘Swachhta Pakhwada’ 2023
Date: 12 September 2023
The Centre for Environment and Sustainability (CES), Kristu Jayanti College observed ‘Swachhta Pakhwada’ a cleanliness drive initiated by the Government of India. With the objective of spreading the message on cleanliness and sanitation, the Centre organized an awareness campaign on ‘Health, Hygiene and Environment’ at Government Lower Primary School, K. Narayanapura, Bangalore on 12th September 2023. The awareness programme was initiated to drive a sense of consciousness not only among the children but also in the surrounding community. Sanitation and neatness play an important role in our day to day routine. It is important as it prevents the spread of dangerous diseases like Dengue, typhoid, hepatitis, and other diseases caused by mosquito bite, etc. Posters done by the students from the Centre for Environment and Sustainability, highlighted the importance of Swachhata in one’s life. Knowledge on personal health and environment sanitation was imparted to the children. The awareness witnessed the participation of 140 school children. The children patiently listened to the information provided and also actively participated in the sessions. It was heartening to see the involvement of the school children in maintaining their environment. The Centre for Environment and Sustainability has been actively involved in many such environment driven extension activities

Felicitation of Outstanding CES student volunteers
Date: 03 May 2023
The Centre for Environment and Sustainability conducted various events during 2022-23. To acknowledge the efforts of students, the CES felicitated the outstanding student volunteers who had contributed tremendously for the conduction of various events during the academic year. A team of 10 students from II Sem BOBT/ BBB involved in terrace gardening, 6 students from I, II and III Year BBG/MBG/B.Com/ BTBC for ‘Home for Birds’ and 8 students from IV Sem BOBT, involved in ‘Cocopeat production’ were felicitated by Rev. Fr. Deepu Joy, Director, Student Welfare Office, Kristu Jayanti College on 3rd May 2023. Also Ms. Indrani Balyam from II Yr. BA HSPS and Mr. Aswin V from III Year BSc BBB were felicitated for regularly designing the poster and anchoring most of the events respectively.

Webinar on our Tigers’ Return
Date: 08 March 2023
The Centre for Environment & Sustainability organised a webinar on ‘Our Tigers Return’ on the 8th of March 2023 for students across all the deaneries to commemorate the World Wildlife Day. The Resource person of the day was Mr. Peeyush Sekhsaria, renowned geographer and writer. He is known for his conservation initiatives in the tiger reserves and documentation of the successful projects through illustrated books for children. The session began with a round of quiz about the interesting facts about Tiger population in India. The students were introduced to the alarming reduction level of tiger population in the remote forests due to illegal activities and hunting. He conversed primarly about the Panna Tiger Reserve which is located in Vindhyan Mountain range, Madhya Pradesh. The reserve serves as an abode to rich flora, fauna, and significant population of wild tigers. The reserve is also famous for its rich culture and heritage and home to several tribal communities. The reduction of tiger population distressed the native people and measures were drawn to regenerate their count. Mr. Peeyush demonstrated with pictures of how tigers were transported from nearing reserves for breading and the ways in which the areas were familiarized for them for breading purposes. The result of the operation admist the hindrances was successful as the count of the tiger population is beyond 200 in the present time. During the talk he instilled activism in the students with lines like ‘Then do something - who is stopping you’. The puppet video of the journey of tiger population increase was screened in the end, followed by few questions

“Backyard Birding”
Date: 30 January 2023
An orientation session on backyard birding was conducted in the college on 30th January 2023. This event was organised by Dr Ruth Magdalene and the members of CES. The resource person of the day was Ms Surabhi Deshpande, Senior educationist, WWF, Karnataka. The speaker was welcomed to give an orientation session. There was a brief talk by the resource person about WWF in which she explained that now India is a leading and funding country of WWF with over 50 years of experience. WWF works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. The resource person also gave a presentation on different types of birds, their nature, the importance of birding and thumb rules for birding and also gave various resources to study about birding. A publication from WWF was distributed to the winners of the quiz conducted at the end of the event. The vote of thanks was proposed by CES student coordinator Ms Sandra Devassy.

Inauguration of “Home and Food For Birds”
Date: 11 January 2023
A novel initiative called Home and Food for Birds was inaugurated by Ms P Bineesha ,Executive director IIWM, on 11th January 2023 as a part of the commemoration of National Bird Day in Kristu Jayanti College, Autonomous, Bengaluru. A number of activities including DIY nest making contest, Photography of birds contest etc was conducted as a part of the National Bird Day. More than 75 eco friendly bird nests and bird feeders were prepared by the students and placed all over the campus and nearby localities. An awareness programme was conducted in the college and nearby vicinities , educating the society about the importance of preserving birds and biodiversity.

The inauguration of the initiative commenced with the arrival of the chief guest and keynote speaker Ms. P Bineesha, Executive Director, International Institute of Waste Management (IIWM). The event was compered by Rishika Bhattacharya of BSc BOBT. The welcome speech was delivered by Dr. Priya Josson, Director of Centre for Environment and Sustainability. Principle, Dr. Fr. Augustine George gave the presidential address in which he spoke about the various other initiatives taken up by the college to achieve its goal of sustainability. Ms Bineesha appreciated the college and the members of the CES for the innovative and humane initiative in her inaugural address. She also spoke about importance of birds and biomimicry. The vote of thanks was proposed by Dr.CH Madhavi Latha, Faculty coordinator of The National Bird Day initiative.

“Cocopeat Production”
Date: 28 November 2022
The Centre for environment and sustainability accomplished an activity on the production of cocopeat, an organic, sustainable and eco-friendly approach to replenish and conserve soil. Cocopeat is an environment-friendly medium for root growth, aeration of the soil, retention of soil moisture and also as a component of organic manure. Cocopeat blocks are useful in soilless and hydroponic farming. The activity was carried out by the Botany students of I and III Sem BSc under the guidance of Dr. Indira M.N., Faculty Coordinator of CES. The entire process of cocopeat production was done on the premises of Kristu Jayanti College by using the waste coconut husks derived from the coconut trees on the campus. Ms. Sandra Devassy, the student coordinator of CES, welcomed the audience after which, a short video on the making of cocopeat was projected. Dr. Indira spoke about the relevance of soil and the initiative undertaken.

Principal Fr. Dr. Augustine George released the cocopeat blocks made by the students in the college. The students also welcomed him with a seedling germinated in cocopeat. Fr. Principal was delighted to see the outcome of the initiative and appreciated the efforts put in by the students and faculty of the Centre for Environment and Sustainability and further suggested the team take this initiative forward on a bigger scale. He also suggested that a project can be done in this regard.

Ms. Sangli Keerthi, a student of III Sem BOBT, shared her experience with her involvement in the entire process of this activity. This was followed by a vote of thanks delivered by Mr. Vijay, student Coordinator of CES.

The event concluded with a photo session of the entire team of CES in Chavara square.

My Gardening Experiences and the Joys of Growing your own Veggies
Date: 22 November 2022
The expert talk started off with the arrival of Fr. Dr. Augustine George, Principal, of Kristu Jayanti College, and Fr. Deepu, Director of the Student Welfare Office to the venue. Members of the Centre for Environment and Sustainability and students from the Life Science Department were present in the venue as the audience for the occasion. The program was anchored by Aswin V from 5th-semester BSc BBB. The welcome address was delivered by Dr. Priya Josson, Director of the Centre of Environment and Sustainability. Principal, Fr. Dr. Augustine George spoke about the importance of involvement of students with the nature and motivated students to nurture nature. In his address Principal shared some of his experiences with gardening and the joy of being with nature. Principal appreciated and presented the CES badge to Rishika who designed the logo for CES.

Ms. Noella Ann, Admission Office Executive, took over the dais to share her personal experiences with home gardening and shared photos of different varieties of vegetables grown with organic farming. The session was followed by an interactive Q&A session. Mr. Roshin Ray Varghese, Research Assistant, Department of Life Sciences then took over the session to share the scientific and theoretical aspects of growing one’s own roof-top vegetable garden. Mr. Roshin also answered a few questions from the audience before concluding his presentation.

The vote of thanks was proposed by Ms. Sandra Devassy, Student Coordinator of CES. The session concluded with an information discussion between the panel members.

Initiation of Terrace Gardening
Date: 14 November 2022
The much-awaited terrace gardening initiative was started off by the members of the CES on 14 November 2022. The students along with the faculty in charge gathered at the nursery area at 1:30 pm. A brief description of the process was given by Dr. Sivagamasundari with the assistance of Mr. Binu. The students prepared the pot mix and filled the grow bags with dried leaves and manure accordingly. The first later was with dried leaves. The potting mix was mixed by the students in a seperate tray and then transferred to the grow bags. The pot mix was a mixture of soil, cow dung and coco peat which was mixed manually by the students. The growbags were ready within an hour due to the combined effort of each member. The grow bags were kept aside and transferred to balcony/ terrace of the third floor of PG block.

E-Rase Your E-Waste (Collection of e-waste for recycling)
Date: 14 to 21 October 2022
October 14 is International E-waste Day. E-waste is any electrical or electronic equipment that has been discarded. This comprises working and damaged items that are thrown in the garbage. E-waste is mainly dangerous due to toxic chemicals that naturally leach from the metals inside when buried waste includes Home Appliances, Communications and Information Technology Devices, Home Entertainment Devices, Electronic Utilities, Office and Medical Equipment. Every year millions of tons of electronic waste are discarded and we need to improve the way it is collected and treated to prevent it from becoming a major environmental issue. The day is used to raise awareness on e-waste recycling. Let’s pledge to prioritize e-waste recycling.

The Centre for Environment and Sustainability in collaboration with Department of Computer Science (UG), Kristu Jayanti College (Autonomous) made an attempt to raise awareness on e-waste management by collecting e-waste for recycling. Students, Faculties and Administrative staff deposited the e-waste in the bins which were placed in various blocks. E-waste comprising of mouse, keyboard, wire, Circuit boards, DVDs, Compact disks, Audio Equipment, amplifiers etc were collected for recycling. The day was used to raise awareness on e-waste recycling and motivated students and faculty to prioritize e-waste recycling.

Expert Talk on “One Life One Planet”
Date: 24 September 2022
The expert talk on One Life One Planet started off with arrival of the keynote speaker Shri Anil Kumar, a renowned philanthropist and environmentalist. Principal Fr. Augustine George briefed the speaker about the environment initiatives in college and appreciated the great work done bt Shri. Ag Anil Kumar. The real back stage preparation began way before his arrival under the able guidance of the staff coordinators of Centre for environment and sustainability Dr Priya Josson and Dr Indira MN.

Ms Sandra Devassy, student coordinator of CES, did the anchoring on the dais. Mr Ashwin V, student of 3rd year Bsc BBB provided a radiant overture on the resource person. Dr Calistus Jude, Dean of Faculty of sciences welcomed the guest with a sapling.

Then the chief guest enlightened the audience with his escapade into the world of philanthropy. He shared multitude of his experiences on how he helped his village, Ananthapuram, overcome the horrors of the COVID pandemic. He also voiced his appreciation to Mr Vijay, Coordinator CES for his immense contributions to animal welfare back in his home town. He motivated students to do their little towards the society and environment. He inspired the audience with his Heal Ananthapur, Green Ananathapur, Green army and Home for Birds campaign. The audience gave their undivided attention to the guest of honour which was clearly evident in the interactive session that followed.A video was played on the environmental activities of Shri. A G Anil Kumar.

Mr Vijay Narasimha P, proposed a very evocative vote of thanks as a token of gratitude to the guest of honour. In honour of the chief guest, Dr Calistus Jude, bestowed a momento to Shri Anil Kumar. The event concluded with the college anthem. Shri. Anil Kumar went around the campus and was impressed by the green practices of the college including medicinal garden, rain water harvest and landscaping with trees. He identified the spots where home for birds could be implemented in Kristu Jayanti College campus.

The session motivated students to be part of the home for birds campaign to bring the urban sparrows back to city and to plant more saplings and to save trees. It also inspired students to spend a part of the time for the well being of the community and environment. He gave away the message that one person taking even one step can save this planet reverberating with the title of the talk, One Life One Planet.

Visit to Biodiversity Park and Participation in Inauguration of Biodiversity Park, NAAC Office, Jnana Barathi Campus, Bangalore
Date: 20 September 2022
Biodiversity parks are unique landscapes which consist of the form of diverse communities and provide ecological, cultural & educational benefits to the urban society. This diverse community of living organisms keeps the soil healthy and fertile. Because of natural calamities and destructive acts by humans, the biodiversity is depleting. It is therefore imperative to adopt sustainable methods to preserve and replenish the nature.

To commemorate the 12 year of its existence in Bangalore, the NAAC office organized a function to inaugurate the biodiversity park in its campus. The park was inaugurated by Honorable minister of state Shri. V. Sommanna along the director and office bearers of the National Assessment and Accreditation Council.

The students of Kristu Jayanti College along with two faculty members attended the inauguration function and also visited the biodiversity park. They were fascinated to see the various kinds of fruit trees and herbs that were planted in the park. All plants were labeled for easy identification by the visitors. Many ornamental and plants of medicinal importance were also seen in the park. The students made careful observations of the diverse flora.

There were about 50 students along with the faculty coordinators from the Centre of Environment and Sustainability who visited the campus. The Biodiversity Park with its rich flora and fauna are ideal instruments for promoting conservation education that ultimately will have positive impacts on environmental quality and conservation ethics.

Cleaning of Public Park in Commemoration of World Clean-up Day
Date: 18 September 2022
Department of Life Sciences and Centre for Environment and Sustainability organized a Clean-up of public park at Byrathi Cross, Bengaluru in commemoration of World Clean-up Day on September 18, 2022. 15 student volunteers under the guidance of Dr. Hanumanthappa cleaned the park and cleared the litter and disposed it in the specific waste bins. The park was made clean and the daily visitors to park were happy. The student volunteers spread the message of keeping our surroundings clean and tidy.

Poster Awareness
Awareness was created among the students, faculty and general public by creating poster on environment commemorative days and sharing in social media. The posters of commemorative days which fell in September are attached below.

Commemoration of World Biofuel Day 2021
World Biofuel Day is observed on August 10 and the day is set aside to raise awareness about unconventional fuel sources that can serve as an alternative to the more traditional fossil fuels. The emphasis is on the usage of non-fossil fuels or biofuels that enable cleaner consumption patterns.

An extension activity to share knowledge on biogas plant, installation and working was organized with the teachers Mrs. Neeraja Sharma and Mr. Prashanth of Vishwa Vidyapeeth School. The teachers were greeted and briefed about the college by Dr. Calistus Jude, Dean, Faculty of Sciences. The teachers took a video of the demonstration on working of Biogas plant and shared it with the high school students of Vishwa Vidyapeeth School, Honnenahalli, Bangalore on August 10, 2021 to spread awareness on non-fossil fuels. Mrs. Priya Josson, Assistant Professor, Department of Life Sciences and Coordinator of Environment Club explained the working of Biogas plant and green practices in Kristu Jayanti College. Dr. Hanumantappa B Nayaka, Assistant Professor, Department of Life Sciences explained about setting up of vermicompost plant and the process of recycling waste. A walk through the Medicinal garden and awareness on the need to preserve biodiversity was emphasized.

The students of Vishwa Vidyapeeth School prepared a beautiful handwritten creative art message as a token of their love to Principal Fr. Augustine George who spread the message of inculcating environment consciousness and sustainability amongst students.

International Plastic Bag Free Day
International Plastic Bag Free Day is dedicated to raising awareness about the very real and pressing issues of plastic pollution. We need to think it through when using plastic bags in regard to what it does to our environment and how it will wreak havoc in the coming years.

Kristu Jayanti College is aiming at a plastic free campus which is being implemented in a phased manner. We have already started the process. It is our individual responsibility to take alternate measures to avoid plastic and save the earth from the hazards of plastic pollution. International Plastic Free Day was commemorated in Kristu Jayanti College by the Environment Club through the following activities

• Students and faculty posted their resolution on International Plastic Free Day on Instagram/ Facebook/ Twitter/ status in whatsapp.
• Students and faculty made a 20 seconds video on your ideas in making the environment plastic bag free and shared in known whatsapp groups.
• Students and staff to support the college in its no plastic initiative- Carry your food, water in ecofriendly containers and bags to college. Never carry plastic bags to campus
• Students and staff to be part of the initiative by participating in pledge taking ceremony to make our campus and environment plastic free.

Fr. Emmanuel P J, Director Kristu Jayanti College of Law and faculty Dept.of Psychology gave an inspiring message on how each and every small initiative by each one of us can make a huge difference in making a plastic free world through a short story. The International Plastic Bag Free Day was commemorated in the online mode where students and faculty participated to take the pledge which was led by Fr. Emmanuel P J. As the pledge was taken, all took a resolution to try to cut plastic from our everyday life and make our environment plastic free. Mrs. Priya Josson, Coordinator, Environment Club quoted that plastic pollution free world is not a choice but a commitment to life - a commitment to the next generation

We don’t have to engage in grand, heroic actions to participate in change. Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world.

“Build Your Micro Terrarium” Competition in Commemoration of World Environment Day
World Environment Day is celebrated on 5th June every year to stimulate worldwide awareness of the environment and enhance political attention and action to improve and conserve our environment. This year the theme for World Environment Day is “Reimagine. Recreate. Restore”. The Environment Club of Kristu Jayanti College, in commemoration of World Environment organized an Intra-collegiate Event “Build your Micro Terrarium” for the students and faculties of the college Day from 1st June to 5th June 2021.

Micro Terrariums are stackable little Ecosystems that add Nature to your desk. The transparent terrarium is designed as a tiny greenhouse that retains moisture. The concept of micro terrarium is to initiate a small ecosystem at our home and workplace. The competition was open to all Jayantians including faculty and students who actively participated and uploaded their beautifully created micro terraria. There were 43 participants from all departments who came up with innovative ideas and techniques of building micro terrariums. The micro terrarium were soothing to eyes and relaxing for the mind.

Grow Your Own Garden Intra-collegiate Competition
Plants support a whole world of creatures in the soil, that in return feed and protect the plants. This diverse community of living organisms keeps the soil healthy and fertile. Because of natural calamities and destructive acts by humans, the biodiversity is depleting. It is therefore imperative to adopt sustainable methods to preserve and replenish nature. The Environment Club of Kristu Jayanti College, organized an Intra-collegiate Event “Grow Your Own Garden” for the students of the college in commemoration of Sustainability Day and Soil Day from 11th November to 10th December 2020. The duration of the event was for four weeks where the students were required to grow their own herbal garden staring from a young seedling/ seed.

The completion was very challenging as the activity had to be monitored through the four weeks taking care to nourish the young plants and periodically take pictures and record the growth pattern. There were about 10 participants from all programs of study. It was quiet pleasant to see more number of male students participate in the contest. The students had displayed their innovative ideas and techniques of growing plants in a sustainable and eco- friendly manner.

Poster Designing Competition
Energy efficiency refers to a method of reducing energy consumption by using less energy to attain the same amount of useful output. To highlight the importance of efficient use of energy and its conservation for a brighter future, the Environment Club organized a Poster Designing Competition on the theme “Conserve Energy Today, Produce Energy Tomorrow” in commemoration of Energy Efficiency Day between 22nd to 29th October 2020. The main objective of the event was to enhance students' knowledge of their creative streak to express their ideas using the colors of imagination. Students had to make handmade posters with a tagline based on the theme of the competition. Total of thirty entries were received for the poster competition. The posters were promoted through twitter handle of the college by the students and likes, shares and comments were encouraged for the posters. The likes, shares and comments were calculated for points and five best posters were selected and announced on KJC Twitter account on 5th Nov 2020.This activity kept the students engaged by exploring and encouraging creativity among the students. It also gave students a platform to showcase their skills and inspired them to think and work creatively to promote artistic excellence. The creativity & innovative ideas to resolve the particular issue were artistically presented and captured through posters. The artistic endeavor of the students was highly praised. Winners & participants were awarded with certificates.

Home Composting: Enriching the soil naturally
World Waste Monitoring Day, September 2020

A practical online workshop cum webinar on Zoom platform was organised by the Environment Club of Kristu Jayanti College (Autonomous) on Saturday, 26th September 2020. The session was delivered by the resource person of the day Mr. Vasuki Iyengar. The session was attended by faculty and students of Kristu Jayanti College. The inaugural address was rendered by Rev. Fr. Emmanuel P.J., Director, Kristu Jayanti College of Law, Faculty, Director, Jayantian Extension Services & Jayantian Alumni Association.

Mr. Vasuki Iyengar explained the need to manage garbage and how it is related to soil health to human health. He demonstrated various useful practices that will help in reducing the impact we have on waste accumulation in our environment. He highlighted the need to refuse, reduce and reuse single-use plastic materials including disposable utensils, bags, containers etc. He explained the process of waste segregation which is widely practiced in Bangalore and showed how the wet waste can be used in creating compost at home. Mr.Vasuki also explained different composting methods including zero cost option and minimal cost option and demonstrated garden composting methods and DIY composting. He highlighted the need to switch to using bio-enzymes as natural cleaners instead of chemical ones. The students were encouraged to take this activity as a project or an assignment which could be included as part of internal assessment.