EcoSikh Youth Leadership Environmental Workshop at Lyallpur Khalsa College, Jalandhar

Jalandhar, 21st September, 2016: To continue the work and efforts, EcoSikh conducted another one day Environmental Leadership Workshop at Lyallpur Khalsa College, Jalandhar. The workshop was organised by the Eco Navigators Club of Lyallpur Khalsa College under the the aegis of Ravneet Singh, EcoSikh South Asia Project Manager and Gurpreet Kaur, EcoSikh Assistant Manager, India Office.
The workshop was aimed to empower the youth and engage them in devising the environmental action plan as their personal responsibility, especially in Punjab. The EcoSikh workshops celebrated the views fostered by each individual and welcomed the participative measures in strategizing the action plan for environmental preservation in the light of the recent UN Paris summit on Climate Change in December 2015. A series of interactive sessions under the theme of “Why I Care?” were conducted to discover the spark of kindness within, help in tracking the major issues, prioritizing them and strategizing the ideas and create a road-map of their action plan for maximum impact. The workshop also helped the participants to learn how to generalize an issue and gain maximum public support.
EcoSikh believes in contributing to the environmental preservation by involving people with a heart that feels for nature and a brain that understands the essentiality of doing so. The event drew wide interest and students in large numbers participated with zeal and gusto.
The workshop commenced with a prayer to the environment, thanking nature for the resources it provides us. Next, a short documentary on the EcoSikh’s journey was shown to the participants. The mission of the EcoSikh, to take responsibility and engage them in devising the Environmental Action Plan as their personal responsibility, was shared with the students.


Students beautifully expressed their ideas into words on the sheets and presented their personal stories and the impact on their lives. A great brain storming work was done by them for identifying the issues and finding out their corresponding solutions. The “Why I care” Session proved to be the most fruitful part and evoked enthusiastic response from the students, who gave their inputs based on their own feelings and experiences from daily life. The event culminated with a “Call for Action” where the participants were made aware of the way ahead in terms of fund-raising, strategizing and forming action groups towards environmental care.
EcoSikh South Asia Project Manager, Ravneet Singh expressed, “EcoSikh Leadership workshops are intended to catalyze the youths’ energy and help them take ownership of their local issues. These workshops help their sensitive minds to flourish in their own unique way of solving the issues and uplift the stature of their land. The workshop has helped them to understand that they are the change they have been waiting for.”
The three-hour workshop with 85 students provided them an effective platform to communicate individually and via team representations. It also enhanced listening ability, understanding and appreciating others’ point of view, debate, and act and handle the customised situations which a leader would face. Students were also awarded with Certificates of Appreciation.
Dr. G.S. Samra, Principal, Lyallpur Khalsa College while speaking on the occasion, commended the EcoSikh for the ground breaking work they are doing. Dr. S.S. Bains and Dr. Jaswinder Kaur, Professors at Lyallpur College also actively participated in the workshop. They encouraged the students and also emphasized on the role and responsibility of the youth towards environment.