While the growing state-of-the-art research and development on environment and environmental issues has a dominant focus on cleaner processes and material loops for large scale industrial purposes, there is insufficient work on why people and societies in general are apathetic towards changing their status quo in terms of green consumption and in transforming themselves towards a green lifestyle. From our extensive work on the field, we have come to understand that there seems to be a sense of detachment between knowledge on environment and its relation with day-to-day life. In remote and rural locations, this is more complex. Not only are many completely unaware of these issues but also lack access to engaged learning and knowledge sharing.
Teach for Green (TFG) bridges this prominent gap between the lack of access to environmental knowledge and the relatable day-to-day actions, by sensitizing rural and semi-rural communities towards environmental issues through an intensive and engaging experiential learning. TFG believes that for learning to add value in actual life of the people in rural and remote settings, it is important that the training be crafted in a way that enables learning experientially in connection to day-to-day life. This approach naturally goes beyond the approach of dry rote learning for achieving momentary success in class tests or terminal exams. In the past few years, we have accomplished environmental sensitization through environmental education in schools with this kind of an experiential learning approach; grassroots education being a historical instrument for social change. At TFG, we perceive schools as not only safe learning spaces but as learning centers with great potential for innovation, which has power to catalyze social change. In this process of creating impact at the school level, TFG expands its outreach to parents and the stakeholder communities; thereby, creating impact at large.
The forests of Uttarakhand are being lost in the name of development, for timber and building of wider roads with occasional forest fires that intensify the problem of deforestation. With decrease in vegetation, landslides are common near the roadways during rainy seasons. The forest fires not only led to depletion in the flora and fauna but also caused economic loss to the state. Due to climate change, the glaciers are melting rapidly and sea levels are rising. In the dry season, the hills face water scarcity.
Teach for Green is an organization, which stands for creating awareness about various environmental problems and promoting sustainable living. TFG envisions a world where individuals and communities are environmentally conscious about their actions and are driven by their own ethos and values. We work at the grassroots level to develop ownership and mindset regarding environment sustainability. TFG aims to educate future generations to not only think of solutions about how to reduce pollution, improve waste management, encourage water conservation, increase energy efficiency, etc.; but also help them realize the implications of future disasters.
In the process of inspiring an adoption of sustainable experiential learning approaches in educational interventions, TFG also works towards strengthening the co-existing relationship between the communities and their surroundings. The aim is to nurture a culture that enhances the symbiotic relationship between the natural environment, its biodiversity, the communities embedded in it, and the sharing of resources that the natural ecosystem and the human settlements offer each other. Currently, TFG works with 30 schools of Champawat, Uttarakhand, 10 schools of Delhi, and 10 schools of Palamu, Jharkhand
We envision a world where individuals and communities are environmentally conscious about their actions, practice sustainable living, driven by their own ethos and values.
Our mission is to build a movement of community leaders to foster practices towards environment sustainability. We aim to sensitize individuals and communities towards environmental consciousness by developing an experiential curriculum and an ecosystem, which promotes green enterprise development. We instill curiosity, incept innovation, and encourage self-reliance in individuals to foster community leaders of environmental sustainability.
The world is still coming to terms with the effects of COVID-19, which continues to change everything about life and work. We, as an organization, believe in hands-on learning and experience to grasp a better understanding of the topics. In these unprecedented times, our entire platform went digital. This gave us the exposure to discover these innovative ideas, which we wouldn’t have considered before. Digital teaching, virtual gathering, work from home, tele-health etc. are some technological interventions that promised ‘normalcy’ during these times.
Due to lesser technological advancements and no internet connection, the touch that was once there was somewhat reduced. There were attempts to reflect upon the adaptations implemented by various resource communities towards modeling, pedagogic approaches, organizational practices etc. While we were still acclimatizing ourselves to the guidelines of social distancing and isolation, technological innovations came to our rescue. Constant engagements in humanitarian relief work (ration kits distribution), assistance of parents and vulnerable communities, adapting to the digitized working conditions, etc. provide people with the kind of mental support they were looking for. Adoption of relevant strategies and overcoming all the social, economic, and mental hurdles together helps in the development of a ‘community feeling’ like never before. Debates, like lack of parental interest, lack of electronic gadgets in rural settings etc., were carefully probed and assessed.
Wipro Foundation is the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) entity of Wipro Limited. Going back over two decades, we focus on social initiatives in the domains of Education, Primary Healthcare, Ecology, Disaster Response, and Cities & Public Spaces.
Sachin Bansal heads finance function for Wipro Consumer Care & Lighting in India and South Asia.
He moved to Wipro Consumer Care in 2022 and prior to that was the head of finance of Wipro Infrastructure Engineering (WIN). He joined WIN in 2007 and over the last 15 years has essayed several roles including Plant Finance, India Hydraulic Business Finance, Global Operations Finance and Mergers & Acquisitions.
A qualified Chartered Accountant and a Black Belt in Six Sigma, Sachin has led several successful initiatives to streamline and strengthen the Finance function. As part of the leadership team of WIN, he played a pivotal role in driving profitable growth with improved focus on ROCE, Productivity and Cost Optimization.
Isaac George has held several positions at Wipro across Sales & Marketing, Consulting, and IT Operations for over two decades. Since 2014, he has been leading People Function and Employee Relations at Wipro Infrastructure Engineering. Isaac also heads the group’s social initiatives efforts and works towards creating an inclusive environment for Persons with Disabilities.
Samir Gadgil is the Head HR for the Chief Growth Office and all Corporate Functions at Wipro. He is also Wipro Cares’ Pune Location Head.
Previously, Samir has worked as Head – HR for Digital Operations & Platforms and managed multiple initiatives under HR and People Supply Chain Functions, including Talent Acquisition, Talent Transformation, Workforce Management, Facilities & Transport.
A seasoned professional, Samir has also served as the Global Head- Compensation, and Benefits at Wipro and worked with best-in-class Manufacturing, Consulting, Financial, and IT Service Companies in a career spanning over two decades.
Narayan P S is the Global Head of Sustainability and Social Initiatives at Wipro Ltd. He is also the Managing Trustee at Wipro Foundation, the social initiatives arm of Wipro Ltd. He has been instrumental in the creation of Wipro’s sustainability initiative and has stewarded it since its inception in early 2008. Wipro’s sustainability charter is built on the core principle that business and social purpose must reinforce each other in addressing several key challenges around ecology and the environment, education, and communities.
In addition, Narayan is Visiting Faculty at the Azim Premji University where he teaches ‘Ecology and Development’ in the MA ( Development) program. He is also a Visiting Faculty at Xavier School of Sustainability, Xavier University, Bhubaneswar. Narayan also conducts learning sessions regularly on Sustainability at IIM Bangalore and IIM Indore.
Narayan’s interests center around (i) the broad interplay between Ecology, Economics, and Humanities (ii) the role of the business sector as a change agent in sustainable development (iii) Sustainability in Education, and (iv) Sustainable and Inclusive Cities.
Prior to the current role, Narayan was the Global Head of Information Systems for Wipro’s IT business, when he was chosen as one of CIO’s global 25 Ones to Watch.
A graduate in Electrical Engineering with a post-graduation in Management, Narayan has more than twenty-seven years of cross-disciplinary experience in Business Development, Enterprise Systems, and Corporate Sustainability. He is also involved in sustainability advocacy as a member of several industry forums on sustainability. He is currently the Chairman of the CII-GBC Greenco forum for Bangalore.
Vikrant has recently joined to lead the human resources function for Wipro Enterprises which includes Wipro Infrastructure Engineering (WIN) and Wipro Consumer Care & Lighting businesses.
Vikrant comes with 25 years of diverse global leadership experience in Strategic Talent Management, Mergers & Acquisitions, Organization Design, Cultural Transformation & Change Management, D&I, and Leadership Coaching & Development across Services, Manufacturing, Retail and Technology industries. Besides Human Resources, Vikrant has also led roles across Finance & Audit.
With a career spanning L&T, GE Healthcare, Nike, Accenture, HCL, and Harman International, Vikrant has a distinguished track record and is an alumnus of the Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune.
Aparna C. Iyer is Wipro’s Chief Financial Officer.
Aparna joined Wipro in 2003 and over the years has held several finance roles, including Internal Audit, Business Finance, Finance Planning and Analysis, Corporate Treasury, and Investor Relations (IR).
Most recently, Aparna was Senior Vice President and CFO of Wipro FullStride Cloud, leading finance operations for one Wipro’s fastest growing global business lines.
Prior to taking over as CFO of Wipro FullStride Cloud, Aparna was the Corporate Treasurer and Head of Investor Relations for Wipro Limited. As a part of that role, she was responsible for building and executing forex risk management framework, investment of surplus cash, working capital management, customer credit risk evaluation, driving capital allocation decisions, managing balance sheet exposure as well as investor and analyst relationships.
As the Head of Treasury & IR, Aparna devised Wipro’s forex strategy, aiding the operating margin performance of the company, and driving improved predictability.
Aparna is a Chartered Accountant (CA) and was a gold medalist of the CA 2002 batch.
Saurabh Govil is the Chief Human Resources Officer at Wipro, and a member of the Management Team. He leads all Wipro’s HR functions, including talent acquisition, talent engagement, and learning and development programs.
Saurabh has been a HR practitioner for over two decades, and has worked with organizations like ITC and GE. Since joining Wipro in May, 2009, he has been instrumental in transforming the organization. His work with people, processes, and organizational structure over the last three years has contributed significantly to Wipro’s growth, improving operations and introducing many new initiatives.
Saurabh is an alumnus of XLRI, Jamshedpur where he completed his master’s in human resources. He is on the advisory board of SHRM India. Saurabh has been a regular speaker at NASSCOM’s HR summit. He also contributes to NHRDN’s journal as an author.
Anurag Behar is the Chief Sustainability Officer of Wipro Limited & Vice-Chancellor, Azim Premji University.
Anurag is a member of the Committee that has developed India’s National Education Policy (2019), the first comprehensive education policy for the country, since 1986. He has been deeply engaged with efforts to improve education in India, for the past seventeen years.
He has been a vocal advocate for the critical importance of public systems, in particular the public education system. His many years in business have given him an insider’s view of both the possibilities and limits of markets. For the past few years, he has also been engaged with environmental and ecological issues. He writes widely, including a fortnightly column for the national newspapers Mint & Hindustan, and other publications.
Anurag has earlier played leadership roles in business. As the CEO of Wipro Infrastructure Engineering, he led the business from being No. 20 in the world to being the No. 1 in 5 years. He has also been responsible for many corporate functions for Wipro including Brand, Quality, and Innovation. He continues to provide oversight to the social and ecological initiatives of the Wipro Group, as its Chief Sustainability Officer. He is a member of Wipro’s Group Executive Council.
Anurag has served on various boards including that of Wipro GE Healthcare Ltd, The University of Trans-Disciplinary Health Sciences, and of the TERI University. He serves on many government & sector councils, such as MHRD’s EQUIP, the National Mission on Teachers and Teacher Education, the Government of India implementation committee for the Justice Verma Commission, Karnataka Knowledge Commission, and with the CII’s National Climate Change Council.
He has an MBA from XLRI, Jamshedpur, and a BE in Electrical & Electronics Engineering from the National Institute of Technology, Trichy. Both institutions have honored him with their Distinguished Alumnus award. He was elected as a ‘Young Global Leader’, by the World Economic Forum in 2008. He enjoys long-distance running.
Narayan P S is the Global Head of Sustainability and Social Initiatives at Wipro Ltd. He is also the Managing Trustee at Wipro Foundation, the social initiatives arm of Wipro Ltd. He has been instrumental in the creation of Wipro’s sustainability initiative and has stewarded it since its inception in early 2008. Wipro’s sustainability charter is built on the core principle that business and social purpose must reinforce each other in addressing several key challenges around ecology and the environment, education, and communities.
In addition, Narayan is Visiting Faculty at the Azim Premji University where he teaches ‘Ecology and Development’ in the MA ( Development) program. He is also a Visiting Faculty at Xavier School of Sustainability, Xavier University, Bhubaneswar. Narayan also conducts learning sessions regularly on Sustainability at IIM Bangalore and IIM Indore.
Narayan’s interests center around (i) the broad interplay between Ecology, Economics, and Humanities (ii) the role of the business sector as a change agent in sustainable development (iii) Sustainability in Education, and (iv) Sustainable and Inclusive Cities.
Prior to the current role, Narayan was the Global Head of Information Systems for Wipro’s IT business, when he was chosen as one of CIO’s global 25 Ones to Watch.
A graduate in Electrical Engineering with a post-graduation in Management, Narayan has more than twenty-seven years of cross-disciplinary experience in Business Development, Enterprise Systems, and Corporate Sustainability. He is also involved in sustainability advocacy as a member of several industry forums on sustainability. He is currently the Chairman of the CII-GBC Greenco forum for Bangalore.
