The organization’s work spans various critical areas, including waste management, fighting air pollution, and advocating for the rights of waste pickers​. What began as a one-person mission has now grown into a widespread movement. 

It engages in knowledge-action research, exploring issues like plastic reduction and circular economy models. Chintan’s initiatives align closely with several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Initiatives like organizing waste pickers into associations, providing education for children of waste pickers, and creating green jobs are just a few examples of their broad impact​.

Meet Bharati Chaturvedi

Bharati Chaturvedi was born and raised in Delhi, India. She pursued history at Delhi University, where she earned her Master’s degree. Later, she obtained another Master’s in international public policy from Johns Hopkins University. While still at Delhi University, she co-founded Srishti. This student group tackled environmental problems.  This was her first foray into activism, but certainly not her last. (Bharati Chaturvedi | Chintan)

She also writes for the Hindustan Times and Business Standard unpacking the complexities of environmental justice or offering fresh perspectives on art. She is a LEAD Fellow and has received the Sarai Urban Fellowship. Chaturvedi also serves on several non-profit boards in India.

The Impact of chintan 

Chintan’s work touches on several critical areas:

Advocacy and Research: 

They conduct studies on environmental laws and grassroots behaviors. This work includes exploring the impact of single-use plastics and advocating for circular economy practices​​.

Empowering Youth: 

By offering volunteer and internship opportunities, Chintan enables young people to contribute to environmental solutions and learn sustainable practices​​.

Supporting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): 

Their initiatives align with multiple SDGs, from reducing poverty and hunger to promoting gender equality and ensuring sustainable cities​​.

Creating Green Jobs: 

Over 3,200 green jobs have been created through their efforts, showcasing a commitment to decent work and economic growth​​.

What Does Chintan Do?

Voice for Waste

This initiative stands as their advocacy, research, and outreach arm. It focuses on policy changes, public awareness, and campaigns for sustainable waste management practices​. This initiative tackles the challenges of waste management, advocating for sustainable practices and policies

Scavengers to Managers

“Scavengers to Managers” redefines waste management by turning wastepickers into waste managers. This program manages over 30 tons of solid and electronic waste in Delhi daily through, doorstep collection, segregation, recycling, and composting.

No Child in Trash

No Child in Trash is dedicated to the children of waste picker communities. Chintan commits to pulling children out of hazardous waste-picking jobs and into schools. This initiative is vital for child welfare and education, aiming to break the cycle of poverty​. Approximately 64% of the beneficiaries are girls, highlighting the initiative’s focus on gender equality​

Support for the Safai Sena

Safai Sena is a collective of over 12,000 waste pickers across North India. They support this group in advocating for their rights, recognition, and against their stigma and exclusion​ The initiative promotes the recognition of waste pickers and small traders as essential components of waste management in India. 

Additional Initiatives

Trainings: They offer training programs focused on waste management and legal education. These programs are designed for individuals, communities, and institutions​​.

Knowledge-Action Research: This includes research on reducing single-use plastic, promoting circular economy practices, and assessing the impact of environmental laws​​.

Youth Service: Through volunteer and internship programs, they engage young Indians in environmental solutions and sustainable practices​​.

Kyari to Kitchen: An initiative to train women to grow their own food, promoting self-reliance and nutritional resilience​​.

Gen Next: Targets child labor in green sectors by providing education and life skills, with a focus on supporting girls​​.

Green Jobs Creation: Over 3,200 green jobs have been created, contributing to waste and plastic collection while reducing exposure to hazards.

Recognition and Awards

Through initiatives like “Voice for Waste,” “Scavengers to Managers,” and “No Child in Trash,” Chintan has impacted over a hundred million people yearly, advocating for responsible waste management and supporting vulnerable communities. The Chintan Foundation has garnered notable recognition and awards over the years:

2012: U.S. Innovation Award from Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton.

2013: Received the UN-BMW Intercultural Innovation Award and Google’s Global Impact Award.

2014: Awarded the French Republic’s Human Rights Award, the Deutsche Bank Urban Age Award, and the ASSOCHAM Ladies League Award for All Grassroots Woman of the Decade.

2015: Honored with the United Nations Climate Solutions Award at COP21.

2018: FICCI Women Icon Award by the President of India.

Joining the Movement

Volunteer with Chintan

Become part of the change. Chintan welcomes volunteers who are ready to dedicate at least 100 hours over three months. 

Intern and Learn

Students or recent graduates can intern at Chintan. They look for individuals from diverse fields like public policy, ecology, or social work. It’s a chance to sharpen your skills while contributing to meaningful projects​​.

Work Opportunities

Keep an eye on their announcements for job openings. They post vacancies for those looking to work directly on environmental and social issues​​.

Partner or Collaborate

Chintan is open to partnerships. Whether it’s recycling initiatives, training, research, or community work, there’s a way for everyone to collaborate.

The Path Forward with Chintan

Chintan Environmental Research and Action Group has shown us the power of collective action. It’s easy to think that one person’s actions won’t make a difference. But what if everyone thought that way? Chintan started with just one person’s vision, and look at the impact now. Every effort counts, whether it’s volunteering, educating yourself and others, reducing your waste, or supporting sustainable practices. 

Through their diverse initiatives, they’ve shown us how environmental sustainability and social equity can go hand in hand. From transforming waste into wealth to empowering the marginalized, their journey is a testament to single individual’s vision.

For those inspired by Chintan’s story and interested in learning more about similar initiatives, we recommend exploring our articles on other influential organizations. Dive into the global efforts of 350.org, which mobilizes grassroots movements to address climate change. Discover the insights provided by Climate Policy Radar, mapping the global landscape of climate policies. Learn how Greenly drives corporate responsibility through carbon footprint analysis, and explore how Eureciclo facilitates recycling certification in Brazil, enhancing environmental accountability. These articles not only offer further examples of environmental activism but also provide practical knowledge on how you can contribute to these causes.