Fostering sustainable lifestyle in the faculty members, students and non teaching staff of the college
Objective:
- To protect the environment in both a proactive and remedial manner, with emphasis on anticipation and prevention.
- To make decisions that recognizes the interdependence of humans and nature in a common ecosystem.
- To promote responsible resource use and conservation practices.
- To have regard for environmental, economic and social costs and benefits in the development and use of resources, products and services.
- To promote responsible stewardship to ensure equitable use of natural and environmental resources in order to meet essential needs of both present and future generations.
- To ensure good health and well-being of human beings and ecosystem.
Context: In the context of increasing population and consumption of natural resources, sustainable development and lifestyle is a development model aiming at a balance between economic growth, quality of life and environmental preservation medium and without increasing consumption of natural resources beyond the capacity of the Earth. The intensified global problems such as depletion of natural resources, damage to the natural environment, economic and financial crisis and increasing consumption led to the paradigm shift from consumption to sustainable development and recognition of new courses of action, namely green initiatives or eco-friendly initiatives. The college fosters and inculcates sustainable development goals in its students, teaching and non teaching staff by organising various awareness campaigns, promoting consciousness towards these initiatives, through Nukkad Natak, Extension activities, activities addressing Locational advantages and disadvantages, lecture series, #Fridayforfuture campaign etc
Practice:
- #Friday for future: Following the world campaign #Friday for future initiated in August 2018 as a mandate of eco friendly initiative, the Principal of the college made it mandatory for the faculty members, non teaching staff and students, the use bicycle and e-rickshaw for commuting to college each Friday.
- Cleanliness drive:
Following the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (SBA) or Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) the college aims at spreading awareness and consciousness within and around the vicinity of the college. The objectives of the college under the banner of Swachh Bharat include:
- Eliminating open defecation
- Prevention of the use plastics, polythene etc.
- Segregation of bio gradable and non bio gradable waste.
- Recycling of waste.
- Swatchcha Ganga Abhiyan
- Eco-Friendly Initiative:
Implementing environmental friendly practices is becoming more and more essential for the college. In addition to doing what’s right for the environment, venues that initiate sustainability programmes promote three-fold benefits: environmental, social and economic. These three arenas are extensively looked after, explored and enthusiastically worked upon by the Eco-Green Club of the college established in June 2019-20.
- Function of Eco-Green Club of the college: The members of the green club devotedly participate in the meaningful and significant environmental initiatives awakening the students and society towards the environmental issues and problems. The following activities are the part and parcel of Eco-Green Club:
- Organizing Poster competitions and exhibitions on environment.
- Essay, poetry and debate competitions.
- Extension activities include the initiative of the members of the club to move out to nearby slum areas and enlighten the residents towards gaining consciousness on the issues related to conservation and protection of our environmental.
Apart from the proactive participation of Eco-Green Club, the college also indulges into many sustainable initiatives:
- Roof Top Rainwater Harvesting.
- Usage of LED bulbs
- Medicinal plants (Botanical garden)
- Waste Segregation Management
- Academic Citizenship behaviour: The Maintenance staff and students take care of switching off lights, fans and other electrical devices when they are not in use to avoid wastage of energy. The offices, to the extent possible, are arranged to take advantage of natural light from windows.
- Waste water- the treated water is being used for flushing and gardening.
- Plantation: A lot of expenditure is incurred to keep the environment green. Trees are planted every year. The college organizes tree plantation programme every year to inculcate this tradition amongst its students.
- Swachch Bharat scheme by NSS volunteers is fully functional.
- Smoking and Tobacco Free Campus.
- Plastic Free Zone Campaign.
- Course on Environmental Studies is introduced this academic year.
- Go Green Initiative through Poster Competition and Environment Day Celebration is observed.
- Installation of low-flow water taps and faucets, and toilets that flush with less water, help conserve both water and money.
- Implement double-sided printing and copying. Use scrap paper for notes and internal memos. Buy toner in recyclable cartridges and donate unused office supplies.
- Set up recycling services in meeting rooms for all items, including paper, plastic, metal, glass, cardboard, newspaper, bulbs, toner cartridges, electronics, mobile phones and batteries.
- Use recyclable or reusable signage and name tags for Seminars and Workshops.
- Replace bottled water with refillable bottles or containers that are refilled on-site.
- Install reduced water flow faucets and toilets.
- Incorporate water-saving landscaping by planting drought-resistant plants, trees, shrubs and/or native landscaping to keep watering to a minimum.
- Ask suppliers to source products with little or no packaging, purchase in bulk to reduce packaging or to take back packaging for recycling or reuse.
- Replace hazardous materials, pesticides and herbicides with more environmental friendly products and solutions.
- The college has appealing tradition of welcoming guests in during various events by gifting them basil plants instead of flower bouquets.
- Grievance Redressal Cell : receives ethics/moral complaints and arbitration requests through the online Grievance portal of the college which is further taken up by the Grievance Redressal Cell to discuss with those concerned and submit its recommendations and report to the Principal of the college as expeditiously as possible.
- Women’s Cell-The cell conducts different activities to encourage women to fight against any kind of injustice resulting from gender bias.
Evidence of Success: The efforts of the college in bringing out and inculcating sustainable lifestyle initiatives have so far been immensely fruitful and successful. The college has succesfully fostered and inculcated sustainable development goals in its students, teaching and non teaching staff by organising various awareness campaigns, promoting pros and cons of various practices, through Nukkad Natak, Extension activities, activities addressing Locational advantages and disadvantages, lecture series, #Friday for future campaign etc, Swachcha Bharat Abhiyan, Save Ganga Save water, Each one teach one etc. It can be stated with due pride that in the institution the incidents of sexual harassment of girl students are nil due to the discipline in the campus. The Cell also tries to incorporate good hygiene habits and ensure a healthy atmosphere in and around the college.
Problems Encountered and Resources Required:
- In making the campus plastic free the college encountered the challenge of providing the replacement for polythene and had a tough time being vigilant in observing complete implementation of the campaign.
- Promoting green initiatives like planting maximum trees in the campus was presented with the challenge of post plantation initiatives and there was less fertile area available for the same.
- The team faced challenges in grabbing attention of the common mob for reducing the use of paper and switching to email and whatsapp for communicating messages.
- It took time for all the members to adjust to the #FRIDAY FOR FUTURE CAMPAIGN, especially for ladies and those who have to commute to long distances without bike/cars/buses.
Best Practice 2
- Title of the best practice : Seminars and Symposiums are organized regularly
- Objective: The qualifications may not be all that is needed in today’s competitive job market and globalised era. The teachers and students need to be well equipped with the challenges of the society. For this faculty development programmes, workshops, seminars, conferences and symposiums are regularly organized to foster the need of the scenario.
Context:
- Understanding the individual needs of the identified students’ groups.
- Designing individual activities with relevant details for implementing each of the programs/ activities.
- Identification of resource persons for delivery of these programs/activities.
- Young students lack proper career orientation in addition to their regular academic activities.
- Effective management of classes with other activities and academic pursuits of the teachers.
Practice:
For the development of faculty the college has full-fledged Faculty Development Centre through which:
1. The faculty members understand their roles and responsibilities.
2. Familiarize themselves with structure, functioning, governance, rules, regulations and professional expectations in higher education institutions.
3. Explore pedagogical processes - aims of higher education, curriculum, instructional planning, classroom management and transaction along with the uses of resources and assessment.
4. Recognize the importance of self-development, socio-emotional development of the students and the importance of nurturing ethics and values in higher education.
5. Sensitize and motivate the faculty to adopt learner centered approaches.
6. Incorporate and integrate ICT in teaching-learning process.
7. Equip the teachers with necessary competencies, skills and attitudes which enables them to face the global challenges effectively.
8. Ensure personal, instructional, organizational and professional development of the faculty members.
9. Conference: It is a forum for the teachers for the exchange of ideas with experts and the professionals with a view of acquiring additional knowledge acquainting each other with new research work, new methods and techniques of investigation or production. Lectures by experts, presentation of papers on selected themes in the area chosen for the Seminar, demonstration of new techniques and their discussion constitute the main activities of the Seminar/conference.
Programmes/ courses involving lectures, laboratory work, field work or project are floated for students with the intention of grooming them for their overall development.
Career guidance workshops: for the students to give them a direction in choosing and exploring better career opportunities.
Soft Skill Workshops for the students to improve their personality and self –confidence.
Guest Lectures on various academic and career oriented topics is held periodically in all the departments.
Quizzes – (to UG/PG Students on Business, politics, Commerce, general studies, English, aptitude etc)
Resume writing and Interview Skill workshops for UG Students
Evidence of Success-
- The Guest lectures and various workshops have significantly contributed to the knowledge and skill enhancement of the students.
- After attending these programmes students improved their confidence level, assertiveness, presentation skill etc.
- The seminars and conferences have enriched the teachers with necessary competencies, skills and attitudes which have facilitated in their facing of the global challenges more effectively.
- Those students who have been the part of our competitive exams/ trainings/ workshops have appreciated and given us a positive feedback with respect to their knowledge enhancement and skill improvement.
- These trainings and workshops have significantly contributed to the growth, grooming and development of students, motivating them to aspire for better career opportunities.
- This has also showed its positive feedback in the recruitment of students in good companies.
Problems encountered and resources required
- Synchronizing the availability of the resource person with the available time slots.
- Long distance travelling by the team for field trips to reach respective locations, most of which are in quiet remote areas.
- Time constraints often restrict the quality of the content that is delivered to the students of the college.
- Identification of the right resource persons to handle each activity, as different activities require different skill sets, knowledge, experience and expertise.