Bhubaneswar: Priyadarsini Das, a homemaker from Bhubaneswar popularly known as the Green Queen of Odisha, has been leading the path towards a sustainable future not only through her initiative ‘Ecodarsini’ but is also silently driving another environmental movement in the name of ‘Green Footprint’.
The theme of 2022 International Women’s Day is “gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow”. This year’s observance is in recognition and celebration of the women and girls who are leading the charge on climate change adaptation and response, and to honour their leadership and contribution towards a sustainable future.
Priyadarsini, through her initiative “Ecodarsini”, is paving the way for rural and tribal women to uplift their lives through the making of sustainable jewellery. Her works include absolutely unique pieces of jewellery using bamboo, terracotta, handloom fabric, glass beads, stone beads, wooden beads of neem, tulsi, bael and karanj.
Her initiative has gone beyond the convention and shows a new path of making fashionable costume jewellery using mostly eco-friendly materials. Her objective is to create employment and livelihood opportunities for rural and tribal women through skilling them.
‘Green Footprint’ is an environmental campaign run by a group of volunteers who care for the protection of the environment. Priyadarsini uses specially designed terracotta birds’ nests and installs those on trees in different green areas.
She also installs water pots for animals and birds at different places in the city. Many like-minded people have been supporting her drive by donating the pots, nests, and plants in this movement, particularly on their annual celebrations like birthdays and anniversaries.
