‘The key to happiness is not to run after things’
Aakash Ranison was born in Indore, but for the last seven years, he doesn’t have a home of his own and is constantly traveling to different places across the country. At the present moment, he is living in a small village called Nasogi in Himachal Pradesh. He managed to do his schooling, but never felt the need to go to an educational institution after that. The 25-year-old had cycled from Indore to Hyderabad to give a talk at Google a few years ago. And he says he loves the city and its Paradise biryani.
This Earth Day 2021, the climate change activist has come out with a new e-book titled ‘Climate Change Explained for one and all,’ which aims to be a guideline to sustainable living in the 21st century. The book will be exclusively available on climateaction.aakashranison.com for free from April 22. It will also be available on Amazon, iBook, & Google Books as well at a nominal cost of Rs 20 from May 10.
“Climate change is a threat to the survival of human species. We depend on water, oxygen, and natural resources and if these things won’t be there in the future, we won’t be able to live. We are already buying drinking water, and there will come a time when everyone will buy fresh air. I want people to know what exactly climate change is, so I’ve written everything down in a simple and crisp way along with illustrations. I’ve even provided solutions on how we can help,” says Aakash, who began writing the book last September.
So, how did it all start for Aakash? “In 2014, I started traveling – cycling, walking, hitchhiking, trekking and kayaking — without any use of fossil fuels. While traveling, I felt close to nature as I wasn’t visiting urban cities. I began noticing so much plastic waste in beautiful places, so I felt I should do something about it. I made changes in my own life and then began spreading awareness among other people,” shares Aakash, who also embraced a vegan lifestyle and is successfully keeping up with the decision for the last 4 years, which has, in turn, helped him reduce his methane and carbon footprint.
Aakash has travelled across India and other countries covering over 8,000 km by walking, 20,000 km by cycling, and 50,000 km by hitchhiking. He is also well-known for his three art installations. The first one was made at Spiti Valley by a group of climate enthusiasts with plastic bottles left behind by visitors. The second art installation is the world’s first-ever Marine Cemetery located at Beypore Beach in Kozhikode, Kerala, dedicated to nine endangered marine and riverine species. It is made up of 2,000 plastic bottles that had been collected from the beach. The recent art installation is called SUP (single-use plastic) DeathBed, which is made using 26 kg of plastic, the average amount of waste generated by an Indian in a year.
“Start with simple things first – by segregating waste at home, trying not to buy plastic, switching to a bamboo toothbrush, reusing and recycling whatever plastic you are already using, and composting food waste,” informs Aakash, who just owns four pairs of clothes.
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