The Indian women at the forefront of the country’s environmental movement

Activists like teenager Ridhima Pandey regularly find themselves at odds with the government as well as powerful corporate lobbies

Indian women often manage natural resources at the family and community levels, underlining their role in environmental protection

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Ridhima Pandey became attuned to climate change in 2013 when her home state of Uttaranchal was devastated by floods. Photo: Instagram

Published: 3:00pm, 5 Jun 2021Updated: 12:17am, 9 Jun 2021

Ridhima Pandey was just nine years old when she filed a petition against the Indian government over its lack of action to mitigate climate change. She recalls her horror in 2013 when her home state of Uttaranchal, north of the country, was devastated by floods.

“Watching people’s homes being swept away and thousands of people and animals dying was scary, and a wake-up call for everyone to do something about it,” she said. “Global warming is a real threat, so we need to pay close attention to it.”

Now a veteran activist at 13, Ridhima has also lobbied India’s National Green Tribunal to address climate change. When her petition was dismissed, she took her cause to the Supreme Court.

She also joined a group of other young activists from around the world to file a complaint with the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child against Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany and Turkey over their failure to manage the climate crisis.

As the world marks Environment Day on June 5, Pandey has emerged as one of several Indian girls and women at the forefront of her country’s conservation movement, regularly taking on the government as well as powerful corporate lobbies.