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Pranav Sethaputra
Partnerships & Communications Lead, GrowAsia
The Great Room, Afro-Asia
Growing up in Indonesia, Pranav first witnessed how important market systems for marginalised communities were. He is passionate about building action-oriented partnerships and commits to creating systems that work and are viable in the long-term.
TAKEAWAYS FROM HIS JOURNEY
It Sticks
Pranav grew up in Jakarta, Indonesia living a comfortable life with private education; but witnessing social inequalities and environmental degradation first-hand stuck with him forever. Neighbours living in corrugated iron roof houses and communities severely affected from waist-deep flooding, he wanted to be part of the solution.
Throughout his childhood, he volunteered at orphanages and disaster relief centres, but Pranav decided to up the ante and start Global Warning (an environmental activist group running greenification programmes in schools) with his friends after seeing Al Gore's 'An Inconvenient Truth'.
Long Term Systems That Work
To Pranav, sustainability is creating long-term viable systems that work.
"It's not about CSR, which can be tokenistic 'feel good' programs; or about reducing our negative environmental and social impact through using less energy. It's about changing the way our governments and businesses operate so that it becomes intuitive for us to produce sustainable, accessible and nutritious food, whilst creating value for all—but that allows our planet to heal."
It's A Collective Effort
The type and scale of change that needs to happen to make our global systems more 'sustainable' cannot be achieved if we're all working in silos. It requires collective and concerted action from consumers and, particularly, governments and businesses.
The type of work Pranvas does in the 'sustainability sector' (which really is as broad as 'engineering'), is to facilitate these type of partnerships, where governments and the private sector, along with non-profits, multilateral agencies, research organizations and other key market actors come together to address these systemic challenges that can't be tackled by individual actors.
The impact he'd like to have in the long run to see this type of collaborative action become the norm. This is what Pranav believe - it's the only way forward.
Becoming more informed and conscious about our decision-making
With regards to how it could have an impact on the planet or the people that live on it.
While individual choices are important, Pranav would advocate that people equally push the businesses they engage with and their governments to commit to doing more, to do it quickly, and to demand accountability. Individual action is critical because our choices as consumers and citizens change policies and the structures in which production and consumption happen, rather than our 'shopping' choices per say.
"So shop responsibly, but just make sure that's where you start and not where you stop."
Pranav is featured with the 19 Degree Extended Trip Expandable 4 Wheeled Packing Case and Alpha Bravo Mason Duffel.