CENTRE FOR SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION (C-SPAC)
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campaign on ecofrig |
Ozone
Day: September 16
September 16 is the day
designated by United Nations General Assembly as the International Ozone Day to
commemorate the signing of the Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete
the ozone layer. The
Programme
CUTS utilised the occasion
of the Ozone Day to organise protest campaigns/rallies/meetings
simultaneously in six Indian cities (Bangalore, Bhubaneshwar, Calcutta, Delhi,
Imphal and Jaipur) to create awareness amongst consumers about the double
standards and pressurising the erring companies so that they do not take Indian
consumers for a cool ride. Bangalore,
Karnataka
Consumer Research Education and Training (CREAT), a
networking partner of CUTS on the Ecofrig, organised a roundtable discussion on
the issue with 20 selected participants from the government, industry, academia
and media. An article written by CREAT personnel was published in a leading
national daily. Apart from this, a
memorandum was submitted to all the four companies. Bhubaneshwar,
Orissa
As part of its nation-wide
campaign on environment-friendly refrigerator, CUTS and CRAIC jointly organised
a poster drawing competition in Bhubaneshwar. Around 50 school and college
students participated in the poster competition. The event was covered by the
local vernacular and as well as the English dailies. CRAIC also submitted a
memorandum to the two city offices of two companies. Calcutta, West
Bengal
CUTS-CSPAC organised a mock
funeral procession of a supine refrigerator, painted black, on a deathbed as a
part of the countrywide protest on the Ozone Day, September16, 2000, against the
double-standards and misleading environmental claims of multinational
refrigerator manufacturing companies. Students, consumer activists,
environmental activists and common men and women actively participated in this
unique rally. The refrigerator was decorated like a death body to symbolise that
obsolete environment unfriendly technology is being sold by multinational
companies to Indian consumers. Later the memoranda were
submitted to three companies and a response was given one erring company
nullifying their stand to supply Indian market with HFC technology. The event drew a lot of
media (print and television) attention, as the concept of the protest was
innovative. Talking to the press, CUTS members accused multinational companies
for indulging in double-standards by manufacturing and selling
environment-unfriendly refrigerators. Delhi
CUTS and AICES celebrated
International Ozone Day by organising protest rallies and meetings, consisting
of 50 school students, parents and social activists, at various places in Delhi.
The participants, carrying banners and placards, walked to Bhikaji Cama Place,
Green Park and Vasant Vihar. Pamphlets were distributed to pedestrians and
motorists during the rally. Later, a small meeting was organised at Vasant Vihar
to give the Indian consumers a thorough understanding of the issue with the hope
that our efforts would ferment change for the better. Memoranda were submitted
to the four erring companies. The event was covered in three Hindi and English
national dailies. Imphal, Manipur
Ozone day could not be
observed on September 16, 2000 by AFST (Manipur Chapter) as a 40-hour state-wide
bandh was called by different politically banned organisations a day
before the event. Instead a one-day workshop on ozone depletion was jointly
organised with S. K. Women’s College, Nambol on September 25, 2000 at their
campus. Nearly 200 students and teachers from various colleges participated in
the workshop. The speakers at the workshop
highlighted the alarming situation of the ozone-holes and the effect of ODS on
the ozone-holes in the ozone layer. They discussed the role of CFCs, used as
coolants and foaming agents in refrigerators and air-conditioners, in
contributing to environmental damage and potential threats from ultra violet
rays emitted from the sun in the absence of ozone layer. They requested the
participants to make their colleagues aware of the impact of ozone-depletion on
the survival of all living beings on the earth. The news about the workshop was
covered in the local dailies. Jaipur, Rajasthan
“Boycott refrigerators of
MNCs practising double-standards”, was the strong message given by a large
number of social activists and school children during a rally organised by CUTS
at its headquarters at Jaipur on the occasion of “International Ozone Day”
on September 16, 2000. This peaceful rally was
flagged-off from Panch Batti on M. I. Road at around 10.30 am. A mock funeral
procession of the environmentally unfriendly refrigerator was taken out and the
participants, carrying placards and banners, protested against the double
standards being followed by the multinational refrigerator manufacturers.
Information kits were distributed to the participants of the rally to give them a better understanding of various environmentally friendlier technologies in the area of refrigeration and the efforts made by the multinationals to adopt the same globally. An appeal was made to the participants to not only register their protests individually to these companies, but also generate awareness in their neighbourhood on these critical issues.
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World
Environment Day: June 5
The second of the CUTS
campaign was organised on June 5, 2000, simultaneously in seven cities,
Bhubaneshwar, Calcutta, Chennai, Delhi, Imphal, Jaipur and Vijayawada on the
occasion of World Environment Day The
Programme
Bhubaneshwar,
Orissa As a part of the nation-wide
campaign on environment-friendly refrigerator, CUTS and Consumer Research
Action Information Centre (CRAIC), a Bhubaneshwar-based network partner on the
Ecofrig project, jointly organised a cycle rally in Bhubaneshwar. The rally,
comprising of 100 cyclists, carried placards on environment-friendly
refrigerators. The event attracted the media interest and was covered in most
of the local press in Orissa. Calcutta,
West Bengal
Complaining that
multinational refrigeration companies are supplying environment-friendly
refrigerators to the developed world and selling non-environment-friendly
refrigerators in India, enthusiastic rallyists braved pouring rain in Calcutta
to walk the distance from one refrigerator-manufacturer’s office to another
to submit memoranda to the company officials and to create awareness among
consumers. The rally was flagged-off by the eminent folk singer, Swapan Basu,
from Minto Park at 10.45 am.
The rally, organised by CUTS-Centre for Sustainable
Production and Consumption (CUTS-CSPAC), had around 35 rallyists, mainly
consisting of students. The rallyists carried banners and placards throughout
their journey. They also distributed around 500 leaflets on Ecofrig and the
double standards being practised by multinational companies. Leaflets were
distributed to all the pedestrians passing by, motorists and interested
residents who admired the enthusiasm of the rallyists in ignoring the adverse
weather condition for a noble cause. Participants
were also made aware of the work of CUTS on the issues pertaining to
ecology-friendly refrigeration. Importantly, an appeal was made to the
participants to not only register their protests individually to these
companies, but also to generate awareness in their neighbourhoods on these
critical issues. The event was highly
successful, considering the adverse weather conditions and closure of schools
and colleges for summer vacation. The
event was also covered in two widely circulated English dailies. Chennai,
Tamil Nadu CUTS and Citizen, Consumer
and Civic Action Group (CAG), a Chennai-based network partner on the Ecofrig
project, jointly organised an oath-ceremony and letter-writing campaign on
environment-friendly refrigerators in Chennai and 100 such letters were sent
to the various press houses in Chennai. This event built a good scope for
future lobbying and creating a national image with the media, with the
ultimate objective of getting future coverage and reaching a larger audience
on this issue. Delhi
In Delhi, CUTS and All India
Consumer Education Society (AICES) jointly organised a rally comprising of 50
like-minded people carrying banners, placards and protesting against the
double-standards of multinational refrigerator manufacturers. The rally,
started from the Bangladesh High Commission at Lajpat Nagar-III. The event was
successful and was covered by one English and two leading Hindi dailies. Imphal,
Manipur
The Association of Food
Scientists and Technologists (AFST-India), Manipur Chapter, another network
partner of CUTS on the Ecofrig project, was unable to organise a rally due to
adverse weather condition in Imphal. However, they organised a demonstration
in front of the shopping mall and submitted memos to the erring companies.
They also submitted an information note to various media in Imphal, asking
them to cover the issue to create mass awareness.
The demonstration made residents curious about the issue. Further, it
was carried in local dailies of Imphal. Jaipur,
Rajasthan
In Jaipur, an awareness
rally was flagged-off by Dr. Manjeet Singh, the Chief Executive Officer of the
Municipal Corporation of Jaipur, at 10.00 am. Over 50 participants, carrying
banners and placards, protested against the double-standards being practised
by the multinationals producing refrigerators for Indian consumers. Addressing
the rally, Dr. Singh emphasised the need of environment-friendly technologies.
Vijaywada,
Andhra Pradesh
Consumer Guidance Society (CGS),
another networking partner of CUTS in the Ecofrig campaign, organised a joint
meeting along with the Rotary Club of Vijaywada to elucidate the issue of
double-standards being practised by four multinational refrigeration
companies, Electrolux, LG, Samsung and Whirlpool. The meeting had a gathering
of 200 people. The meeting was an appropriate forum for educating a sizeable
crowd on the subject of environment-friendly refrigerators and how it concerns
the general consumers. The event was able to create a positive impact, as it
was able to stimulate the minds of the participants. The event was
sufficiently covered by the local press in Vijaywada. The
Impact
After this event, CUTS
succeeded in lobbying with the multinational refrigerator manufacturers and
inducing responses. Whirlpool responded to a letter written by CUTS and tried
to justify their stand on using HFCs in refrigerators. A counter response to
this was drafted and circulated globally to refrigerator experts seeking their
comments. After receiving the comments and incorporating necessary amendments,
the counter response was sent to Whirlpool. This was followed up with a
rejoinder, which further nullified some claims made in the letter received
from Whirlpool. CUTS also succeeded in using the print media to report on environment-friendly refrigerators, particularly at the regional level. It was decided to use national dailies and television channels to report on environment-friendly refrigerators. The purpose was to maximise consumer awareness. |
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Earth Day: April 22The first event to boost the
CUTS campaign on environment-friendly refrigeration was organised on Saturday,
April 22, 2000 on the occasion of Earth Day. The
Programme
A
peaceful awareness rally was taken out at New Delhi on April 22, 2000. The main
attraction of the rally was a refrigerator carrying the logo of four erring
refrigeration manufacturers, Electrolux, Samsung, LG and Whirlpool. Children and
their parents flagged off the rally at around 10.30am from Lajpat Nagar-III. The
participants carried banners and placards protesting against the double
standards of the multinational refrigerator manufacturing companies. Information
kits were distributed to the participants of this rally to give them a more
thorough understanding of the various environment-friendlier technologies in
refrigeration and the efforts made by multinationals to adopt the same the world
over. The
Impact
The peaceful rally in Delhi
created a stir among consumers in New Delhi. While answering the questions
raised by Rajnath Singh Surya in the Rajya Sabha on May 5, 2000 Babulal Marandi,
the Mnister of State in the Ministry of Environment and Forests clearly
specified that major manufacturers of domestic refrigerators in India have
received financial assistance from the Multilateral Fund for producing
refrigerators using eco-friendly substitutes of Ozone Depleting Substances. After the success of the
event in Delhi, it was felt that there was a need to further spread this
awareness generation effort across the country. While working on the Ecofrig
project, CUTS had developed a strong network of like-minded NGOs throughout the
country. CUTS convinced them to take this issue and decided to use the local and
national media to cover these events. The success of the first event not only managed to make substantial impression on the national press on this issue but also generated a trickle-down benefit for planning and organising the next events. CUTS and its network partners were able to capitalise on this by repeatedly lobbying with the press to publish in-house reports on environmentally friendly refrigerators. |
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