Women Acheiver: Environmentalist & Climate Change Speaker Elsie Gabriel
— By Meher Castelino
Founder of Young Environmentalists Programme, Elsie Gabriel who is trained and certified by former Vice President of USA Al Gore, is ranked in second place by Climate Reality Project USA, as their Woman Climate Leader in the worldwide Climate Reality Project. A Global PADI-certified deep-sea diver, Elsie aims at establishing a proactive ocean habitat community. She started the Cloth Bag Revolution by distributing thousands of free cloth bags at fish/vegetable markets. Her Eco Ganesha project was awarded the Mayor’s Award in Maharashtra.
Her NGO focuses on environmental and civic projects across the country. Elsie is also an award-winning author of the book -“Get Out Get Going Outdoors”, and the founder of “My Travel Footprints” blog that documents her anthropological journey.
2020 Goals: For a gipsy girl and diver, staying at home probably has piqued my interest in travel even more. Travel is a part of my life and self-growth goals, I earn my Nirvana from exploring the globe. For the rest of 2020, I have goals of rediscovering India, my backyard.
Feminism to Me: Feminism to me is equality! It is no more a “bra-burning, man-hating” movement, which is a political relic. When men and women become aware and fully self-actualised, they will be able to create a more accountable community, to live together, realising their dreams of freedom and justice, living the truth that we are all “created equal”.
Cult Products: For an environmentalist gipsy like me, my beauty cult products are in the kitchen! I use a lot of coconut oil, yoghurt, honey, oats, lemons, potatoes, aloe vera, onions and tomatoes, besides fruits, milk, and gram flour for my daily skincare regiment.
Beauty for a woman in 2020: Beauty is much deeper than what is on the surface. Beauty involves qualities both internal and external. Beauty in my life is composed of the moments that draw upon my strength, and consume me with the remarkable and intoxicating experience of being alive. When I balance this feeling together with accepting my flaws, I feel completely beautiful!