SDG 12.5Reuse and responsibility in the community
UPES takes waste reduction, reuse and sustainable production into nearby villages, schools and partner organisations.
- Cleaner villages. Through Project Swachhata, volunteers carry out sustained cleaning of the community areas next to the campuses, in support of the Clean India mission.
- Giving things a second life. In partnership with Goonj since 2022, UPES joins DaanUtsav each year, collecting clothes, books and essentials for reuse, including winter clothing for an old age home, Cheshire Home and a slum community in Dehradun.
- Students in the field. UPES reports more than 5,000 student internships with 1,230 partner organisations through the Srijan Social Internship, including work on environmental conservation.
- Pencils from paper. Project Vikalp, a student-driven social enterprise, trains rural women to make woodless pencils and crafts from recycled paper.
- Clean production in Ladakh. Project Artisan builds design skills among women weavers in a remote Ladakh village for the collective production and sale of carpets made on traditional back-strap looms.
- Industry partner. A February 2024 MoU with Organic Recycling Systems Ltd, a waste management company, covers joint research in materials science, sustainability, engineering and renewable energy, dissertations, internships and publications.
