How to be a Rising Citizen

Are you annoyed, troubled, affected by the issues you see around you, be they civic, social or criminal? Have you thought about engaging and trying to make a difference but don’t know where to begin? Are you wondering how you can make any difference that will be of significance given the scale of some problems? Then the answer is that you have come to the right place. Here you can find ways to make a meaningful difference.

A Rising Citizen is someone that recognizes that he or she is a contributor to the problems around him/her and has the ability to make a difference. A Rising Citizen not only does NOT continue to contribute to the problem but works to course correct the problem altogether. The goal is to strive towards as many of these as possible. Once the citizen is well underway to addressing the issues below in their own lives, they can increase the effectiveness of their contributions by engaging others in the neighborhood. You can start your own Neighborhood Rising or one for your workplace.

Here are the possible interventions as a Rising Citizen

Contents

1 Garbage

  • Segregates garbage
  • Composts food waste generated
  • Disposes garbage responsibly including sanitary waste
  • Practices sustainable menstruation if a woman
  • Refuses plastic bags or other packaging
  • Gifts only environment friendly items
  • Upcycles and finds ways and means to have every item from his / her home being disposed a new use
  • Never every trashes anything anywhere other than in a place offering segregation
  • Carries own takeaway containers to restaurants
  • Carries own water bottle, plate, spoon and glass to avoid disposables when eating outside of the home
  • Xtra Credit: Initiates change in garbage management outside of his/her home

2 Water

  • Conserves Water as much as possible
  • Does Rainwater harvesting
  • Recycles water

3 Traffic

  • Walks/Cycles
  • Tries to Carpool
  • Uses Group/ Public Transport
  • Is a responsible driver that does not cause jams, park illegally or violate traffic rules
  • Xtra Credit: Signs up to be a Citizen Traffic Warden or otherwise contributes to the improvement of traffic significantly

4 Environment

  • Does not use any disposables at events in the home, workplace or elsewhere
  • Plants as many trees as possible
  • Does not use chemicals or pesticides in the upkeep of the home
  • Encourages environment friendly practices for community use at home
  • Thinks “environment” and “sustainability” in all his actions
  • Reuses and Recycles as much as possible.
  • Reduces purchases and when necessary purchases Upcycled rather than new
  • Supports local businesses for reduced environment impact

5 Urban Wildlife/Animal Welfare

  • Is compassionate towards all sentient beings and learns to co-exist
  • Adopts a pet. Never buys
  • Supports the reduction of stray dogs by adopting/neutering/feeding them
  • Feeds birds
  • Understands that snakes are part of the eco system and not to be killed immediately
  • Does not remove beehives

6 Citizenry

  • Votes in the area he/she lives in
  • Votes responsibly after ascertaining what positive impact the candidate can bring via his/her competence rather than vote for the party
  • Learns the local language and culture and is respectful of the same
  • Helps any person in need such as in an accident or violence
  • Neither accepts a bribe nor pays one. Ever
  • Xtra Credit: Gets as many people registered to vote as possible besides encouraging responsible voting on the day of elections

7 Civic

8 Safety, Community and Contribution

  • If employing a domestic worker or those in the unregulated sector, is fair, respectful and seeks to uplift them
  • Does not waste food given that many in the world are still suffering from the lack of it
  • Volunteers towards betterment of his/her area
  • If a woman, takes safety and security seriously and takes measures to protect herself
  • Where able, ensures children are educated against sexual abuse
  • Does not tolerate women’s harassment or child sexual abuse of running a business or group where this is possible

If you need any further information please write to us at – hello@whitefieldrising.org

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