Bhubaneswar: Odisha Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati Monday called upon the state’s youth to become leaders in green entrepreneurship and climate resilience, urging them to turn waste into value, promote renewable energy, advance sustainable agriculture and create jobs while protecting the environment.
Addressing a gathering at a private university in Khordha, the Governor said Odisha needed young people not merely to inherit its future but to build it. He reminded them that last year he had asked them to move from being passive recipients of policy to becoming architects of climate resilience.
“Today, I return with a simple message: Odisha does not merely need young people to inherit its future; Odisha needs young people to build that future,” he said.
Kambhampati said the vision of Viksit Bharat@2047 could become a reality only by converting the energy and creativity of young people into purposeful action.
Climate change, he said, was no longer a distant warning, with heatwaves, erratic rainfall, floods, cyclones and rising sea levels increasingly affecting agriculture, nutrition and livelihoods.
“Climate action is not only an environmental responsibility, but it is a responsibility towards human dignity and the future of our children,” he added.
Highlighting Odisha’s experience with cyclones and floods and its efforts to conserve forests and biodiversity, the Governor said the state must move beyond disaster preparedness to building inherently climate-resilient communities.
He cited youth‑led initiatives such as seed‑ball activities in Phulbani, plantation drives in Jatni and Khalikote, Blue Flag beach initiatives in Puri and climate sensitisation efforts in Similipal as examples of how local action can drive wider change.
He stressed the 3‑R principle, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, and Mission LiFE as essential to making sustainability a way of life. Calling for “Mission 30 by 30”, Kambhampati urged young people to help mobilise climate action across every district of Odisha by 2030, combining local knowledge with science and technology to address district‑specific ecological challenges.
He asked participants to use the three‑day Youth Parliaments and district dialogues to “architect solutions” rather than merely discuss problems and return as “ambassadors of sustainability, champions of climate resilience and agents of change”.
The Governor also linked sustainable lifestyles with India’s energy security, referring to geopolitical tensions in West Asia and the country’s dependence on imported crude oil.
He urged youth to promote sustainable mobility and gradually shift towards electric vehicles, saying this could reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels, strengthen energy security and ease pressure on foreign exchange reserves.
Noting that his official convoy has already shifted to electric vehicles, he said individual behavioural changes, when adopted collectively, could make a significant contribution to sustainable development and national self‑reliance.
