Disha Ravi: A portrait of an environmental warrior

Disha Annappa Ravi is a household name in our country, but unlike Greta Thunberg, the green activist came under the spotlight after she was accused by the Delhi Police of hatching a conspiracy against the nation while thousands of farmers protested against the freshly implemented pro-corporate agricultural laws on the borders of the national capital.

She was arrested from her home in Bengaluru along with others accused of editing a toolkit on the farmers’ protests shared by Greta.

The 'young passionate environmentalist' as her friends call her, spent cold nights in Delhi prison before the judiciary set her free.
Her association with Greta goes back to 2018 when the Bengaluru resident joined the Indian chapter of 'Fridays For Future', the environmental movement launched by the Swedish climate change activist, who has taken the high and the mighty head-on.

No wonder then, Greta was quick to condemn Disha’s arrest and had reminded the advocates of democracy about the right to protest.

Like Greta, Disha began her activism quite young. In fact, she was still a teenage girl of 19, inspired by primatologist Jane Goodall when she took the stand. But the seeds were sown by her grandparents.

In a 2019 interview, she said her motivation came from her grandparents who are farmers and struggle with the effects of the climate crisis.

Ravi, who wanted to pursue a career in finance, had been vocal about environmental issues long before she graduated from Mount Carmel College in Bengaluru in 2018. She supported campaigns of Green Peace in her early college days.

Over the years as a climate change activist actively participated in coordinated environmental strikes, took part in lake clean-up operations, and also organised tree planting exercises across Bangalore, attended workshops, walked the streets demanding climate action, loved animals and spoke out against sexism and capital punishment.

The sole bread-earner of her family, who lives with her mother, and also promotes a vegan diet started working as a culinary experience manager at a company involved with making plant-based food accessible and affordable to people.

When not protesting out on streets or cleaning lakes, Disha likes to take the quiet corner of her house, with her German Shephard by her side and go through editorials and articles on environmental issues.

In an interview with US author and professor Gayle Kimball, who is compiling a book on Gen Z girl climate activists, Disha weighed in on a question on whether protests and activism is a part of Indian culture.

“In India, protests are a part of life since the Indian freedom struggle was rooted in peaceful protests” the business administration graduate had told Kimball.