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“The documentary [From Gangs to Gardens] really changed my perspective on how music could help us connect with our earthen roots better. It also inspired me to delve further into the various eating habitats and their benefits to our health and mannerisms.”
Akriti Srivastava is a student at the Lancers International School in New Delhi, Delhi, India. For the SIMA Student Changemaker Award, Akriti Srivastava chose to screen From Gangs to Gardens.
From Gangs to Gardens follows organic gardener and vegan chef Letef Vita, an award winning international recording artist and activist who uses Hip-Hop culture to inspire young people to connect to the earth by teaching them how to grow food, and cultivate healthy eating habits. Through his lyrics and gardens, Ietef is planting the seeds of the food movement extending from his hometown of Denver Colorado to across the globe.
Through the film, Akriti Srivastava encouraged their fellow classmates to connect with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Number 3: Good Health and Wellbeing. Akriti Srivastava received a special mention for the 2023 SIMA Student Changemaker Award.
The Project Description:
My project is a podcast on the adverse health effects of food adulteration.
What is the topic, theme, SDG or social issue your project addresses?
SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing
What SIMA Academy film(s) inspired your project?
From Gangs to Gardens
What did you learn from the film(s)? Did your perspective about the issue change or did you discover something new?
The documentary really changed my perspective on how music could help us connect with our roots better. It also inspired me to delve further into the various eating habitats and their benefits to our health and mannerisms.
What type of project did you create?
Podcast
What planning resources did you utilize to create your project. Please describe and/or share a link.
To plan my project, I created a brief outline of how my podcast would be structured on a sheet of paper, including a diagram of my title page. I later constructed the script on a Google Doc and used Canva and GarageBand to create the project.
Please tell us about the impact of your project. You can use both quantitative and qualitative outcomes.
After listening to my podcast, my classmates and I became increasingly interested in deciphering the food labels and identifying FSSAI products. Additionally, we encouraged others within our social circle to do the same and avoid adulterated projects. We also plan to undertake various adulteration tests in our school’s chemistry lab to spread more awareness.
Please tell us what you learned in the process of creating your project?
The best part of the project was indeed going on the other side of the school kitchen to meet the chef who puts all of his effort to ensure a safe and healthy meal for all of us. Collecting the interviews was a challenge as well, as I had to take an extensive amount of permissions, but it was worth it in the end.
Tell us about 1 thing you will do differently in the future after learning about this social issue and creating your own project about it.
I would like to create more awareness about this issue, as it is a major problem for growing children and teenagers where a good diet is essential.
Please provide a link (google drive or dropbox folder) to where we can access your project and see evidence of your strategic plan (for example video, photographs, your campaign planning canvas etc.).
