Whats your 1

the greatest threat

to a planet is the belief that someone

else will save it

quoted by sir robert swann who is the

first man in history

to have walked to the north and south

poles

and who also happens to be my mentor

hi everyone i’m avni avasti one of the

youngest indians

to have been to the antarctic twice and

a model by profession

titled miss tourism metropolitan india

2019

and i am here today with this belief

that you

and i together can make this world a

better place

with just one percent

robert swann heads the 2041 foundation

which stands for the antarctic treaty

created by the united

nations in 1959

which aims at protecting the ic

continent from

any kind of exploitation until the year

2041

after which the treaty can be edited

extended

or even abandoned

antarctica is such a hopeful place

but even with an existing treaty right

now

the continent is melting at a 10 times

faster rate

than what nasa had initially predicted

majority of the arctic has already

melted

and the resources up there are being

taken out

and used and exploited seriously for the

past

innumerable decades and then we ask

but why is the ice really melting

what we are working towards is to make

sure

that what is happening up not in the

arctic

does not happen down south in the

antarctic

antarctica has been described as a

silence

deep with a breath-like sleep and

trust me the continent’s profound beauty

haunts you for the rest of your days

i witnessed this beauty first hand at

the age of 18

and then again at 20 but this time

i was on the expedition as a mentor

and of course four wouldn’t want to be

that coolest student in class to be a

polar explorer right

but it wasn’t just that simple i was 13

when this journey started but this

wasn’t an excursion it was an expedition

a mission to the end of the world

antarctica

the most pristine place on this earth

a continent whose civilization consists

of penguins

whales and seals and our morning started

with the sight of a whale

and ended with storms chasing us

those of course a huge part of my family

and friends who were so

proud but there is always that one

section of the society that can’t help

but call you crazy

but what’s the fun and not being crazy

right

and so i did i went south to the pole

to become the youngest indian to be on

the antarctic in 2016

and to make it better i embraced it with

a polar plunge into the minus two

degrees antarctic waters

this plunge wasn’t just any other plunge

it was a jump that pushed our limits to

dive into the chilling waters

that helped us appreciate the beauty of

that continent

seventy percent of the world’s fresh

water on this continent

and i was there standing right on it

the wildlife so pristine the air so

fresh and the colors so soothing

but all of this is at a threat

on these expeditions we were a hundred

people

from different nations alien cultures

and varied languages

but all together with just one motive

which is to save

antarctica from what has already

happened to the arctic

now you must be wondering how are we

sitting so far away here in india going

to possibly save antarctica

now let me tell you any tiny action of

ours that contributes to the depletion

or over usage of our planet’s resources

results in an

increase in carbon footprint which in

turn gets our planet to heat up even

this heating up of the planet has been

taking place due to us

humans who are so far away from the

south pole

but this is the same heat that is

causing the polar

caps to melt if the whole of antarctica

melts

the sea level is going to rise by a good

meters of which one meter has already

increased in the past five years

while i was deep rooted into the frozen

waters of antarctica

i discovered another inclination that

was going to drive my dramatic

aunties to pronounce me unstable

wasn’t it enough for an 18 year old

indian girl to go to antarctica all

alone

for her to start modelling now

well within a year of my photoshoots and

ramp walks

i started shooting professionally and

soon

the ruthless taunting did not take long

to make its rounds

what values are you trying to portray

doesn’t this contradict your values of

being an

environmental advocator do you want to

pour water on

all your efforts and so i succumbed to

this pressure

and took a break from modeling but then

i got thinking

why can’t two of the closest things to

my heart coexist

that’s when i started to use both of

them

to their teacher’s benefit because being

pretty

does not mean being dumb right don’t we

have

stunning examples of intelligent

supermodels and global actors like emma

watson

or dia miza advocating social causes but

also working in the

entertainment industry at the same time

then why not me

jennifer lopez very rightly said

beauty is only skinny and i think

what’s truly important is finding a

balance of the mind

body and spirit so

i found my balance by getting both my

passions

to coexist i started modeling and

promoting green and eco-friendly brands

started using local food and clothing

brands

started up cycling my old outfits into

new ones

and who doesn’t enjoy shopping right

well i do

and so i started buying from thrift

shops online which is my personal

favorite

now sustainable living is not temporary

it’s a lifestyle adapting to certain

habits consciously

but habits that become your lifestyle

without causing too much inconvenience

to you

some changes that i made were cutting

down

on meat by a good 80 percent avoiding

single-use plastic bottles

and bags consciously researching about

brands before purchasing

any product because even clothes are

made up of

microplastics

just like walking the antarctic is no

cakewalk

walking the ramp isn’t either i’m sure

you’ve heard this plenty of times but

trust me what looks like glamour

does not necessarily glitter

what it can do to you is shake your

confidence

and sometimes even break it

in front of the camera for 12 hours

straight

47 changes in 10 hours and walking the

ramp in

six inch heels is no child’s play

but then again what is nothing words

come easy right

the word struggling has a negative

connotation to it

but that is the period that teaches you

the most

and those are the days that help you

identify

what really floats your boat

but then when do we really stop

struggling

do we ever stop struggling

it is okay to try something and realize

on the way that that is not something

that you want to pursue further

your inclinations your interests your

passions over time can change

and that’s okay like minded but just

because

part of my life is so focused on my

shoots and fashion shows

does not mean that my efforts or my

fight towards climate change

has been diluted yes

sometimes our busy statues professional

commitments

do not allow us to contribute enough

time to the environment

in fact we end up contributing to the

damage

even more but that is where our

conscience

and responsibilities come in and that

is your one percent the ability

to balance and live a lifestyle of your

choice

but limiting your actions in a way that

least contributes to giving out your

personal carbon footprint is your real

effort

in every tiny way possible

it can be something as small as

segregating waste

or even something as big as turning

completely vegetarian

you can start today and it can start

with you

be it climate advocacy or modeling

do it because you want to do it

everyone says given your hundred percent

but i say given your one percent

because that one percent multiplied by

millions of people

can transform the world so given that

one percent

because that is only for you

thank you so much