Speaking at the UN World Summit for Social Development in Qatar 2024 (virtually), right in between my exams, and then navigating my way physically to COP30 in Belém, Brazil this was not easy. It was exhausting, chaotic, emotionally overwhelming, and deeply meaningful.
But I made it. And I’m grateful I did.
The UN session focused on Safeguarding Indigenous and Traditional Medicine in the face of climate change and environmental degradation, organized by Govardhan and Angels in the Field. Special thanks to Mr. Aswin Shanil for moderating and Mr. Mahrouss for the support.
Around the same time, I was invited as a speaker at COY20 (YOUNGO). I’ve been working closely with the YOUNGO Health Working Group to push for the inclusion of indigenous and traditional medicine in global climate-health policy. Seeing this reflected in the Global Youth Statement and the COP30 Global Mutirão text was a huge emotional moment. This representation matters.
Getting from India to Belém took nearly 60 hours of travel.
I also want to acknowledge the Ministry of Economy, Environment of Ukraine, which has consistently supported me with a Party Overflow badge allowing me to advocate for the often underrepresented indigenous and traditional perspectives on climate and health. at COPs.
Because I was actively working with the pavilion, I couldn’t participate fully in the negotiations. Still, with the help of friends, YOUNGO debriefs, and informal coordination, I managed to engage meaningfully with several tracks.
Despite all constraints, we achieved a lot.
I met with delegates from:
Australia, Switzerland, Cameroon, Fiji, Nigeria, Chad, Venezuela, Sri Lanka, and Kyrgyzstan.
Old friends reunited. New friendships formed. New MOUs drafted. New ideas born.
Global Launch of Govardhan
📍 Ukraine Pavilion | 🗓 13 November (Health Day)
With:
Mr. Kurikindi Japa (Shaman, Tsensak Community)
Ms. Juliana Gatti (Founder, Living Tree Institute)
Mr. Domenico Vito (Founder, Climate Social Forum)
We explored how traditional medicine forms a living bridge between biodiversity, climate, and health.
📍 Digital Innovation Pavilion | 🗓 20 November, 10:30 AM
Here, I spoke about:
Why traditional medicine is essential for climate resilience
How One Health frameworks must include indigenous wisdom
How Govardhan is being built to do exactly that
📍 Digital Innovation Pavilion | 🗓 13 November
With:
Ms. Cristina Romenelli (WHO)
Prof. Margherita Ferrante
Dr. Gabriela Fernandez
Roberta Ianna
Dr. Jordi Serrano Pons
Arriel Benis
Mr. Domenico Vito
This panel explored how data, digital tools, and One Health must integrate ecological and indigenous realities—not erase them. : Youtube Video
The one official negotiation track I could attend in person was the Mountain Agenda—focused on protecting mountain ecosystems.
Honestly? It reminded me of the early days of ocean advocacy.
Mountains, like oceans, are still under-prioritized. But I saw real momentum, and many countries showed strong interest. Through YOUNGO debriefs and working group updates, I stayed connected to other negotiation spaces too.
Through Climate Entertainment, we collaborated with:
YOUNGO Agriculture & Food WG
Some of my photographs from COP30 were featured across major youth climate platforms which felt surreal.
Our Flickr Account : https://www.flickr.com/photos/203971104@N04/albums
On the last day of COP30, after fixing bugs mid-flight, responding to Apple reviews during pavilion shifts, and debugging between meetings. we finally launched:
👉 Download: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/govardhan-biodiversity-app/id6744970644
This was not glamorous. It was messy, stressful, and exhausting.
But we did it.
The most powerful learning from COP30?
How indigenous communities participated. But how meaningful?
We still have a long way to go. But I saw hope.
This year, we awarded our ClimateEnterAward 2025 to:
Mr. Riantsoa (Avijoro NGO, Madagascar)
Mr. Percy Siquita (Bolivia – unable to attend)
Their work represents what grassroots climate leadership truly looks like.
This wasn’t about attending COP.
It wasn’t about panels.
It wasn’t about badges.
It was about ensuring that indigenous wisdom, traditional medicine, biodiversity, and climate health are not treated as side conversations but as core solutions. Still a long way to go for traditional medicine to be part of climate and health.
🔗 Learn more:
Govardhan at COP30 : www.govardhanapp.com
Climate Entertainment at COP30 : www.climateentertainment.com
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