Bhubaneswar: They developed small wetlands in Angul’s Gurang village in 2022 and Benar village in 2023. In Kumand village, near Angul town, they created a small urban forest with 760 trees on a cremation ground recently.Meet two friends from Angul, Subrat Kumar Pradhan (35) and Siddharth Pradhan (38), who have mobilised the community to build a grassroots conservation movement, at a time when rapid industrialisation is putting the district’s forests and biodiversity under pressure.In 2017, they started Sathee Parivar with 13 other young men and women, driven by concerns over forest degradation, shrinking water bodies and recurring forest fires in the industrial district. What began as a small initiative has today grown into a network of 145 volunteers working with villagers, women’s groups and students on environmental conservation.Apart from planting saplings, creating awareness about forest fires and rejuvenating water bodies, the group is also focusing on keeping picnic and tourist spots plastic-free.“Coal mining and industries have transformed Angul’s landscape, and this has been constantly putting pressure on the district’s biodiversity. Conservation cannot be sustained by a handful of activists, which is why we are taking our movement to the people who live alongside forests and water bodies,” said Subrat.The group combines awareness campaigns with practical conservation initiatives.One such effort is a ‘plastic-free wetland’ initiative, through which the two have been mobilising volunteers and local communities to remove plastic waste from ecologically important sites, including Satkosia Gorge, Binikeyee shrine, Derjang Dam and Pampasar stream, which people frequent during the winter months.“Over the past three years, more than 10 tonnes of plastic waste have been collected from these locations and sent for recycling. The campaign is not just about cleaning up water bodies but also about making people conscious of how indiscriminate disposal of plastic affects aquatic ecosystems and wildlife,” said Siddharth, a medicine wholesaler by profession.The two said that since 2021, volunteers have been undertaking a five-day, 400-km cycling awareness rally every Feb, covering more than 120 villages near forests in the Athmallik, Angul and Satkosia forest divisions, sensitising villagers to the dangers of forest fires and the importance of preventing them.“The larger ambition is to nurture at least one informed and fearless young environmental leader in every village, strengthen environmental education in schools and work towards eliminating forest fires through community awareness,” Subrat said.