Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment)

In News 

The Prime Minister will launch Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) in the presence of U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres at the Statue of Unity at Ekta Nagar in Kevadia.

Need 

• Environmental degradation and climate change are global phenomena where actions in one part of the world impact ecosystems and populations across the globe. 

• Over the last two decades, several macro measures have been implemented globally to address environmental degradation and climate change, including policy reforms, economic incentives and regulations. 
• Despite their enormous potential, actions required at the level of individuals, communities and institutions have received limited attention.
• Changing individual and community behaviour alone can make a significant dent in the environmental and climate crises. 
  • According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), if one billion people out of the global population of eight billion adopt environment-friendly behaviours in their daily lives, global carbon emissions could drop by approximately 20 per cent.

What is LiFE?

• At the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP26), Hon’ble Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi announced Mission LiFE, to bring individual behaviours at the forefront of the global climate action narrative.
• LiFE envisions replacing the prevalent ‘use-and-dispose’ economy—governed by mindless and destructive consumption—with a circular economy, which would be defined by mindful and deliberate utilisation. 

Approach 

• Focus on Individual Behaviours: Make life a mass movement (Jan Andolan) by focusing on behaviours and attitudes of individuals and communities
• Co-create Globally: Crowdsource empirical and scalable ideas from the best minds of the world, through top universities, think tanks and international organisations
• Leverage Local Cultures: Leverage climate-friendly social norms, beliefs and daily household practices of different cultures worldwide to drive the campaign

Objectives 

• It aims to promote an environmentally conscious lifestyle that focuses on ‘mindful and deliberate utilisation’ instead of ‘mindless and wasteful consumption’.
• It aims to utilise the power of collective action and nudge individuals across the world to undertake simple climate-friendly actions in their daily lives. 
• It aims to create and nurture a global network of individuals, namely ‘Pro-Planet People’ (P3), who will have a shared commitment to adopt and promote environmentally friendly lifestyles. 
• It seeks to leverage the strength of social networks to influence social norms surrounding climate. 

India’s track record

• India has a proven track record translating the aspirations of national missions into whole-of-society efforts. 
  • The success of the Swachh Bharat Mission, which mobilised individuals and communities across socio-economic strata to become drivers of collective good health and sanitation is an example.
• The vision of LIFE  is taking flight as a global mission   from the Statue of Unity.
  • The Prime Minister and Secretary-General are calling on all consumers across the world to become “Pro Planet People” by 2027, adopting simple lifestyle changes that can collectively lead to transformational change.

Other related Initiatives 

• Glasgow Climate Meet (Cop26): Glasgow meet strengthened the Paris Agreement mechanism of eliciting Pledges from countries and ratcheting them up over time.
  • At COP 26, PM Narendra Modi announced India’s Panchamrit strategy with targets for climate action that included initiatives like International Solar Alliance (ISA) and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI).
• International Solar Alliance (ISA): The ISA was conceived as a joint effort by India and France to mobilise efforts against climate change through the deployment of solar energy solutions. 
• Various National Schemes like National Action Plan on Climate Change, National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), National Biofuel Policy, etc.

Future Prospects 

• India ,UN and other 26 entities are proud and committed partners in this mission to help give new lease of LIFE to climate action
• LIFE is a global vision, India is an excellent place to start. With over 1.3 billion people, if we achieve a true jan andolan here, the momentum generated will be enormous. 
• The Paris Agreement and the COP26 summit in Glasgow represent urgent, collective steps countries are taking to limit emissions. 
  • We need guiding frameworks, information sharing and the scale of a global movement.