Y3K: Planet Lost & Found Will Unite India’s Eco-Warriors

There’s a certain kind of despondency in the air. Every day, there is talk of glaciers melting, species going extinct, forests falling prey to fires and bushfires devouring endangered animals — no sooner do we avert one environmental crisis that we find another one staring us in the face. And while it is natural to feel dejected as we live through what is being touted as one of the worst climate catastrophes in the history of the planet, it’s important to let it drive our efforts in the direction of change.

Dysco has partnered with Verve on Y3K: Planet Lost & Found to bring together people who seek answers to the pressing question: What do we do in the face of accelerated climate change? A social-professional networking app which was launched in 2017, Dysco, now a revamped web-platform, allows users to locate, interact and subsequently collaborate with each other on subjects they are passionate about. Accordingly, Y3K: Planet Lost & Found aims to be the common thread connecting people who are determined to protect and preserve the planet through a day-long event on the 8th of February, 2020. With a thoughtfully curated programme of talks, workshops, pop-ups, and music performances, the event aims to provide solutions for a world where a harmonious symbiosis of technology, humans and nature is the need of the hour.

Powered by Lightbox, there will also be a PechaKucha (Japanese for chit-chat) where presenters will be given 20 seconds to explain 20 slides — a total of 400 seconds — to share an idea. A few among the 8 to 10 pitchers like Shaan Lalwani of Coco Custo, Divya Ravichandran of Skrap and Anca Florescu Abraham of Love Your Parks Mumbai, have been featured in Verve before and will present their pathbreaking ideas to an audience that will be given around 7 minutes to decide whether they want to collaborate, join or invest in each pitcher. The client and collaborators fair — in which Verve will participate along with other eco-warriors like BOHECO and Climate Launchpad — will provide attendees with the opportunity to network with experts in their fields of interest and allow them to forge professional partnerships where they can realise common passions together. Those who have been looking to switch to a zero-waste lifestyle but don’t quite know how to dispose of the waste they generate could benefit from Bare Necessities’ workshop where founder Sahar Mansoor will explain how we can make a difference through our daily lifestyle choices.

An impressive line-up of speakers will also take to the stage to talk about causes that are close to their heart, causes which all of us need to be cognisant of: Avijit Michael of Jhatkaa.org will talk on the influence citizens can have on the government’s implementation of environmental policies; Rushikesh Chavan of Wildlife Conservation Trust will shed light on eco-anxiety and the “psychology of helplessness”, and Sara Mahdi, divemaster and creative conservationist will highlight her reef conservation efforts. Brands like Fae Beauty, Organic Riot and Soot, whose values align with those being extolled at the event, will also have stalls set up at the venue. Lending her dulcet voice to complement the hopeful atmosphere will be songstress Ditty, whose earth song Garden was exclusively released on Verve during the unveiling of our Environment issue.

Y3K: Planet Lost & Found will take place at Pioneer Hall, Bandra West on Saturday, 8 February 2020 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. You can purchase tickets here.