July 2026

HIGHLIGHT OF THE MONTH

Driving Community Change

-Inspiring Collective Action

Panel Speaker at NGO Conclave:

Our Founder, Anirudh S. Dutt, was invited as a panel speaker at the NGO Leadership Conclave 2026, organized by Prakarsha Academy on 24th July 2026 at Mythic Society, Bengaluru. The conclave brought together CEOs, trustees, and senior leaders from nonprofit organizations to reflect on organizational growth, leadership, and strengthening the social impact ecosystem.

As a panellist for the session "Journeys Behind Growth: What Really Changed the Game?", Anirudh shared the journey of Let's Be The Change, highlighting the experiences, challenges, and key milestones that have shaped the organization's growth. The discussion focused on building resilient nonprofits, strengthening organizational capabilities, and fostering meaningful collaborations to create greater social impact.

The invitation is a testament to Let's Be The Change's continued commitment to innovation, community-driven change, and leadership within the development sector.

Namma Swachha Adugodi (NSA) 

• 05th July: A plog run was conducted in collaboration with the Swabhiman and BBMP teams to promote community participation in maintaining cleaner public spaces. The initiative also served as an awareness activity, encouraging responsible waste disposal and fostering a sense of community ownership towards a cleaner neighbourhood.

• 11th July: A stakeholder meeting was conducted in Block 8 with the participation of 31 residents. The session introduced Let’s Be The Change and the Namma Swachha Adugodi (NSA) initiative, emphasized the importance of source segregation, and raised awareness about the impact of landfills and illegal dumping (black spots). Household waste management challenges were discussed, practical solutions were shared, and the project's audit, follow-up, and reward system was explained to encourage sustained community participation.

• 15th July: A coordination meeting was held with the AGM, along with project stakeholders and BBMP officials, to review and strengthen waste collection operations. Key decisions included reducing mixed waste generation, verifying drivers' licences, arranging substitute staff during worker absenteeism, and deploying four new vehicles from August for night-time waste collection. It was also decided that commercial establishments would be penalized for handing over mixed waste, while Marshals and JHIs would enforce penalties on households that fail to hand over waste or do not comply with segregation norms.

• 18th July: A community residents' meeting was conducted in Block 9 to engage residents on effective waste management practices under the Namma Swachha Adugodi (NSA) initiative. The session reinforced the importance of source segregation, addressed household waste management concerns, encouraged active community participation, and highlighted the project's audit, follow-up, and reward system to promote sustained behavioural change.

• 25th July: A community residents' meeting was conducted in Block 9A as part of the Namma Swachha Adugodi (NSA) initiative. Residents were sensitized on the importance of source segregation and responsible waste disposal, while common waste management challenges were discussed and addressed. The session also encouraged active community participation and explained the project's audit, follow-up, and reward mechanism to promote long-term behavioural change.

• 25th July: A community residents' meeting was conducted in Block 14 under the Namma Swachha Adugodi (NSA) initiative. The session focused on promoting source segregation, responsible waste disposal, and community ownership of waste management practices. Residents' concerns were addressed, practical solutions were discussed, and the project's audit, follow-up, and reward mechanism was reinforced to encourage sustained participation.

  
  

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Veeraru:

Regular monitoring visits were conducted at the Government School, Dairy Colony, and Police Quarters Government School in collaboration with Bosch to assess the functioning of the composting units and evaluate the waste segregation practices adopted by students and staff. The Dairy Colony Government School demonstrated consistent progress in maintaining the composting system and segregation practices. A follow-up session was also conducted to review the school gardening initiative, reinforcing the use of compost produced on campus. At the Police Quarters Government School, additional guidance and continuous handholding were provided to strengthen the implementation of waste management practices.

A one-time awareness session was also conducted at the MLA Government School, introducing students to the fundamentals of waste segregation and sustainable waste management.

In collaboration with Desmet, the Veeraru Programme was expanded to the Government School, Jambusavari Dinne. The initiative commenced with a pre-assessment to understand the school's existing waste management practices, followed by an introductory session on the basics of source segregation, laying the foundation for future interventions and sustained behavioural change .

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• Waste Audit

         A continued detailed waste audit was carried out to assess the quality of segregation and identify gaps in collection practices.

Namma Swachha Adakmaranahalli Grama Panchayat(NSAGP)

We are excited to commence a new initiative titled “Namma Swachha Adakamaranahalli" aimed at strengthening sustainable waste management practices at the village level. The Adakamaranahalli Gram Panchayat consists of three villages—Adakamaranahalli, Makali, and Harokyatanahalli. Notably, Makali is home to the manufacturing unit of Himalaya Wellness Company.

• 12th July: The 2nd Village Level Stakeholder Meeting was organized in Harokyathanahalli to address waste collection issues and strengthen community participation. The meeting aimed to discuss operational challenges; however, no residents from the village attended the session.

• 25th July: The 4th Himalaya Volunteering Activity was conducted in Gowdappa Layout, where 116 households were surveyed and provided with household dustbins. The awareness drive on waste segregation was supported by six volunteers from the Himalaya Wellness campus, who actively participated in household outreach.

• 15th May onwards: Himalaya Stretch Cleaning continued near the Himalaya Wellness Campus, with regular cleaning of designated locations to improve cleanliness and reduce litter accumulation.

• Household Survey and Dustbin Distribution: The household survey and dustbin distribution across Adakamaranahalli Gram Panchayat has been successfully completed. A total of 4,595 households were surveyed and provided with household dustbins across the three villages, ensuring improved access to waste management infrastructure and promoting source segregation at the household level. This marks the successful completion of the survey and distribution phase of the project.

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Namma Swaccha Madiwala:

As the Namma Swachha Madiwala project comes to a close, we are grateful for the opportunity to work alongside the Madiwala market community, BBMP, and our project partners in promoting cleaner and more sustainable waste management practices. Through continuous awareness campaigns, stakeholder engagement, infrastructure support, and on-ground interventions, the project has laid a strong foundation for improved waste management within the market.

Behavioural change is a gradual process that requires sustained engagement, consistent reinforcement, and the active participation of all stakeholders. While the project has made encouraging progress in improving waste segregation and cleanliness, long-term adoption of these practices will require continued collaboration between vendors, market authorities, and civic agencies.

As Madiwala Market is a large and dynamic ecosystem with multiple stakeholders, certain aspects of market operations and governance extend beyond the scope of this project. Our efforts therefore focused on strengthening waste management systems, building awareness among vendors and visitors, and encouraging responsible waste handling within the existing operational framework.

Erudition Time:

The Greater Bengaluru Authority has launched the #JustCleanBengaluru Challenge, encouraging citizens to clean and transform vacant plots in their neighbourhoods. Participants can document their before-and-after transformation and share it using #JustCleanBengaluru, with selected efforts receiving official recognition.

For participation details, visit the GBA Office’s official Instagram page.