This Humans of Colt story is a special crossover with our Sustainability matters initiative, to celebrate the launch of our new science-based targets. Read more about our targets on our Sustainability matters page.
Ever since I was young, I’ve loved writing. I penned academic notes for friends, and became the editor of my school’s science magazine. However, I realised that producing books and magazines impacts the environment, in the form of cutting down trees for paper. The credit goes to the writer and publisher, but never to the trees and their role in the lifecycle of literature.
In 2009 and 2010, I wrote three books about computer science, which were published locally. I decided to use the royalties to purchase saplings and seeds and encouraged people in my community to get involved in planting trees. To widen the impact I could have, I became involved with NGOs (non-governmental organisations) affiliated with the United Nations (UN). My movement has grown over the last decade and thousands of trees have been planted across Odisha and India. Over the years, I’ve become involved with many other causes such as restoring ecosystems and lakes in Karnataka and Hyderabad, managing plastic waste in cities, and funding blood donation drives.
I joined Colt to pursue a career in computer science, and never expected to be encouraged in my interest in the environment as well. My Colt managers have always supported my environmental activities, and I have presented my plantation and restoration work in various Colt meetings throughout my time here. I have connected with many other people in the business through our shared passions for environmentalism, and my colleagues are always keen to use one of their volunteering days to get out and plant some trees.
My award from the UN in 2020 was a total surprise; an NGO I work with nominated me, and I was declared a World Environment Day hero. In June 2021, I received an Honorary Doctorate in Computer Science from the World Human Rights Commission, an organisation affiliated with the UN and UNESCO. The certificates came in a beautiful portfolio and I will treasure them for the rest of my life. It’s so fulfilling to be recognised for your passion and I hope to continue my work for many years to come. My ultimate goal is to plant 100,000 trees per year.
Dr Sagar Pradhan- Technical Lead, Billing Solutions & Control, Finance, India
