The T+L Champion of Responsible Travel, climate activist Aakash Ranison talks to Travel+Leisure India & South Asia about what led him to become a climate activist, how he started to travel around on foot, and more.
Excerpts from the interview with Aakash Ranison:
T+L India: What inspired you to become a climate activist?
Aakash Ranison: Back in 2015, I got an opportunity to travel to Ladakh for a Snow Leopard Conservation Project. It was the first time I was experiencing the unparalleled beauty of the trans-Himalayan landscapes. I grew up in Indore, Haridwar, Aligarh, and Delhi and have travelled to all the major tier-one and tier-two cities, so seeing plastic waste wasn’t an uncommon sight for me. But I wasn’t prepared to see that amount of plastic waste in Ladakh, and it shocked me. This event turned me from a responsible citizen into an activist.
T+L India: What does responsible travel mean to you?
Aakash Ranison: Responsible travelling is being mindful, kind, thoughtful, understanding, and respectful towards nature and all the sentient living beings.
T+L India: Your book Climate Change Explained: For One and All came out in 2021. Tell us more about the book.
Aakash Ranison: My motive was to make science interesting, easy to read, and understandable for everyone. This is why I made the book short, simple, colourful, and most importantly free.
T+L India: Are there more books on the way?
Aakash Ranison: Yes, Penguin just signed me up for the next book, which is scheduled to be launched in 2023. The book addresses individuals and discusses problems with our current lifestyle and suggests alternative ways to adopt a sustainable lifestyle.
T+L India: What are your upcoming sustainable initiatives?
Aakash Ranison: A documentary and my next climate art installation.
T+L India: How does travel inspire you?
Aakash Ranison: My life is travel. I don’t have a home, I live in hotels, hostels, homestays, tents, gurudwaras, strangers’ houses, or under the sky. Travel is my teacher, school, college, university, work, passion, and dream. I left home with no knowledge, no money, name, confidence, or purpose. I found myself while heading towards an unknown destination on that long road.
T+L India: You’ve been travelling around India on foot. What made you do this?
Aakash Ranison: I’ve been travelling the length and breadth of India and other countries with my backpack for over eight years. I started with cycling, I wanted to travel without harming environment and hence, I always choose a carbon neutral way of travelling.
Champion’s Choice
Best slow travel destinations : Demul in Spiti Valley, Gemur in Himachal, Ladhpura Khas in Madhya Pradesh, and Pochampally village in Telangana.
Bucket list destination : Afghanistan. I’ve been reading and watching videos of the landscapes and culture of this country and I love it.
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