Serene Planet > 🔄 Ongoing Projects > Act Local, Save Global
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Act Local, Save Global

Our initiative, Act Local, Safe Global, focuses on Banshkhali Upazila in Chattogram, a disaster-prone coastal area where families regularly face cyclones, floods, extreme heat, and saline water intrusion.

Right now, we are running community education sessions and awareness campaigns led by trained university student volunteers. These sessions include how to create safer roofing from local materials during disasters, how to access clean water in a region where most sources are salty, and broader climate literacy through our “Education Corner” approach. We may not have major funding yet, but what we do have is a growing network of young people deeply committed to making a difference with what’s available.

If we secure funding, we plan to scale the project with practical infrastructure solutions—like rainwater harvesting systems and affordable home-strengthening measures. We also want to introduce an innovative livelihood model that teaches residents how to recycle waste plastic into roofing tiles. This would not only provide durable shelter but also create income opportunities in nearby coastal industries.

In Banshkhali, people live with constant threats—cyclones, flooding, salt in their water, and now unbearable heat. But the hardest part is how little support or knowledge they have to face it. Most don’t know what to do when disaster hits or how to adapt to the rising heat. That’s what we’re trying to change.

Through Act Local, Safe Global, we’re running community sessions led by trained university students—many from the same region—who speak the language, understand the struggles, and know how to connect. We hold these sessions in open yards, tea stalls, schools—wherever people gather. Together, we talk about how to build safer roofs from scrap materials, store clean rainwater, and deal with rising temperatures by creating shaded, cooler indoor spaces using local solutions.

We’ve also set up small “Education Corners” in the villages—simple setups with posters, models, and tools people can touch and understand. Everything we teach is practical and low-cost, because that’s what’s needed here.

The goal isn’t just awareness—it’s to give people the tools and confidence to protect themselves. We’re not bringing change from outside. We’re growing it from within.

Impacts

Our initiative has directly reached over 3,000 individuals in Banshkhali through our education sessions, awareness campaigns, and hands-on training. The impact goes beyond numbers—because the knowledge is spreading by word of mouth, from household to household, and we’ve already seen it ripple into neighboring communities in ways we can’t fully measure.

The real success is in how people are responding. They welcome us, ask questions, stay engaged, and most importantly—they trust us. That’s been our biggest gain.

People are now learning how to take action, what steps to take during disasters or extreme heat, and where to find solutions with the resources they already have. We’ve seen families improve their home structures, start collecting rainwater, and apply simple cooling techniques to beat the heat—all because they finally understand what to do.

The shift is clear: from helplessness to action, from fear to learning. That’s the impact we’re proud of.

Briefly

Challenge

In Banshkhali, people face frequent disasters, unbearable heat, and saline water, yet most have no idea how to prepare or adapt. There’s a huge gap in access to information, training, and resources. Families live in fragile homes with little protection and no clean water. The community feels stuck—helpless, unheard, and unprepared. Climate change isn’t just a future threat here; it’s an everyday struggle. The biggest challenge was earning their trust and finding ways to explain complex climate risks in simple, relatable terms—so that real change could begin, even without big funding or outside help.

Solution

We focused on what we had: passionate young people, local knowledge, and a strong belief in grassroots action. We trained university students to lead community sessions on disaster preparedness, clean water access, and coping with extreme heat using low-cost solutions. We created “Education Corners” in villages—simple setups with posters, models, and tools—where people could learn through conversations, not lectures. We built trust by listening first, then teaching. Everything was hands-on, practical, and rooted in daily life. And we kept it consistent—returning, following up, and making sure people felt supported, not just informed.

Result

Over 3,000 people have been directly reached through our sessions, and the impact has spread far beyond. Families are now reinforcing their roofs, collecting rainwater, and making their homes cooler with basic, local methods. People who once felt powerless now share their learning with neighbors. We’ve seen a real shift—not just in knowledge, but in mindset. The community welcomes us, asks for more sessions, and trusts that change is possible. The biggest win? They see us as one of their own. That connection, that belief—that’s the kind of impact that lasts. And it’s just the beginning.