Jalgaon’s Girish Patil represents India at Geneva meet

Girish Patil, a youth climate advocate from Jalgaon, has emerged as one of Maharashtra’s most prominent environmental voices.

- Piyush Patil

A former student of Fergusson College, Pune, and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, Patil leads the Jalgaon Climate Warriors Movement and has been instrumental in mobilising over a thousand young leaders across India for ecological restoration.

His environmental journey began at 16 when he exposed illegal sand mining in the Girna River. For the past four years, he has worked closely with Rajendra Singh, the ‘Waterman of India’, focusing on water conservation through initiatives like “Nadi ki Pathshala”.

Recently, Patil represented India and South Asia at the Programme on Environmental Peacebuilding in Geneva, organised by the Geneva Water Hub — a joint initiative of the Graduate Institute and the University of Geneva. The programme aims to promote peacebuilding through water cooperation.

In an interview with The Free Press Journal (FPJ), Girish Patil shares his insights from the conference and discusses global water disputes, environmental law, and the urgency of climate action in India.

How did you get selected for the Geneva Water Hub Conference?