Prachi Shevgaonkar, the visionary behind the Cool The Globe app, has witnessed a meteoric rise in her mission to combat climate change since receiving the bl Young Changemaker award 2022. “Post-the bl Changemaker award, we have been grateful to see 3x growth. The ‘Cool The Globe’ app now has over one lakh users from 147 countries, all of whom have saved over 5.5 million kg of greenhouse gas emissions by making sustainability a part of their lives,” Prachi says with pride.
But the journey doesn’t stop there. Cool The Globe is now at the forefront of global climate action, collaborating with organisations and influencers to host sustainability challenges that unite citizens from around the world. These challenges, each with a set of tasks that users complete to earn points, rewards, and save emissions, are transforming how individuals engage with the fight against climate change. “Citizens can compete for a top rank in the challenge leaderboard and become a part of a united front to fight climate change,” Prachi adds, highlighting the app’s gamified approach.
Responding to user demand, Prachi and her team launched a groundbreaking community feature within the app, designed to bring climate action into the workplace. “A lot of our users repeatedly asked us— how can I use it with my colleagues? How can I bring it into my organisation?” Prachi says. The result? A one-stop hub for organisations to gamify climate action, hosting internal sustainability challenges, encouraging and rewarding employees for taking climate action both at home and work, and creating healthy competition between teams. The feature even allows firms to track the collective emissions saved by all employees in real-time.
Impact and influence
The impact of Cool The Globe is reaching far and wide. One of the most prominent changemaker summits in the world, One Young World, has adopted the app for its summit in Montreal, using it to drive climate action among over 3,000 delegates.
Prachi’s influence continues to grow. Following her bl Changemaker Award, she was appointed to lead the Next Generation India Fellowship by the UN Foundation and CEEW, empowering India’s most promising young leaders under the age of 30.
She also joined Tata Power as a Climate Change Advisor, secured a deal on Shark Tank India Season 3 from Aman Gupta and Radhika Gupta, and was honoured as part of Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia - Class of 2024. Her remarkable journey was even featured by Google in a TV campaign inspired by the creation of Cool The Globe.
In a rare honour, Prachi was invited to a special meeting with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, where she was one of 15 young climate innovators selected to provide recommendations ahead of crucial climate negotiations.
Her efforts have also earned her the title of Goalkeeper with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
“Cool The Globe is built on the belief that when global citizens come together, miracles can happen!” Prachi declares with determination. “We are on a mission to make climate action easy, measurable, and engaging for citizens. Over the next five years, our mission is to get 10 million global citizens committed to reducing their emissions by 10 per cent every year on the app, which will save upwards of 5 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions annually.”
Looking ahead, Prachi aims to create communities on the app for cities and schools across India, enabling citizens to take action alongside other pro-planet people in their vicinity. The app will showcase collective goals, challenges, rewards, and competitions on a common dashboard, making climate action a shared, community-driven experience.
Awards 2024
The Changemaker Awards 2024 is being held in New Delhi on September 13. The Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is the chief guest.
The Hindu businessline Changemaker Awards are presented by SASTRA University as the Presenting Partner and powered by SBI (State Bank of India). The event is also supported by Associate Partners: LIC (Life Insurance Corporation of India), J&K Bank, NTPC (National Thermal Power Corporation), Union Bank of India, NMDC (National Mineral Development Corporation), ESSAR, Punjab & Sind Bank, Swelect Energy, and Indian Bank. Casagrand is the Realty Partner, while Fortinet is the Cyber Security Partner. The event is further amplified by NDTV 24x7 as the TV Partner. The Award’s Knowledge Partners are Deloitte & Ashoka, along with Niiti Consulting as the Validation Partner.