From a school gardening committee to 200-acre re-wilding projects, these Mumbai moms are proving that climate action can start at home and grow far beyond it
Sweta Daga (left) and Kapila Chandan (right) began Nature Crusade, a tree plantation initiative, inspired by motherhood to create a better future for their kids. Pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi
It started in a kindergarten classroom. As the head of the gardening committee at her son’s school, Kapila Chandan found herself leading tiny hands through soil and lesson plans about the Earth. But what began as a school project soon became a personal awakening. A lawyer and chartered accountant by training, Chandan was stunned by the statistics she uncovered during her research — vanishing glaciers, record temperatures, species disappearing every day.
Around the same time, her sister Sweta Kawar Daga, a practising chartered accountant, found herself drawn to the idea of planting hope, quite literally. Her father, who had planted over 20 lakh trees, was her inspiration. “For me, it was easy. Whoever plants a tree, plants hope,” she smiles. As they exchanged stories over family dinners and long phone calls, something shifted. “We didn’t want our kids to grow up seeing plastic instead of trees,” says Chandan.
That urgency, rooted in motherhood, soon became the foundation of Nature Crusade, Chandan’s brainchild. She left both her jobs for it and Daga continued to hustle between work and her passion project, to reimagine tree planting as a meaningful, everyday gesture. “Why send flowers when you can gift a forest?” Daga asks. “We began offering plantations for birthdays, memorials, anniversaries and geo-tagged each sapling so people could track their tree. It created a living legacy.”
When Pali Oxygen Park, initially a barren land, grew its ecosystem, it was Mother Nature responding to the two sisters’ effots. Pic Courtesy/Kapila Chandan
Nature Crusade’s first special project was the transformation of a neglected patch in Mumbai Central. Using the Miyawaki technique — which involves planting native species close together so their roots compete for sunlight, not space — they created a self-sustaining forest that matures in just three years.
What made the movement click was its accessibility. “Most people care,” Daga says, “they just need a nudge and a way in.” By keeping costs low, messaging clear, and impact visible, they invited Mumbaikars to become stewards of their environment.
Site selection, however, is no casual affair. “First, we look for water access, then we test the soil, check local climate patterns, and speak to residents,” says Chandan. “Local knowledge is invaluable.”
Though their momentum is strong, sustaining the work isn’t easy. “The funding is tough,” Chandan admits. “You’re constantly writing proposals, following up, trying to explain why green spaces matter in a city choked by concrete. And even when the money comes in, there’s the hunt for land, permissions, ensuring maintenance. Each location is a new puzzle.”
Balancing motherhood with environmental work adds another layer of complexity. “Personal and professional balance for a modern working mom is a myth. It is a lovely idea that rarely exists off paper,” Chandan laughs. “There are mornings when I’m up at 6 am to drop my son to the bus, then out all day on-site, just to rush back before he returns.” However, being blessed with fabulous support staff and family does wonders.
There’s pride too, especially when their children cheer them on. “Whenever I’m between work and Nature Crusade, my kids always say, ‘Choose nature,’” Chandan says. Daga nods and jokes: “My spreadsheets are often seed sheets.” But the skills like leadership, discipline, problem-solving required in her job remain the same. “We’ve just shifted the terrain.”
Their work also chips away at common misconceptions. “People think living sustainably takes too much time or energy,” Daga says. “But our ancestors have done this for generations. Sustainability is part of India’s cultural foundation. We just need to reconnect with it.” For them, even planting one tree, or joining a school gardening group, counts. “It’s the small steps that become a movement.”
One of their most endearing moments came when a family approached them to plant trees in memory of a loved one. “They didn’t want a marble plaque,” Chandan recalls. “They wanted something living. Now, they visit the site and watch the trees grow. That’s healing. That’s the impact.” Through initiatives like these, Nature Crusade transforms passive concern into joyful participation.
But it’s moments like the one in Pali, Rajasthan, that make it all worthwhile. “It was barren land, due to pollution from nearby industries,” Chandan says. “And then, three months after we planted the first saplings, a rabbit appeared. Soon, the birds returned. Eggs were laid. The land breathed again,” Daga adds.
Their dream is to replicate this magic across India, with micro forests grown by citizens in every lane and locality. “We’re doing this for our children,” Daga says. “But more than that, we’re doing it so their children know what green feels like. We want them to grow up to the rustle of trees. Not the humming of machines.”
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