Neel AcharyHyderabad/New Delhi, Dec 17: Mahindra University has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Goonj, a globally recognized nonprofit working towards community-led development, material circularity, and dignified social action.
The MoU was signed at the university campus in the presence of Anuja Mahindra Sharma, a Member of the Board of Management at Mahindra University, Yajulu Medury, Vice Chancellor, Mahindra University, Anirban Ghosh, Head, Centre for Sustainability at Mahindra University and Arpita Mallick, Team Goonj representative, marking a significant step in community-led development efforts.
The collaboration aims to create meaningful community development, promote environmental sustainability and foster civic engagement, directly benefiting students and society.
Yajulu Medury, Vice Chancellor of Mahindra University, highlighted the University’s ethos of nurturing socially responsible citizens who value empathy, sustainability and community engagement. He further added, “Our collaboration with Goonj reinforces our commitment to these ideals by encouraging students to participate in meaningful initiatives that create tangible social impact.”
As part of the agreement, Goonj will establish a Dropping Center in the university campus, where the university community can contribute their surplus, usable household, office and other material like cloth, utensils, electronic gadgets, furniture, etc. The university team will be managing this Dropping Center and reaching the collected material to Goonj’s Hyderabad Circularity Center. This material will, after detailed processing, become part of Goonj’s development initiatives across India.
“This collaboration offers our students a meaningful opportunity to connect academic learning with real-world social and environmental challenges. It brings the Mahindra University community together to build deeper awareness on disaster preparedness, climate resilience and key social issues such as the urban–rural divide and material circularity. With Goonj’s first permanent Dropping Centre outside its own office now established on our campus, students have a direct platform to engage with these issues and participate in Goonj’s impactful national campaigns. This initiative embeds the values of mindful giving and responsible resource use into our university culture. Even small contributions from urban surplus can empower our students and communities to contribute to dignified, people-led change toward sustainable rural development,” said Anirban Ghosh, Head, Centre for Sustainability, Mahindra University.
The initiative is designed to nurture a culture of mindful giving within the campus community while enabling Goonj in responding in a dignified way to the growing challenges and urgent needs of people affected by natural disasters, through its nationwide network.
Anshu Guputa, Founder Director, Goonj added,
“I am really hopeful about this partnership as it offers many dimensions of learning for our future citizens and decision-makers. Goonj’s work with material as an alternate currency for development, and its work involving citizens in development and climate action, offers significant insights for the kind of learning our youth need for a fast-changing world. We are glad that Mahindra University has taken a holistic view of engaging with Goonj’s 26 years’ work for the learning of its students. We hope more academic institutions get inspired by this partnership and engage with Goonj and other social innovators’ work across the country, to participate in addressing our societal challenges.”
The partnership also plans to create platforms for Goonj’s thought leaders and practitioners to contribute to the knowledge ecosystem at Mahindra University through initiatives such as the SOCH talk series.
