The chronicles of badly behaved stars have made for juicy — albeit shallow gossip and pushed up newsstand sales. But just because the train-wreck trio of Lindsay Lohan, Britney and Paris Hilton keep the paparazzi busy with enough obnoxious scoops and goof-ups, providing salacious scandals, it doesn’t mean that the entire younger lot is as vapid.
“Times have changed; it’s an age of role reversals. Lessons are being learnt rather than taught. Older folks are the ones taking the baby steps towards a greener, safer tomorrow with the help of Gen Y. Love them or hate them, one can’t help but notice the stark disparity in the traits of Gen Y. That we, as a generation, will be the ones to mend the disasters caused due to human lax. It is time to win back our planet and pamper our nature for a change,” says Jekin Daniel, Student President, Scrub society, a club for flora and fauna conservation.
“Teen-superstars-cum-entrepreneurs-cum-icons are resorting to innovative means of reaching out to their mass audience — mostly comprising of teenagers. The trend to go-green has become visible among the youngsters, from extensive eco-drives to designing green fashions. And because today’s teens are tech savvy, clued-in and totally wired, trends spread quickly and, the environmental movement is no exception,” says 17-year-old rapper, Jayant Mala.
Just like others from her clique, 18-year-old singer and Justin Beiber’s girlfriend, Selena Gomez, is a fashion icon to countless teen girls globally. This petite, teen sensation, who has graced many a red carpet, has always stood out for her dressing style. In an effort to use her fame and reach out for a higher cause, Selena launched her own clothing line Dream Come True — a chic and trendy line with a huge collection of bohemian dresses, floral tops, jeans, skirts, jackets, scarves and hats, all made from recycled or eco-friendly materials.
“Today’s Gen Y teens are standing at crossroads of environmental history. They are well aware that global warming might fundamentally change the world, as they know it and, in their lifetime. The avenues available to make a change are aplenty too — joining green initiatives to donning eco-friendly fashion, to partaking in cool campaigns like
‘Hug a tree day’; to participating in nation-wide drives by popular young media orgs like MTV — chances are ample and teens are grabbing them, hands on. Today’s teens are the ‘can do’ generation and they are volunteering at a level not seen since the1940’s,” concludes professor and ecologist, Preethi Choubey.