A Mobile App by Godrej for the Conservation of Mangroves
Godrej’s Pirojshanagar Township in Vikhroli suburb of Mumbai has been s a role model of integrated sustainable habitat since the 1990. The ISO 14001:2015 certified Township includes mangroves that have more than 7,000 visitors every year. The mangroves forest is scientifically managed with a three-pronged approach of Research, Conservation and Awareness.
The mangrove area of Godrej Township is used for various mangrove awareness programmes conducted by the Soonabai Pirojsha Godrej Marine Ecology Centre. The modulated programmes are designed as per the requirements of target groups and contain in-depth information of mangrove ecosystem and other flora and dependent fauna,
These programs are supported by educational infrastructure such as mangrove trails, view-points, butterfly, medicinal and palm gardens, library and a mangrove information centre developed by Godrej. These mangrove awareness programs have become a usual feature with several schools and colleges of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region.
Considering the immense benefits offered by Godrej through its mangrove conservation initiatives to the society, the organization has been felicitated with ‘Green Governance Award’ in 2005 from the then honorable Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh.
Godrej & Boyce’s Mangrove mobile app, with detailed information about the mangroves, is now available in 10 Indian languages of the coastal states. It has also been enhanced by 43 new species taking the total to 67 species in all. Launched in 2017 in English, this app is a first of its kind in Asia. It is available on Android, iOS, and Windows platforms in regional languages Gujarati, Marathi, Konkani, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malyalam, Odiya and Bengali, in addition to Hindi.
Anup Mathew, Senior Vice President & Business Head, Godrej Construction, a business of Godrej & Boyce said, “Our primary aim for launching the Mangroves App was to help people become more aware of the importance of this ecosystem. By making it available in 11 Indian languages, we hope to reach out to a larger audience and help propagate the importance of environmental conservation.”
The Mangrove app users can choose to identify the species based on leaf shape, flower colour and name of the species. Besides the identification feature, the app offers other interesting information such as description of every plant species and its uses, mangrove distribution and ecosystem, plant adaptations, faunal biodiversity in mangroves, current threats and conservation measures, role of stakeholders, glossary of technical terms and information about mangroves in Vikhroli, Mumbai.
