Sharada Gaydhane stands at the heart of Bela Gram, a quiet village in Maharashtra’s Bhandara district that chose courage over complacency.

“We don’t need extreme events to feel the impact of climate change. It is in the water we fetch, the food we grow, and the air we breathe. It affects our health first, and that is my responsibility to do what’s best for my village,” the twice-elected Sarpanch and Vasundhara awardee says.

Under her leadership, climate action became a way of life. Families planted more than 90,000 trees, often during weddings, and village festivals. Kitchens moved away from smoky chulhas to LPG. Solar panels lit homes, Anganwadis, and Panchayat offices, while waste began to be segregated at every doorstep. Rejecting single-use plastics slowly became second nature.

Resource and Support Centre for Development (RSCD) played a crucial role, supporting capacity building, and leadership training through its Savitri Academy. With strong community participation and a dedicated Carbon Neutral Committee, Bela became Maharashtra’s first net-zero village and won the 2024 Rashtriya Panchayat Puraskar.

From a small village in Bhandara, Bela Gram offers a blueprint for climate action rooted in care, courage, and community.