"Blue carbon, or the carbon stored in coastal and marine ecosystems, such as mangroves, tidal marshes and sea grasses, featured strongly at Davos,” noted a write-up on the World Economic Forum annual gathering in Davos, Switzerland on January 19, 2023. The panel on "where the land meets the sea included "a surprise element from Nadir Godrej, managing director Godrej Industries, who captured everyone’ attention with his poetic take on the brief to deliver a short speech — by articulating in verse the importance of intergenerational environmental responsibility.”
Top: Sohrab Godrej (l) and Nadir Godrej;
above: Godrej mangroves
Photos: mangroves.godrej.com
His poem noted:
My grandfather probably saw
These examples and found no flaw.
He bought faraway marshy land.
His critics just couldn’t understand.
They concluded he had gone quite mad
But today we are glad, not sad.
A township then slowly arose
And this is where our business grows.
We provided every needed tool
Housing, hospital and school.
My uncle known as Sohrabji
Way back could clearly see
The environment was under stress
Neglect he knew would be a mess.
In saving tigers he played a role.
The environment was a major goal.
Our creek side land was reserved
The mangroves there well preserved.
And all of you should understand,
This was two thirds of our land.
And from my office I gaze out there,
A Mumbai view that’s very rare,
With greenery all the way
Until you sight New Bombay.
And now and then, with friends I float
On a gently moving boat,
With pink flamingos in full flight,
To my mind a splendid sight.
And now it is our aspiration
To pursue research and conservation
And spreading awareness all around.
This strategy is very sound.”
Godrej noted his extended family also shared their forefathers’ concern for the environment. Though the Godrej Group’s efforts at mangrove conservation in Vikhroli along the west bank of the Thana Creek took root in the 1940s, the commitment was formalized in 1985 with the establishment of the Soonabai Pirojsha Godrej Foundation.