WEBVTT

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Some 17 years ago, I became allergic to Delhi's air.

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My doctors told me that my lung capacity

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had gone down to 70 percent,

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and it was killing me.

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With the help of IIT,

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TERI, and learnings from NASA,

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we discovered that there are three

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basic green plants,

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common green plants, with which

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we can grow all the fresh air

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we need indoors to keep us healthy.

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We've also found that you can

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reduce the fresh air requirements

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into the building, while maintaining

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industry indoor air-quality standards.

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The three plants are Areca palm,

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Mother-in-Law's Tongue and money plant.

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The botanical names are in front of you.

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Areca palm is a plant which

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removes CO2 and converts it into oxygen.

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We need four shoulder-high plants per person,

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and in terms of plant care,

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we need to wipe the leaves

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every day in Delhi, and perhaps

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once a week in cleaner-air cities.

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We had to grow them in vermi manure,

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which is sterile, or hydroponics,

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and take them outdoors every three to four months.

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The second plant is Mother-in-law's Tongue,

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which is again a very common plant,

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and we call it a bedroom plant,

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because it converts CO2 into oxygen at night.

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And we need six to eight waist-high plants per person.

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The third plant is money plant,

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and this is again a very common plant;

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preferably grows in hydroponics.

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And this particular plant removes formaldehydes

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and other volatile chemicals.

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With these three plants,

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you can grow all the fresh air you need.

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In fact, you could be in a bottle

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with a cap on top, and you would not die at all,

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and you would not need any fresh air.

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We have tried these plants at our

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own building in Delhi, which is a

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50,000-square-feet, 20-year-old building.

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And it has close to 1,200 such plants for 300 occupants.

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Our studies have found that there is

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a 42 percent probability of one's blood oxygen

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going up by one percent if one stays indoors

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in this building for 10 hours.

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The government of India has discovered

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or published a study to show

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that this is the healthiest building in New Delhi.

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And the study showed that,

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compared to other buildings,

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there is a reduced incidence of

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eye irritation by 52 percent,

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respiratory systems by 34 percent,

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headaches by 24 percent,

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lung impairment by 12 percent and asthma by nine percent.

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And this study has been published on September 8, 2008,

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and it's available on the government of India website.

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Our experience points to an

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amazing increase in human productivity

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by over 20 percent by using these plants.

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And also a reduction in energy requirements in buildings

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by an outstanding 15 percent, because you need less fresh air.

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We are now replicating this in a

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1.75-million-square-feet building,

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which will have 60,000 indoor plants.

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Why is this important?

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It is also important for the environment,

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because the world's energy

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requirements are expected to grow

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by 30 percent in the next decade.

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40 percent of the world's energy is taken

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up by buildings currently,

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and 60 percent of the world's population

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will be living in buildings in cities

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with a population of over one million in the next 15 years.

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And there is a growing preference for living

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and working in air-conditioned places.

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"Be the change you want to see in the world,"

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said Mahatma Gandhi.

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And thank you for listening.

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(Applause)