{"id":10314,"date":"2022-02-03T15:40:56","date_gmt":"2022-02-03T10:10:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.globalindian.com\/youth\/\/?post_type=story&p=10314"},"modified":"2025-09-16T17:37:08","modified_gmt":"2025-09-16T12:07:08","slug":"footprints-in-the-sand-un-young-leader-udit-singhal-breaks-the-glass-ceiling","status":"publish","type":"story","link":"https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/story\/cover-story\/footprints-in-the-sand-un-young-leader-udit-singhal-breaks-the-glass-ceiling\/","title":{"rendered":"Footprints in the sand: UN Young Leader Udit Singhal breaks the \u2018glass\u2019 ceiling"},"content":{"rendered":"

(February 3, 2022)<\/strong> \u201cBe mindful,\u201d Udit Singhal implores in a TedX Talk. It is that same mindfulness that saw him solve the glass menace in Delhi. The UN Young Leader for sustainable development goals is a sum of many parts – social entrepreneur, youth leader, finance and tech enthusiast, artist and golfer. Primarily, though, he is a student at University College London (BSc in management science), and proactive on world issues. The 20-year-old was one among 17 selected by the United Nations for his contributions in 2020. Udit now hopes to galvanise the youth to work towards SDGs.<\/p>\n

The UN Young Leader, Udit founded Glass2Sand at 16 to address the glass dumping problem \u2013 it was the result of the glass bottles he encountered piling up at his home. \u201cI asked why. I found that the collection of glass bottles for recycling is unviable due to dropping demand, large storage space requirements and high transport costs. Empty glass bottles are not segregated anymore, and have started to be dumped in landfills,\u201d reveals Udit Singhal in an exclusive to Global Indian<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

The then enterprising teen uncovered the silent glass waste crisis, channelising his solution-driven mindset. \u201cI founded Glass2Sand, an environment-friendly zero-waste ecosystem and \u2018no glass to landfills movement\u2019 which stops glass bottles from being dumped in landfills by crushing them into commercially valuable sand, and repurposing it for sustainable construction. It is plugging a major gap identified in recycling of such materials,\u201d says the young visionary.<\/p>\n

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Singhal also got a special grant from the New Zealand high commissioner in India, which aided in formalising an understanding with Kiwi patent-holders, \u201cThis helped me import technology from New Zealand that crushed glass bottles in under a minute,\u201d smiles the university student.<\/p>\n

The boy who saw too much waste<\/strong><\/h5>\n

What gives Udit a decisively better understanding about problem solving evolved from a \u201cfamily of trailblazing entrepreneurs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy parents pioneered in setting up the market for international wine in India 25 years ago, when wine was relatively unknown. My father (Rajiv Singhal) was appointed Chevalier de l\u2019Ordre National du Merite by the President of France \u2013 the second highest civilian honour. My brother, a wealth manager, was inducted into the Ordre des Coteaux de Champagne,\u201d Udit reveals. Not giving up in the face of adversity, and to think about the bigger picture is what his family has ingrained in him.<\/p>\n

One can easily picture Udit as a child looking for places to hide and seek, and encountering heaps of bottles – wondering where he and the bottles could hide in tandem. \u201cWhen I stumbled on the menace, it birthed the concept of Glass2Sand,\u201d says the entrepreneur who hopes to leverage the Kiwi technology to continue the good work.<\/p>\n

The former IB student at the British School, New Delhi, threw himself into learning with a two-week programme within sustainable development and social entrepreneurship at Yale in 2019. Incidentally, his father is also a Yale alum.<\/p>\n

Emulating a family of achievers<\/strong><\/h5>\n

Having role models at home, he has taken the learning a notch higher as a UN Young Leader. For the young preppy youngster, serious mindedness and self-belief are key, and now he wants the youth to muster the courage to manoeuvre through hurdles. \u201cSeeking support is a step in that direction and finding a \u2018good\u2019 mentor will leave you in good stead,\u201d smiles Udit. His most memorable experience was, \u201cA meeting with the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in November 2020 which left a lasting impact. The opportunity to present Glass2Sand and mobilise strategies to drive the SDG\u2019s forward offered me new perspectives.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Turning glass to sand, responsibly<\/strong><\/h5>\n

Seeing wine being swirled and its terroir as a normal conversation at home was undoubtedly a push to launch the \u201cDrink responsibly, dispose responsibly\u201d campaign to raise awareness about the silent glass waste crisis, in association with the ambassador of Hungary to India in 2019. \u201cTill date, Glass2Sand has crushed 25,600+ bottles into 15,300+ kilograms of sand, and we now have over 350 volunteers and 18 partners (institutions and diplomatic missions) active on the Glass2Sand network,\u201d says the proud UN young leader.<\/p>\n

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Young people are calling to be able to #LearnForOurPlanet<\/a>!<\/p>\n

On Friday, tune into #COP26<\/a> as @UNESCO<\/a> puts #ClimateEducation<\/a> in the spotlight \ud83d\udcda
\n@YAGClimate<\/a> member @pcopaloma<\/a> & 1 of our #SDGYoungLeaders<\/a> @_uditsinghal<\/a> will also join \ud83d\ude4c<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udd50 12 pm EDT
\n\u27a1\ufe0f https:\/\/t.co\/dyeYadI8bv<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/QEGVwWVFPz<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 UN Youth Envoy (@UNYouthEnvoy) November 4, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n