I am Himanshu Nayak.

My story is not defined by one profession, one achievement or one moment. It is a journey shaped by professional experiences, family, people I have met, lessons I have learned and a growing belief that life becomes more meaningful when personal progress is accompanied by contribution to society.

Building a Professional Life

I began my professional journey on 10 February 2003 with ICICI Bank in Delhi.

Over the years, my career took me through different financial institutions, cities, responsibilities and leadership roles.

Banking and financial services taught me discipline, accountability, analytical thinking, risk awareness and the importance of making responsible decisions.

Today, I serve as an Assistant Vice President at Axis Bank.

My profession continues to be an important part of my identity. But as my career progressed, I increasingly began asking myself a larger question:

Beyond building a career and supporting my family, what meaningful contribution can I make during my lifetime?

That question gradually changed the direction of my personal life.

A Turning Point

In March 2011, during a difficult period in my personal life, I met Mr. Ramesh Panda of Kalinga Ashram.

His commitment to charitable work, particularly his service to orphaned children, left a lasting impression on me.

After joining Repco Home Finance in Bhubaneswar in May 2011, my wife and I began visiting orphanages and old age homes.

These experiences introduced me to a world beyond professional achievement.

They taught me that success becomes more meaningful when we are willing to share some part of what we have our time, resources, knowledge or compassion with others.

When Trees Became Part of My Life

Another important turning point in my life came in June 2015.

During a conversation with Mr. Ramesh Panda at Kalinga Ashram in Berhampur, we discussed tree plantation and our responsibility towards nature. Encouragement from others during that period further strengthened my determination to translate the idea into action.

On 3 July 2015, with the support of members of my village club, I began a plantation drive in my native village of Gomundia, in the Parikud region of Odisha.

Parikud is a beautiful island region comprising 96 villages (mouzas), surrounded by the waters of Chilika Lake and the Bay of Bengal. Growing up with a connection to this unique coastal landscape made the initiative especially meaningful to me.

It was a modest beginning, driven by a simple desire to make my native land greener.

At that time, I had little idea how deeply trees, environmental protection and community service would become connected with the rest of my life.

The initiative came to be known as Green Parikud.

As plantation activities gradually expanded, villagers, volunteers, teachers, students, women from Self Help Groups (SHGs), social workers and other community members began participating in various environmental activities under Green Parikud.

What started as a small village plantation drive gradually became a shared effort to encourage environmental awareness, community participation and responsibility towards nature.

Their enthusiasm and collective contribution taught me a lesson that continues to guide my environmental journey:

Environmental change becomes stronger when individual responsibility becomes collective action.

Celebrating Differently

In 2016, as my elder son's first birthday approached, I wanted to celebrate the occasion in a way that would create a lasting impact beyond our family.

I proposed distributing hybrid fruit bearing saplings to our relatives, friends, villagers and well wishers, instead of organising a grand birthday celebration.

However, my family initially had a different vision. Like many families, they wished to celebrate this special milestone with a grand gathering, following the social traditions and expectations associated with a child's first birthday.

This difference of opinion led to several discussions within our family. I respected their feelings, but I remained convinced that celebrating by giving something back to nature and society would make the occasion even more.

After much discussion, I finally persuaded my parents and brothers to support my idea.

We celebrated the birthday with a simple Satyanarayan Puja and distributed 2,000 hybrid mango and lemon saplings, valued at approximately ₹1 lakh, among our relatives, friends, villagers, neighbouring villagers and well wishers.

What could have been a celebration lasting just one day became an opportunity to plant something that could grow, bear fruit and benefit people for years to come.

For me, it was more than a birthday celebration. It was an expression of my belief that personal happiness and social responsibility can go hand in hand.

That experience strengthened a principle that continues to guide my life:

The most meaningful celebrations are not always the grandest ones, but those that leave something valuable behind.

Important moments in our lives can also become opportunities to give something back.

My Personal Commitment Since April 2018

Around the same period, my respected schoolteacher, Shri Simanchal Sahoo Sir, shared a thought that left a lasting impression on me. He believed that every earning individual should ideally dedicate 15% of their monthly income towards social welfare and helping others.

His words inspired me to turn occasional acts of giving into a regular personal commitment.

I began setting aside 15% of my monthly salary for social causes, including environmental activities and support for people in need.

As my professional journey progressed, two important milestones came in 2018.

In January 2018, I received the Dronacharya Award, followed by a top performance rating in my annual appraisal in April 2018.

These recognitions brought me professional satisfaction, but they also carried a deeper personal meaning.

I felt that the trees I had helped plant and the environmental activities I had undertaken were, in some spiritual sense, returning their blessings to me. It was my personal belief not that planting trees had caused my professional success, but that doing something meaningful for nature had brought greater positivity, gratitude and purpose into my life.

With that feeling of gratitude, I decided in April 2018 to strengthen my commitment to social responsibility.

For me, this is not philanthropy on a grand scale, nor is it something I consider extraordinary.

It is simply a personal discipline; a way of reminding myself that giving should be part of how we live, rather than something we do only when money remains after meeting every other expense.

Over the years, this commitment has become an important part of my personal philosophy.

I believe that the true value of what we earn lies not only in how it improves our own lives, but also in how much good we can create by sharing a part of it with others.

From Planting Trees to Creating Awareness

As my involvement with environmental activities increased, I realised that planting trees alone could not address the scale of environmental challenges around us.

Over the years, I have participated in environmental awareness camps and educational programmes at schools, colleges and community locations, interacting with students, teachers and citizens on environmental protection, tree plantation, climate change and responsible living.

These interactions strengthened my conviction that environmental education, particularly among young people, can create change that lasts much longer than a single event.

From Environmental Action to Writing

As my involvement in environmental activities grew, I gradually realised that planting trees and creating awareness were equally important. While plantation activities could contribute to a greener environment, knowledge and education could inspire people to understand environmental challenges and take responsibility for protecting nature.

An important turning point came during an environmental awareness programme at Ruknidevi Chilika Mahavidyalaya, Chilika Nuapada, Krushnaprasad, Puri, where conversations with journalists Mr. Durga Swain and Mr. Kailash Pattnaik encouraged me to consider writing about environmental issues.

Around the same period, Mr. Sakyasingha Mahapatra, founder of SakRobotix, encouraged me to explore climate related subjects more deeply, particularly climate change and its implications for our planet.

Their encouragement planted another seed in my mind, the idea of contributing to environmental awareness not only through field activities but also through research, writing and knowledge sharing.

In January 2020, I began a more structured journey of environmental reading and self directed research. I purchased books by prominent environmental authors and started studying environmental articles, scientific publications and research papers to broaden my understanding of climate change and sustainability.

What began as personal curiosity gradually developed into a serious commitment to learning.

I devoted substantial time outside my professional responsibilities; often during early mornings, evenings, weekends and holidays to reading, researching and writing about environmental challenges.

The COVID-19 pandemic became an unexpected period of deeper learning. With more time available for reading and writing, I was able to explore environmental subjects in greater detail, organise my thoughts and gradually transform my accumulated knowledge into manuscripts.

Over the following years, this journey evolved into writing books covering climate change, trees, carbon footprints, air pollution, water scarcity, soil degradation, waste management, biodiversity loss, ESG and other sustainability challenges.

I never began this journey with the ambition of becoming an author. My original intention was simply to understand environmental problems better and share that knowledge with others.

Gradually, writing became another meaningful dimension of my environmental journey; a way to reach people beyond the locations where I could personally participate in plantation drives or awareness programmes.

For me, environmental action and environmental education are complementary responsibilities.

Plant a tree, and you may transform a place.

Share knowledge, and you may transform a mind.

Both are essential for creating a more environmentally conscious and sustainable future.

From a Book to the Carbon Calculator

While researching and writing my book The Carbon Footprint, one question repeatedly stayed with me:

How can an ordinary person understand the carbon impact of everyday life?

Knowing about climate change is important. But awareness becomes more useful when people can connect the issue with their own energy use, transportation, food, waste, consumption, and other activities.

This thinking inspired me to conceptualise a Carbon Calculator framework covering six areas:

The idea reflects a principle that has become central to my climate philosophy:

What gets measured can be understood. What gets understood can be reduced.

The Journey Continues

Today, my life continues along several paths, connected by a common purpose: to keep learning, contribute meaningfully and make a positive difference wherever possible.

I remain a full time banking professional, continuing my career with the same commitment to integrity, responsibility and professional excellence.

Alongside my profession, I continue to research and write about climate change, environmental protection and sustainability, with the aim of making complex environmental challenges easier for people to understand.

My writing journey has also expanded beyond environmental subjects. I have begun exploring social issues that require greater public awareness, changes in attitudes and meaningful social reform. Through my social and motivational books, I hope to encourage young people and other sections of society to develop stronger values, responsible habits, positive thinking and a sound foundation for life.

Some of these books have already been published, while others are at different stages of writing and preparation.

I continue to learn about climate change, sustainability and the social challenges affecting our communities. I believe that learning is a lifelong responsibility, and that sharing knowledge is one of the most meaningful ways to contribute to society.

I also remain committed to supporting environmental and social causes through my personal resources and, whenever possible, participating in activities that encourage people to connect with nature and embrace environmental responsibility.

A Journey Made Possible by Many

None of this has been an individual journey.

My wife and family have stood beside me through years of professional responsibilities, personal challenges and environmental commitments. Their understanding, encouragement and support have been invaluable.

I am equally grateful to the teachers, mentors, friends, volunteers, students, villagers, social workers and countless others who have contributed to different stages of my journey.

Whatever I have been able to accomplish has been strengthened by their guidance, encouragement and collective participation.

The Story Is Still Being Written

I do not consider my journey complete.

There is still much to learn, much to write, many ideas to explore and much more to contribute.

I hope to continue using my professional experience, personal resources, writing and environmental knowledge to encourage greater awareness, responsible choices and positive social change.

I may not be able to solve every problem or influence every person. But I believe meaningful change begins when individuals accept responsibility for what lies within their reach.

My belief is simple: