In Pune, discarded paper is getting a second life. What was once waste is now becoming notebooks, and rewriting futures.
Behind the movement is Pritu Chaudhary, a commerce graduate from Varanasi with a strong concern for both waste and inequality.
While working in the corporate world, she couldn’t ignore two realities: one was the rising paper waste, and the other was children struggling without basic school supplies.
In 2014, she founded ‘Little Leaf’, an initiative aimed at collecting waste paper and turning it into notebooks for underprivileged pupils.
“I feel waste is not just rubbish; it is an opportunity to create something valuable that benefits both the environment and society,” says Pritu. She believes that sustainability must solve real social problems too.
Little Leaf organises free doorstep collection of used paper from homes, schools, offices, and housing societies.
For every two kilograms of paper donated, one recycled notebook is produced. Donors can keep it or choose to gift it to a child.
The paper is sent to recycling partners and manufacturers, where it is processed and converted into fresh and usable notebooks.
So far, over 100,000 kg of waste paper has been diverted from landfill and turned into thousands of notebooks.
In 2024 alone, around 3,000 notebooks were distributed. In 2025, the number has already crossed 5,000, with more drives planned.
Through workshops and awareness drives, communities are learning about segregation. “People now see waste as an asset. They ask us how to segregate better and how to donate regularly,” Pritu explains.
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