India, Nov. 28 -- When Vaishali Rana moved to Gurugram in 2011 from Mumbai, she said she had no idea that the city would change her life's purpose. Rana, 50 now, is among the region's most active voices for the environment whose work has shaped public policy and forced authorities to recognise ecological rights.

Born to a family in Himachal Pradesh, Rana is a former Air India (earlier Indian Airlines) crew member who flew for 16 years out of Mumbai with a postgraduate in Heritage Conservation Management from Indraprastha University, Delhi. Raised by a retired Indian Army officer, and now a mother to a college-going son, she said that her environmental activism is guided by her compassion.

She said her path into public-interest issues be...