Good Food is First Food. It is not junk food. It is the food that connects nature and nutrition with livelihoods. This food is good for our health; it comes from the rich biodiversity of our regions; it provides employment to people. Most importantly, cooking and eating give us pleasure. …
at a meeting of international scientists and non-governmental organisations ( ngo s) at the Netherlands recently, a list of controversial issues related to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ( unfccc ) was put to vote, to prioritise discussions. The list contained a range of issues, from the …
Anil Agarwal, noted environmentalist and director of the Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi, has been conferred the Padma Bhushan, one of the nation's highest civilian awards, for his outstanding contribution to society. He is also the recipient of the Padma Shri. Besides these, in 1987, the United Nations …
it was an all-out attempt to paint a green picture of the auto industry. Close on the heels of a number of Supreme Court orders castigating the automobile industry for the growing air pollution in Delhi, the industry tried its best to put on an eco-friendly face at the Auto …
Briefing paper on climate change for members of Parliament by Anil Agarwal - Calling upon policy makers to recognise India's stake in the international climate change negotiations.
The residents of Kuil Thothom, a slum tenement in Santhome, Chennai, have a lot to be thankful to the Rotary Club of Madras Central, especially R Jeyakumar, its chairperson. The club helped in bringing clean water to their homes. The need to explore the possibility of rooftop rainwater harvesting in …
in the recently-concluded assembly elections, the Sikkim Democratic Front , led by Pawan Kumar Chamling, was returned to power in Sikkim winning 24 out of the 32 seats in the assembly. Chamling was rated as the greenest chief minister in a recent survey of Down To Earth readers which was …
five days after arriving in the us , I noticed that the asthma, that had been my constant companion in Delhi, had almost completely disappeared. Only then did I truly realise to what extent the air we breathe has become poison. Today, tens of millions of city dwellers who are …
Mashelkar: Traditional patent systems dealt with industrial products. There has now been a sudden shift from inanimate objects to animate ones like humans and plants. The issue has assumed importance all of a sudden because multinational pharmaceutical companies began picking up leads and developing new products without giving any credit …
that electoral politics and the environment do not mix well in India is a foregone conclusion. Lost in the maze of religion, casteism and regionalism, our politicians have no incentive to draw up plans to improve the natural environment, make promises based on these plans, fulfil those promises, and make …
public concern over air pollution levels in Delhi is growing. On July 13, over 125,000 doctors of the Indian Medical Association ( ima ) voiced their concern over the increasing incidence of air pollution-related diseases in India, and specifically in Delhi, at a public event organised by the Centre for …
Dear readers, "Want to buy a diesel car to keep your oil bill low? You may end up trading your life for cheap and toxic diesel. As companies go for hard sell of diesel cars, dieselmania grips you too. What was supposed to be cheap fuel for poor farmers is …
We were very puzzled by two letters that appeared in quick succession in the letters to the editor columns of The Economic Times and Business Standard (July 10 and July 15 respectively), hurling all kinds of accusations at the recently published Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) monograph ‘Engines of …
At the invitation of President K R Narayanan, the Centre for Science and Environment (cse), sent experts to investigate the possibility of rainwater harvesting at the President's Estate. After visiting the estate, the team proposed to harvest rainwater from the estate rooftops, paved and unpaved areas. This was calculated to …
India is facing a serious double burden of disease. Most of the old infectious diseases like malaria, filariasis and kala-azar have not yet disappeared; indeed they are bouncing back. At the same time, other chronic non-communicable diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease and respiratory disorders are becoming more dominant.
Indian industry is huge and powerful. Most environ mentalists believe that it has done little to reduce pollution. Is there, therefore, anything that the civil society can do to change the situation? I am delighted to present to the readers of Down to Earth ( dte ) the results of …
At the onset of the Green Rating Project, cse set up a project advisory panel ( pap ) comprising industry leaders, judges, research and development experts, policymakers, academicians, environmentalists, journalists and other eminent members of the civil society. pap was formed to advise, guide and steer the project and give …
A competent technical panel is vital for the Green Rating Project. Keeping this in mind, cse selected three leading technologists in the pulp and paper sector to form the Technical Consultants Panel ( tcp ) to help in the rating the industry. The tcp members are: N J Rao , …
In May/June 1997, cse 's grp team released advertisements in Down To Earth inviting professionals, students, non-governmental organisations and other sections of the civil society to become a part of the "Green Rating Network'. They would be responsible for collecting data on Indian industries. The rationale behind the setting up …
