As climate change intensifies, it is imperative for policymakers to address the escalating loss and damage it inflicts on vulnerable communities in developing countries. In India's Maharashtra state, these impacts are forcing rural families into life-altering decisions and migrations to work in sugarcane fields, where exploitative practices by contractors, including …
In a major boost to 26 large but incomplete irrigation projects in Maharashtra, the Centre on Tuesday sanctioned a Rs 16,603-crore loan to the state. "This is the single largest assistance organised by the Indian government for the irrigation sector to one state,'' I S Chahal, principal secretary , state …
Recent work suggests that episodes of drought and heat can bring forests across climate zones to a threshold for massive tree mortality. As complex systems approach a threshold for collapse they tend to exhibit a loss of resilience, as reflected in declining recovery rates from perturbations. Trees may be no …
US president delivers two major speeches on climate change, on in Nevada, pleading with politicians to act in the interest of future generations Barack Obama has issued perhaps his most personal plea yet to overcome the existential threat posed by climate change. The US president gave two major speeches on …
NAIROBI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - The La Nina weather phenomenon is likely to worsen drought and hunger in Somalia, especially in the north where many people and their animals are migrating in search of water after four failed rainy seasons, the United Nations said on Thursday. La Nina, characterized by …
Kenya/Tanzania borderland is a critical area for conservation of biodiversity. This study was done to establish the effects of 2007 and 2009 droughts through aerial counts. Findings indicate that large mammal population collapsed, but some species crashed more than others. Total large mammal density declined over three times (207.43%), recovering …
U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday embarked on a 10-day trip where he will stress the urgency of curbing climate change and try to achieve some final agreements with world leaders at a G20 meeting in China. Obama, who is racing to cement his legacy on climate change before his …
As a multiyear drought grinds on in the Southwestern United States, many wonder about the impact of global climate change on more frequent and longer dry spells. As humans emit more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, how will water supply for people, farms, and forests be affected? A new study …
South Africa's recovery from its worst drought in over century could be stalled as anticipated rain relief from a La Nina weather system remains uncertain, the South African Weather Service said on Monday. An earlier prediction of a moderate La Nina, which is associated with higher rainfall, for the spring/summer …
On the New Airport road in the west Indian city of Pune, five Vodafone billboards are doing more to help the drought-hit village of Pimpri Sandas than the local government. The billboards, fitted with tanks, are harvesting rainwater. When the tanks are full, a text message sounds on the mobile …
Mumbai: Ganpati pandals often seem to be the conscience keepers of society given that they focus on topical causes apart from entertainment. This year the plight of farmers in drought-affected regions of the state is a recurrent theme in several prominent pandals. Tejukaya Compound in Lalbaug has repeatedly shed light …
As humans pump carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and global temperatures rise, many questions loom. One major issue is how much fresh water will be available for people, forests and agriculture. A study led by the University of Washington shows that popular long-term drought estimates have a major flaw: They …
We show that the water savings that plants experience under high CO2 conditions compensate for much of the effect of warmer temperatures, keeping the amount of water on land, on average, higher than we would predict with common drought metrics, and with a different spatial pattern. The implications of plants …
For a couple of days there has been no rain in Kaliabor and scorching heat has been making the life of people miserable. Due to unbearable heat caused by blazing sun and dearth of rain, the number of children going to school has also decreased. Although it has been raining …
Passing through the aged faded gates into Gorongosa National Park, it's difficult to imagine you've just entered Mozambique's largest wildlife sanctuary. Bled dry by a long civil war that ravaged Mozambique from 1976 to 1992, the park has seen a remarkable turnaround in the last decade. But even as it …
Man-made greenhouse gases began to nudge up the Earth's temperatures almost 200 years ago as the Industrial Revolution gathered pace, far earlier than previously thought, scientists said on Wednesday. Greenhouse gas emissions from industry left their first traces in the temperatures of tropical oceans and the Arctic around 1830, they …
GUTAURARE, Zimbabwe (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - The only dam in this small-scale farming community in eastern Zimbabwe used to provide water for both people and cattle. Now, dried to a dirty puddle, it is a source of competition rather than refreshment. As a small boy tries to fill two containers …
As drought sweeps many countries in Africa, an initiative led by water NGOs supports the use of underground aquifers. But the idea is controversial Despite recent heavy rains, Ethiopia is still reeling from the worst drought to hit the country for half a century, particularly in the livestock-dependent regions of …
Farmers in drought-hit southern Africa urgently need help to plant the next harvest, or else the food crisis gripping the region will continue into 2017, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization said on Thursday. Southern Africa has been badly affected over the past year by the El Nino weather …
The Japanese government has donated five million US dollars to help the World Food Programme (WFP) provide food assistance between September and November 2016 to over 300,000 drought-affected people in the four worst affected countries in southern Africa. Mozambique will receive the largest portion of this donation, with WFP using …
The Indian government through its ministry of external affairs has confirmed a $1 million grant to drought hit Zimbabwe. The Asian giant also announced that logistical modalities are being worked out for donation of 500 metric tonnes of rice in the second phase of assistance. This follows an appeal by …
