The World Meteorological Organization’s State of the Climate in Asia 2024 report warns that the region is warming nearly twice as fast as the global average, driving more extreme weather and posing serious threats to lives, ecosystems, and economies. In 2024, Asia experienced its warmest or second warmest year on …
India's prominence in the energy market is that it is the world's sixth largest energy consumer - and yet woefully short of energy sources. It has large coal reserves but the worrisome part is petroleum, which accounts for about 30 per cent of the total energy. India produces only 30 …
"One of the ironies at the turn of the century is that, in an age when the pace of technological change is almost overwhelming, the world will remain dependent, out to the year 2020 at least, essentially on the same sources of energy - oil, natural gas, coal - that …
The US President George W Bush is raring to launch an attack on Iraq. Whether it has weapons of mass destruction or not, Iraq certainly has the world's second largest reserves of petroleum after Saudi Arabia. Thanks to UN sanctions, it produces a mere fraction of its potential. The US, …
"Not since the rise of the railroads more than a century ago has a single industry [energy] placed so many foot soldiers at the top of a new administration." - Newsweek, May 14, 2001 George W Bush took over as president of the US on January 20, 2001. Within two …
Iceland is gearing up to become the first country to do away with fossil fuels completely. The Iceland government pledges to change over to hydrogen-based fuels and has already made the initial moves in the direction. The country has set up a joint venture company called the
USA: Domestic and international travellers made nearly 287 million visits to the 378 parks under the US National Park Service in 1998 compared to the 275 million visits in 1997. This travel generated US $14.2 billion and supported almost 300,000 tourist-related jobs during 1996. Nepal: The Annapurna area is the …
If there is an ideal ecotourism destination in India, it is Sikkim. This eastern Himalayan state of India with its pristine mountains, crystal clear lakes and rich cultural and natural diversity, is fast gaining popularity. Attracting some two lakh tourists a year, of which 12,000 are foreigners, it has witnessed …
Not everyone is thrilled with ecotourism. Many believe that the big business of tourism people is only using the people in destinations, who offer their natural, social and cultural resources to make the
If tourism revenues are generated by the quality of natural goods like a healthy tiger habitat or an excellent coral reef, then should tourists not be asked to pay an ecotax to conserve them? This year the socialist-green regional government of the Balearic Islands in Spain has attempted to do …
Seeking nirvana Rich, restless and willing to pay Babu Vargese was thrown out of college because he insisted on wearing his hair long. Vargese likes to do things differently. Like running TourIndia, a Kerala based travel agency he founded 20 years ago. His keen interest in nature and people, coupled …
even for the most rich and famous, every penny counts. So is the case with the Silicon Valley that is troubled by the rising cost of making silicon chips. The soaring costs are due to a complicated process known as photolithography which is used for fixing transistors and wires on …
Bamboo flowering is considered a bad omen in several northeastern states of India, especially when accompanied by an increase in rodent population. It is believed to lead to famines and natural calamities. The next bamboo flowering is expected around year 2003-04. Should we prepare ourselves? On October 29, 1958 the …
Efforts to reduce the impact of business and industry on nature are falling short, reveals a new United Nations Environment Programme (unep) report. Very few companies in each industry are actively integrating social and environmental factors into business decisions. Furthermore, improvements are being overtaken by economic growth and increasing demand …
On July 1, Denmark will take over chairpersonship of the European Union. Then it will be the responsibility of the newly elected right-wing Danish prime minister, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, to help define and promote the global role of the only group of nations in a position to challenge the dominance …
THE good news: the Planning Commission has come out with its first national human development report. The bad news: like any other human development report (HDR) (there is no dearth of them now), this report too has refused to acknowledge the real meaning of development for India. Dwelling extensively on …
This book is a welcome addition to the growing literature on the joint forest management (JFM) programme. The beginnings of this initiative can be dated to the early 1970s, when people had just begun to question the 'industrialise at all costs' policy. However, it took another decade and a half …
A constructive critique should consider desirable consequences, intended or otherwise. The Bush administration's climate change plan, us Climate Change Strategy: A New Approach , obviously deserves the same treatment, particularly in the light of the numerous domestic initiatives that have recently sprung up in the us , and their potential …
Despite its environmental impact, China has begun building a 4,200-kilometre gas pipeline costing us $18 billion. Its aim: boosting economic growth in the impoverished western provinces and delivering fuel to the booming eastern city of Shanghai. The pipeline's trial construction has already kicked off in fragile wetlands and on the …
