News and Articles

Protecting children from climate change impact not child's play
In 2020, 559 million children were affected by four to five heatwaves a year; numbers could increase four-fold by 2050, as per a report by UNICEF Posted on 06 Nov, 2022 05:45 PM

On October 25 2022, UNICEF released a report titled "The Coldest Year of the Rest of Their Lives: Protecting Children from Escalating Impacts of Heatwaves".

Heat-related mortality is four times higher among children under 1 year of age than in persons aged 1–44 years (Image: Taqver, Wikimedia Commons)
Children demand ecological rights ahead of COP-27
Children say ‘Nothing about us children without us children’ Posted on 06 Nov, 2022 02:38 PM

Ahead of the Conference on Climate Change COP 27 at Egypt, PRATYeK, a registered organization with UN ECOSOC status, known for its national child led-advocacy initiative NINEISMINE, hosted an online event NO COP OUT on November 4 and 5, along with coalition partner

Millions of children face the brunt of climate change in their day to day lives. There Is No Planet B (Image: Blaine O'Neill; Flickr Commons, CC BY-NC 2.0)
Climate Asia addresses concerns about climate change
A masterclass by Climate Asia on “Localisation of Economy from Climate Lens” talks of various aspects from the ground up. Posted on 01 Nov, 2022 08:06 PM

Last week,

Effects of climate change on this low-lying lands (UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe)
Wheat sowing dates influences yields in Eastern Gangetic Plains
Study indicates that better management of the annual cropping calendar can pay dividends for food security Posted on 01 Nov, 2022 08:56 AM

Wheat is a principal crop staple in South Asia with current cultivation extending across 36.1 million ha; around 73% of this area is in India where wheat provides approximately 21% of the aggregate food energy and 17% o

Greater adjustments to the annual cropping calendar are anticipated to increase wheat yield potential by an average of 0.84 t/ha (Image: Pixnio)
Slow disaster: Political ecology of hazards and everyday life in the Brahmaputra valley, Assam
This book by Dr. Mitul Baruah presents a fascinating, ethnographic account of the challenges faced by communities living in Majuli, India, one of the largest river islands in the world, which has experienced immense socio-environmental transformations over the years, processes that are emblematic of the Brahmaputra Valley as a whole. This is an excerpt from the book. Posted on 30 Oct, 2022 07:19 PM

The accumulation of capital and misery go hand in hand, concentrated in space.

― David Harvey, The Limits to Capital, 2006 [1982]: 418

Floods are recurrent phenomena in Assam (Image: Mitul Baruah)
Assessing Udaipur’s groundwater reserves
A study using geospatial techniques suggests the need to regulate groundwater abstraction for long-term sustainability of groundwater use Posted on 29 Oct, 2022 03:04 PM

Population increase has placed ever-increasing demands on the available groundwater resources, particularly for intensive agricultural activities.

here are various methodologies involved in evaluating groundwater reserves. (Image: Needpix)
Groundwater policy affects stubble burning in the north west
Shifting from monoculture to diversified crop pattern a solution to stubble burning Posted on 29 Oct, 2022 10:33 AM

An estimated 620 million tons of crop residue is generated annually in India, of which 16% is burnt in field.

Burning of rice residues in south east Punjab, prior to the wheat season(Image: CIAT/NeilPalmer via Flickr Commons)
Young woman's work is impacting Odisha villages
Urmila, a young woman's earnestness has brought a major shift in the mindset of a remote village in Odisha. She is bringing about a change in the way communities approach their shared natural resources, one village at a time. Posted on 28 Oct, 2022 09:06 AM

The sound of a specific cycle bell deep inside the jungles of Kashinathpur village in Angul (Odisha) brings vibes of joy. Everybody recognises that bell because it belongs to 24-year-old Urmila Bahera who sometimes cycles to villages as far as 15 kilometres, braving bumpy roads, streams and elephants.

Urmila engaging children on local bird diversity (Image: FES)
What causes tropical cyclone driven floods in India?
In the Indian region, landfalling tropical cyclones have the potential to cause floods in the river basins. Both tropical cyclone rainfall and antecedent soil moisture of the basin controls the severity of floods. Posted on 22 Oct, 2022 05:40 PM

Tropical cyclones are intense circular storms that originate over tropical oceans and are among the most significant threats to human life and property in the world. Tropical cyclones are associated with heavy rainfall and strong winds, which cause hazards such as storm surges and inland flooding.

Tropical Cyclone Phailin made its way over the Bay of Bengal towards the eastern Indian coast in 2013, with winds recorded at over 200kmph (Image: EU Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid, CC BY-ND 2.0)
Groundwater prospective zones in Bundelkhand
Integrating geographical information systems and remote sensing for delineation of groundwater potential zones in Bundelkhand region Posted on 22 Oct, 2022 02:59 PM

In the Bundelkhand craton region, groundwater is the primary source of drinking water. Due to low rainfall, agriculture mainly depends on the goundwater supply, which comes through bore wells. Most of the time, the region faces a water crisis during the summer season as the wells and tube wells go dry.

Numerous studies have been performed worldwide in which remote sensing data is used to delineate the groundwater potential zones (Image: India Water Portal Flickr)
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