In a recent international conference on ‘Climate Change: Technology Development & Transfer’ held in Delhi, the Prime Minister of India Dr. Manmohan Singh began his speech by stating that climate friendly and environmentally sound technologies should be viewed as global public goods.

The panel, also chaired by the Maldives President after his country’s recent underwater stunt, called for the Northern countries to do (much) more than just emissions reduction. The statement also comes shortly after media reports suggest India could change its national position on climate change to drop the ‘deal-breaker’ tag put on it by the West.

The BIG question: Will India change its official position ahead of Copenhagen?

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..and then takes a U-Turn the very next day!

In a reported letter to the Prime Minister of India, Mr. Jairam Ramesh, the Indian Environment Minister proposed a radical shift in India’s stand on climate change–away from its national position on climate negotiations–which India has backed since 1990 and which was defended robustly even in UN talks in Bangkok earlier this month.

Minutes after the news spread, political parties sitting in the opposition were quick to respond. Within the next few hours, the Environment Minister issued a clarifying statement for national media and the entire Nation!

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Chaired by President M. Nasheed, the Government of Maldives recently concluded the world’s first ever underwater cabinet meeting. The small island nation of Maldives will perhaps be the first country to go under water, if predictions based on climate change models come true.

The underwater meeting was called to raise this concern and put pressure on the West to act NOW, and for a fair deal at COP in Copenhagen this December. A day after the event, extensively covered by the media (View on: CNN | BBC), the Government of India has announced the setting up of a National institute for long-term research on climate change.

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Even as the world prepares for the grand climate meet at Copenhagen this December, a large part of South India has gone under water. And while talks have already begun on coming up with an equitable deal and the very fear that there may be none, over 300 people have already lost their lives while millions are displaced and missing in this global warming related freak weather event, predicted well in advance by the IPCC in its Fourth Assessment Report in 2007.

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Ganga, the holiest of holy rivers in the Indian sub-continent is also one of the most polluted rivers in the region. Last year, after much lobbying, Ganga was declared the National River of India owing to its religious as well as environmental significance. However, just that could never have been enough for cleaning a river on which millions of Rupees have already been spent.

Now, the Union Environment Minister of India Mr. Jairam Ramesh, who had previously unveiled the National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA), has put the NBRBA on a “mission mode” to clean the river by 2020. And his indicator for success is not clear blue waters but the return of the Gangetic dolphins that were once sighted in the river in plenty!

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Al Gore and Dr. R.K. Pachauri (IPCC) under the Mahatma’s words!

Today is the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi - regarded as ‘Father of the Nation’ by the Republic of India and a ‘Global Peacemaker’ by the United Nations; so much so that this day is also celebrated as the International Day of Non-Violence. The Mahatma has also been the inspiration for US President Obama who believes that America has its roots in Gandhi’s India because the teachings he shared with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. helped change U.S. society through the civil rights movement.

Now, with the world facing a climate crisis and already on the crossroads of equity and/in development, it is time to resurrect and revive the Gandhian principles of simple living-high thinking, participatory governance, etc. at the global level.

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Last week, the Internet celebrated its 40th birthday! Forty glorious years that saw not just the transition from ARPANet to the now popular Internet but also Web 2.0 and what not! The Internet has been a revolution–in the making! The Internet that we know of today has been around for a little over a decade. That is also the time period when awareness and action on the “global” climate crisis has been phenomenal. And the link, evident!

According to the Internet Governance Forum, Internet consumes up to one trillion kilowatt hours of electricity per year, amounting to around 5% of the world’s total electricity consumption. The ‘tools’ of the IT sector are also manufactured using metals of various kinds. So the question remains, can Internet really help solve the climate crisis? The answer, on behalf of a generation grown up with the Internet, a firm Yes!

Here are five ways how Internet is helping fight climate change:

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Gender concern in water resources management is globally seen as instrumental in
achieving greater efficiency, effectiveness and equity in the sector. The role of women in water management has long been recognized by the Indian administration. One of the reasons for this is the importance of women in terms of their numerical strength and the significant contribution they make to the agricultural labor force.

In the primarily agricultural Indian setup, there is a strong need to encourage participation of women in even greater strength. Consequently, at least one of the states in India (and a drought hit one) has now declared reservation for women in all local water governing bodies at all levels.

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Cities that are worst hit are closing schools, shopping malls, theaters and other public places. Screening centers authorized for carrying out the H1N1 test are flooded with unwell people eager to get tested even as the Government struggles to keep panic at bay.

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‘Kids for Tigers’ Aerial Art with the President of India’s House in the vicinity

It was the famous cricketer Sachin Tendulkar who declared that he now bats for the tiger. It is the former Indian cricket captain Saurav Ganguly who is referred to as the Bengal Tiger. But it was another ace Indian cricketer and a favorite of many, Rahul Dravid, who took part in the 5th Bengal Tiger Consultation and Tiger Rally. And as someone who was there to learn and do something about the drastically reducing tiger numbers in the country.

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Alarmed with the almost daily reporting of rapidly declining tiger numbers and the inaction that follows, school children and several civil society groups in the Indian capital city of New Delhi are coming together to demand the basic right of the tiger–a Right to Survival. And in that, ensuring the survival of the entire human race. The Rally that follows a tiger consultation will also be a shift from all that has been done to all that needs to be done. As an organizer of the rally, comments like these are both inspiring and thought provoking.

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Monsoon - said to be India’s true Finance Minister and an indicator of the country’s water and livelihood security - has had a delayed arrival this year.

And when it came, it has been more variable than ever before in recent recorded history. Drought and floods have hit the country and put it under a great water stress. The situation is being monitored very closely and the Indian Government is ready with a contingency plan.

Two states have been declared drought hit and the Indian Agriculture Minister has expressed his concern over food production this year. Water wars have already begun in the country that has otherwise been giving a good fight to the global financial crisis. Not sure if its climate change or a result of rapid urbanization, or both, but India certainly needs to do a lot to secure its water resources for today and tomorrow.

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The Central Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF) in India has launched a plan to sterilize over 8 million dogs over the next ten years. The mission: to eradicate rabies from India as quickly as possible. It is estimated that each year over 20,000 people die of rabies in India while at the same time over four billion rupees (close to 80m USD) worth of vaccines against rabies are being imported by the country every year.

The move, which has so far received a good response from society as well as animal welfare organizations is indeed a right step and a better option than the mass-slaughter practice currently used in neighboring China.

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Rainfall patterns altered by climate change and worsened by inequity in the water distribution system has led to a water crisis in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.

This has led to a spurt in water related violence and conflicts so shocking, we thought they were predicted to take place only in the next 50 years. The local incident mentioned in the news report above was one among many where a mob of about six people killed a family for illegally drawing water from the municipal supply even as onlookers rushed back and forth to collect water before the pipe ran dry.

The incident, which occurred in a below poverty line (BPL) settlement, is yet another validation of how climate change is having much more impact on the poor, especially in the developing world.

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In six years time, the number of people affected each year by the climate crises is projected to rise by 54 per cent to 375 million. This will not just be overwhelming for the humanitarian aid system it would also further the inequity that plagues the world and will make the fight for climate justice even more challenging.

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Moving the Earth on Her Day!

When Earth Hour was celebrated on the 28th of last month, the city of Delhi saved 600 MW of electricity - the highest in any Metro city in India - just by switching off non-essential lights. In terms of Carbon emissions, it was as if 2.3 million small cars were taken off the road.  It was thus decided by the Chief Minister of Delhi that the Earth Hour will be celebrated every month in the city, and 22nd April - the Earth Day was appropriately chosen to be the day for this month.

Earth Day this year was also a landmark event for the city. Delhi faces several environmental issues most of which are actually the challenges of a rapidly evolving capital city of a country which is developing at an equal pace. Trees being cut almost every day, a polluted river only getting worse, the mobility crisis and the inequity, vehicular pollution and unplanned urban planning are all issues faced by citizens who wanted a solution to these by having a say in the decision making and access to basic information.

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Tourism is the world’s largest and most promising industry. The concept of ‘eco-tourism’ is perhaps the most abused, little understood and least explored. Going to the mountains or a National Park and all other forms of natural tourism are often, though not always, marketed as ‘eco-tours’. While Ecotourism can be distinguished from nature tourism by its emphasis on conservation, education, traveler responsibility and active community participation, there is a severe paucity of efforts and attempts in the right direction for conducting such eco-tours.

Now, a youth led organization and an urban think tank in Delhi, India has taken to itself to research and explore ‘urban ecotourism’ as a means to connect the citizens back to their city, and raise awareness about the ‘nature in the city’. Underlying to this initiative is also the understanding that for the first time in human history, a majority of people live in cities or towns and that cities are the future of the world!

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This could not have come at a more appropriate time. Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar, arguably the greatest international cricketer to have ever walked the face of the earth dedicated his most recent Test century at Hamilton, to the tiger. Tiger conservation to be precise. He was later also quoted stating that the entire Indian cricket team supported the cause of the critically endangered species, whose numbers have been dropping alarmingly in the wild. Further in his message, Tendulkar said, “This majestic species is a symbol of India’s rich and diverse wildlife heritage. It is in our best interests to ensure that this magnificent animal is not wiped out.

The tiger population in India has dropped by another 17 since January 1st this year and poaching, poisoning, old age and infighting are the reasons cited by the officials. And even as laws are being tightened after each confiscation of tiger body parts, the massive demand of a market in China ensures tigers are valued more dead than alive and that poachers continue to be active. The message by Sachin is being seen as a shot in the arm for tiger conservation something that will be verified over time.

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At the launch of the India Climate Solutions Road tour…

Not so long ago, and supported by Delhi Greens, the Indian Youth Climate Network (IYCN) was formed to give a voice to the next generation of India in the climate dialogue. The Network called for youth to come together in order to ensure a clean, bright future. Several city summits amidst a National Youth Summit on Climate Change, and the first ever Indian youth delegation sent to the COP at Poznan ensured that the Indian youth got its voice heard both nationally and during the international climate negotiations.

Now, members of the Indian Youth Climate Network along with a solar powered band are traveling a distance of more than 3500 kilometers in the country in solar plug-in electric cars and alternative-fueled buses. The focus of this journey is to both raise awareness and convert awareness into tangible actions. Climate solutions would be documented all through the journey and the underlying objective is to communicate the message of working to bring down the Carbon concentration to well below 350 ppm.

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An awesome Public EcoArt Project with the Metro Station in the vicinity

48° Celsius is the highest temperature that the city of Delhi, India has witnessed in its recorded history. 48° Celsius is also a reference to the exigencies of global warming - which can be felt in Delhi’s continuously escalating summer temperatures each year. Delhi, by any score, qualifies as one amongst the world’s most dynamic and complex urban settings. Like most other urban centers of this country and of the south Asian region, the city of Delhi is characterized by multi-layered historicity and multiple urbanisms that get expressed in varying conditions within its cultural and physical fabric.

With this as the backdrop, and as a combined Goethe-Institut and GTZ initiative, the 48c Public.Art.Ecology Festival was recently celebrated in Delhi. A large empty bucket, a tree hanging from a crane, a hanging garden for want of space, a crash landing, cycle-rickshaws as local story-tellers, a bamboo art, a step-well with a large inverted mineral bottle on top…Delhi witnessed it all this December!

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